Eastern Himalayas

      

A jungle camp at the borders of a dense forest at the foot hills of the Himalaya….forlorn
yet feisty. Sunlight is the only source of illumination there….. Yes, you guessed it right!
It’s absolute dark at night except for a flicker of a torch or a lantern. The constant cry
of cricket creates an atmosphere of mystery and intrigue. Further, the inevitable rains at
night make it all the more eerie. No! This not a scene from a murder mystery movie! This
is real and happening. If you want to experience this reel life experience in your real life,
just visit the Jungle camps of Help Tourism situated at the Chilapata Wildlife Sanctuary,
North Bengal Dooars. In addition to mystery you will also get inebriated with nature’s
opulence.
It’s not only tourism but an overall social and economic development that’s been fostered
in these so called remote locations. Some organizations are harnessing the tremendous
potential of these places as tourist spots and are emerging successful in their endeavor
of promoting tourism together with an all round development of the area. Most of
the tourism destinations, initiatives & projects in East Himalaya include biodiversity
hotspots in international border areas, which are isolated from the main stream and breeds
conflicts because of economical poverty, which finally results in destruction of rich
natural resources. These hotspots are the last habitat for flagship species like the Royal
Bengal Tiger, Clouded Leopard, Asiatic Wild Water Buffalo, Red Panda, Golden Langur,
Hoolock Gibbon, Asian elephant, One Horned Rhinoceros, innumerable species of birds,
reptiles and amphibians etc. The inhabitants of these areas have rich traditions and unique
cultures.
Help Tourism has done a commendable job in developing the remote areas of Eastern
Himalayas. Asit Biswas, MD, Help Tourism is associated with tourism for the last 20
years. Mr. Biswas believes that linking protected areas and heritages with people’s
livelihood and giving them ownership through tourism is first step towards conservation
and sustainable development in East Himalaya. Mr Biswas who has spent days in these
areas and have known these remote and neglected places and also the pulse of the people
there feels that without the continuous cooperation and support of the local people he
could never have succeeded in his efforts. “We enter the area using tourism, as we
have seen tourism as a tool that opens the global window in the highly neglected areas.
The arrival of tourists helps to eradicate the feeling of isolation and poverty, and the
appreciation from visitors develops a sense of pride in the local people for their local
natural & cultural resources. The economical benefit and administrative attention brought
in by the visitors balances the rich traditions and conservation initiatives by the local
communities. The process of balance in resources initiates peace,” enunciates Biswas.

Today there are exotic tourist bases in the entire Eastern Himalayas. From Manas Tiger
Reserve in Assam, Singalila National Park, Darjeeling hills, Namdapha Tiger Reserve,
Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary in Eastern Arunachal Pradesh, Neora Valley National Park,
Kalimpong hills to Chilapata Wildlife Sanctuary, North Bengal Dooars, initiatives have
been taken to transform all these remote areas into attractive tourist destinations. The
tourism developers here are not single focused on promoting tourism; they have also
taken a great deal of effort to turn the declared poachers and terrorists into protectors of
nature and social leaders for change towards better. This was possible by engaging them

into the entire process of development and conservation. Nurul Hassan, a local youth who
now works as a guide at the Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary said, “There has been a radical
change in the youth force, which now takes pride in conserving their traditions & relate
themselves globally, hence the end of isolation. The visit of international travelers attracts
the attention of local administration, who tries to bring in development activities for the
destinations.”

At all these tourism destinations, there are community associations/ organizations to look
after the protection of the local nature, which are usually, designated Tiger Reserves,
National Parks or Wildlife sanctuaries. All visitors have to subscribe a temporary
membership or visit the natural areas with the local community associations and
participate with the local members in the several protection activities. “Our destinations
not only motivate the visitor, but baptize him to act responsibly in their future travel
decisions. The local communities at all sites are an integral part of the Help Tourism
initiatives. They are the principal stakeholders in the tourism initiatives and benefit
financially, socially and spiritually.” enthuses Biswas. Further strengthening his words,
Meenakshi Subramaniam, a tourist from Kerala, says, “I have traveled alone in some
of the most remote parts of the Himalayas using Help Tourism. The whole philosophy
of holistic and community beneficial tourism is epitomized by the tours offered. I
have visited and stayed in Manas, an important tiger habitat, Kaziranga as well as
Dibru Saikova/ Mishmi Hills all of which have several local and indigenous tribes and
communities. Every community member I have met through my travels through Help
has been friendly and helpful.” While Mikey Leung a travel journalist feels, “By taking
tourism and its benefits to some of the most vulnerable and least understood destinations
our planet has to offer, particularly the undertravelled regions of Northeast India, these
organizations do what few other companies are willing to do: to put tourism profit and
social development on the same agenda.”

Spiti Valley, a desert mountain valley in the north-eastern part of the Indian state of
Himachal Pradesh is another less explored tourist destination. Located between Tibet and
India, Spiti is often called "The Middle Land". Nestled in the trans-himalayan range, Spiti
is a high altitude desert region with an arid landscape, scarce vegetation and a 6 month
long cold winter period (temperatures dip to – 30 degree centigrade) allowing cultivation
of only one crop a year. Spread over more than 7,000 sq km, Spiti gets isolated during the
winter Spiti at a Glance months with access routes getting disrupted due to thick layers
of snow. Promoting this once unknown treasure of nature is an initiative by Ms.Ishita
Khanna and Mr.Sunil Chouhan. They named their initiative ‘Spiti Ecosphere’. Ecosphere
is a collaborative effort of the local community of Spiti and professionals from diverse
backgrounds. Ecosphere aims at the sustainable development of the Spiti valley by
working on the triple bottom line linkage of economic empowerment, conservation and
development. Ms. Ishita Khanna the co founder of Spiti Ecosphere believes, “Ecosphere
works on synergizing the multitude of livelihoods available to the local community.
This on the one hand reduces over dependence on one particular livelihood and on the
other hand ensures the conservation of the regions natural and cultural diversity. Our
objective is to create sustainable livelihoods that are linked to conservation.” Taking a
cue from MS Khanna, Sunil Chouhan, co founder, Spiti Ecosphere adds, “In tandem

with its core philosophy, Ecosphere has focused most of its efforts on developing options
that tap the local surpluses and unique attributes of Spiti. One such surplus identified
was Seabuckthorn (a wild berry with high medicinal value). The other high potential
livelihood avenue that emerged was eco-tourism. Moreover by developing markets for
indigenous crops such as barley and black peas, Ecosphere is attempting to promote and
thereby revive the cultivation of indigenous crops which are more suitable to the areas
geo-climatic conditions as well as protect the organic practices of the region.” Rachel
Parry a European tourist who visited Spiti vouches Khanna and Chouhan by saying, “My
time spent in Spiti Valley working with Ecosphere was not only extremely rewarding
but also a huge personal achievement. I meet incredible people and visited some
breathtaking places. I could not believe the enthusiasm the monks and masons had, and
their willingness to teach and work with us, even with the language barrier. Ecosphere
supplied us with some great ‘added extras’ which I personally had not expected, this
included friendship, local knowledge, guidance and chocolate!!!”

Himalayas, one of the most magnificent mountain ranges on this earth has amazed,
enchanted and fascinated travelers from all over the world. The promotion of these less
explored places has made the mountains all the more intriguing. These places have
successfully attracted visitors from both in and outside the country thus vivifying its
innate idea of ‘Incredible India!’