Uttaranchal: The Horror Story - Part I
"The land of Celestial Beauty Blessed with magnificent glaciers, majestic snow-clad mountains, gigantic and ecstatic peaks, valley of flowers, skiing slopes and dense forests, this Abode of Gods includes many shrines and places of pilgrimage. Char-dhams,the four most sacred and revered Hindu temples: Badrinath,Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri are nestled in the Mighty Mountains.A picturesque state, with a breathtaking panoramic view of Himalayas, Uttaranchal promises its tourists a visit full of fun and unforgettable moments. "
That's how the Website of the Dept of Tourism of the State of Uttaranchal describes itself. All of the above is true but for the fact that the state needs to go a long way in improving its prospects if attracting tourism in the long run and delivering a quality experience to them.
This Blog is in continuation to the last posting a few days ago when I had mentioned that I was about to proceed on a much needed Power Break.
Well all that I can say is that the first half of the journey was as uneventful as it can be. But it really got interesting once I started moving from Delhi to Nainital. Actually, just to rewind a bit I reached delhi on the Thursday and had a series of meeting including one with a good friend. The last of the back to back meetings was at 2030 Hrs in the office. Option was to either stay back and leave in the morning or leave immediately for Nainital. Thats where one hits the first challange. Transportation related information between Delhi and Uttaranchal is not very detailed and options are frankly limited to 2 trains which leave at Nights and half a Dozen Tourist buses which leave "Delhi" in the evening. What is clearly lacking is any information on the Government recognised tourist bus operators or even the State Transport Services.
Prudence told me that its always safer to travel by day then by nights. Consequently, I checked out of the hotel on Saturday morning and left for the Interstate Bus Terminal. Here, I was told that there were no Buses to either Nainital or Haldawani for the next 2-3 hours and was therefore left to the mercy of Private Bus operators. That's one of the biggest cardinal mistakes that I committed. The Bus took nearly 8 hours to reach a place called Rudrapur and then prompty had a engine problem. We all ended up as abandoned passengers with little or no recourse to any remedial action.
"LESSON NO 1. :- NEVER AND I REPEAT NEVER TAKE ONE OF THE TOURIST BUSES THAT IS PARKED NEAR ANAND VIHAR INTERSTATE BUS TERMINALS"
These guys are cheats and will in all likelihood cheat you and never deliver you to your destination.
That's how the Website of the Dept of Tourism of the State of Uttaranchal describes itself. All of the above is true but for the fact that the state needs to go a long way in improving its prospects if attracting tourism in the long run and delivering a quality experience to them.
This Blog is in continuation to the last posting a few days ago when I had mentioned that I was about to proceed on a much needed Power Break.
Well all that I can say is that the first half of the journey was as uneventful as it can be. But it really got interesting once I started moving from Delhi to Nainital. Actually, just to rewind a bit I reached delhi on the Thursday and had a series of meeting including one with a good friend. The last of the back to back meetings was at 2030 Hrs in the office. Option was to either stay back and leave in the morning or leave immediately for Nainital. Thats where one hits the first challange. Transportation related information between Delhi and Uttaranchal is not very detailed and options are frankly limited to 2 trains which leave at Nights and half a Dozen Tourist buses which leave "Delhi" in the evening. What is clearly lacking is any information on the Government recognised tourist bus operators or even the State Transport Services.
Prudence told me that its always safer to travel by day then by nights. Consequently, I checked out of the hotel on Saturday morning and left for the Interstate Bus Terminal. Here, I was told that there were no Buses to either Nainital or Haldawani for the next 2-3 hours and was therefore left to the mercy of Private Bus operators. That's one of the biggest cardinal mistakes that I committed. The Bus took nearly 8 hours to reach a place called Rudrapur and then prompty had a engine problem. We all ended up as abandoned passengers with little or no recourse to any remedial action.
"LESSON NO 1. :- NEVER AND I REPEAT NEVER TAKE ONE OF THE TOURIST BUSES THAT IS PARKED NEAR ANAND VIHAR INTERSTATE BUS TERMINALS"
These guys are cheats and will in all likelihood cheat you and never deliver you to your destination.
Its at Rudrapur that I finally boarded a UP State Transport Bus for Haldawani. The conductor prompty charged me INR 16 for a journey of nearly 40 KM and safely delivered me to the base camp for the final destination "NAINITAL". Unfortunately all of my highway adventures had meant that I reached Haldwani after 2100 Hrs, by which time the last State Transport Bus had left....
That again meant that I had to submit to the will of another Privateer from Uttaranchal. This guy charged me nearly INR 600 for taking me on a 40 Km journey from Haldwani to Nainital. This was frankly the last straw on the camels back and has left a permanent bitter taste in the mouth. I took a oath that day that never will I ever revisit this state as a Tourist until the current state of affairs changes for the better. The Hotel experience of my in-laws a couple of days earlier had also not been worth writing home about..
The rest of the journey was more or less unevently, but I guess I had had my fair share of bad experiences.
I have travelled many a places in my life, but never ever have I had such a horrifying experience. I guess the state needs to decide on whether they want to make money in the short run and face a Tourist Boycott in the long run or they want create a sustainable and growing tourist industry. Natural beauty and Nature has always attracted people but one thing that figures high on a average travellers mind is safety on life limb and money.
BTW also had some good experiences on this journey and will write about it in another post. Till then watchout this space.
Cheers
Pushkar
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