Rafting in Uttarakhand

Government policies and unprecedented floods have taken a heavy toll on rafting industry::

P.S. Chauhan

Under normal circumstances this time of year is a boom time for the rafting companies in Rishikesh-Kaudiala eco-tourism zone. As each year in October rafting season begins and hordes of water sports lovers flock to the temple city of Rishikesh to feel the thrill of white water rafting and other water sports. However, this time it is a different story altogether and the entrepreneurs engaged in rafting business are a worried lot. Besides prolonged bickering between the state government and the rafting companies, the unprecedented natural disasters have made the 'unkindest cut' on the adventure tourism activity of the state.

With clear foamy water, serene environment and the quality of gradients, the 34 kilometer stretch on the Ganga near Rishikesh offers some of the best rapids in the world and so it has emerged as one of the most preferred destinations for water sports enthusiasts. Though water sports, such as rafting, canoeing and kayaking, started in the region in the 1990s, these sports took the shape of a business activity in 2000 after the formation of the state. Today, rafting has taken the form of a big industry, with 109 rafting companies, including some big players like Snow Leopard, Mercury Himalayan Exploration, Outdoor Adventure India and Rino Expedition, with an estimated business of about Rs.40 crore per annum.

Deepak Bhatt, the president of the Sahasik Paryatan Sangharsh Samiti (SPSS), the association of all the rafting companies operating in the region, says that the policies of the government are adversely hitting adventure tourism in the state. "There is no permanent policy for issuing rafting licenses and for allotment of campsites at banks of the rivers. The licenses are renewed every year by the tourism department after inspection and the campsites are also allotted on yearly basis by the forest department. This creates uncertainty. We cannot develop the banks properly, since we are not sure which bank will be allotted to which company. The licensee should be granted and campsites should also be allotted for 5 or 10 years, so that there is continuity in our business," says Bhatt. To make the matters worse the state government has now imposed 20 per cent entertainment tax on the adventure tourists. "Rafting is not an entertainment industry. This tax is not levied on rafting in any other state of the country," says Dinesh Kathait, the secretary of the SPSS. The sources say that rafting companies are now considering the option of going to the court against the imposition of the entertainment tax on the rafters.

As things stand today, the rafting companies have to deal with the tourism department, the forest department and the entertainment tax department to run their activities. "Dealing with so many agencies create problems and unnecessary delay. There must be a single window system at the government level for the rafting industry," says Manjul Rawat, who runs a rafting company. The rafting companies are also opposing a proposal of the state government to auction the campsites to the highest bidders. The government authorities say that the rafting companies are earning crores of rupees every year, but the state government gets only a very little share out of it. However, the rafting companies reject this argument given by the government to justify the auction of the banks to the highest bidders. "The auction of banks to the highest bidders will open the gateway for the mafia and the outside players. If this is done, the interests of the local entrepreneurs will suffer," says Dinesh Kathait. It view of the strong protest by the rafting companies the proposal has been shelved for the time being and status quo is being maintained. However, the forest department has hiked rent of the camp sites by three times. "Since rafting companies have hiked the fares they realize from the rafters, the upward revision of the rent of the camp sites was over due," says R.D. Pathak, the divisional forest officer of Narendra Nagar forest division, who looks after the camp sites in this eco-tourism zone.

Last month the government appointed a high power committee under the chairmanship of the forests and rural development commissioner of the state to formulate a rafting policy. The committee consists of representatives of finance, tourism, forests and revenue department. "We, as stake holders in the rafting business, should also be included in the committee. Without our representatives, the recommendations of the committee will not serve the required purpose," says Deepak Bhatt.

Here rafting season starts in September and continues upto June. Due to floods the level of water in the Ganga throughout September is too high to do any sort of rafting. The banks and roads are also damaged. The rafting companies hoped to have boom time in September and October due to the Common Wealth Games in Delhi in October, but nature fury dashed all their great expectations, as most of the water sports lovers turned towards Himachal Pradesh. Their licenses have now been renewed and the roads and the banks are in the process of being repaired. But by the end of October, the influx of tourists dwindles and now it is only after March that water sports activities will pick up here. It may well prove to be an year of losses for rafting business.