Chandragiri Cable Car

There were euphoric talks when the popular travel website Trip Advisor included Kathmandu at the third position in the list of top 10 rising tourist destinations in the world. Kathmandu has been rated the best Asian destination by the tourists who have visited Nepal. Kathmandu has remained a popular tourist destination for decades. The Nepali tourism industry that was partially opened in the 50s for ascent of Mt Everest succeeded in attracting hippy tourists during the 60s and 70s. Kathmandu was the top destination for hippy tourists then, according to toptenz.net. The hippy tourists used to refer to Kathmandu as a heaven for those who have arrived here tired after visiting other destinations. Open availability of marijuana at the Freak Street, Swoyambhu, Bouddha and other places here also acted as an attraction. The government banned marijuana, hashish and other narcotic drugs from 1977. The kind of tourists coming to Nepal also started to change after that. The trend of tourists, coming for beauty of mountains, going for short treks in the hills around the Kathmandu Valley like Nagarkot, Dhulikhel and others started after that. The fact that Kathmandu is rated as the third best destination by Trip Advisor proves that the attraction of Kathmandu increased further even after the end of the hippy era.

The major attraction of Kathmandu is its cultural heritage. Centuries old Durbar Squares in Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Lalitpur, and temples and structures with combination of wood works and stone works still attract many tourists from around the world. Seven of the 10 places of Nepal listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Site are inside the Valley. The tourists are attracted toward the Valley also because such a large number of heritage sites are within a small area. The heritage of the Valley, that remains the first destination of anyone coming to Nepal, has been encroached in recent times. The provision of banning infrastructure construction in the heritage area without taking permission apart from in a certain design has been blatantly violated to deface the beauty. There are those who argue that development should not be obstructed to conserve the heritage. But Nepal has much to learn by looking at the different international cities of tourism importance that have been operating development activities by conserving the heritage. The state and the local bodies have not paid adequate attention to not just conserving the heritage but also renovating the old structures into the previous form. The heritage sites have merely been made a medium of generating income by showing it to tourists.

It is about time to pay attention to expand tourism activities around the Valley considering the rising tourist arrival and the limited heritage sites. It is necessary to develop tourist destinations near the Valley to even refresh the local residents from their routine of work or study. How long can Nagarkot and Dhulikhel attract tourists around the Valley? The preparations for developing Thankot-Chandragiri cable car by the private sector in this context is a welcome development. We can hope that the cable car, and view tower, temple, resort and amusement park to be constructed on Chandragiri with investment of around Rs 2 billion will be able to meet the needs of Valley dwellers. The government must formulate facilitatory policy for such private initiative as such works contribute toward national infrastructure development.