NEW DELHI, Sept 12 (NNN-PTI) – India’s federal government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), signed a loan agreement of 126.4 million U.S. dollars, to promote sustainable tourism in the northern state of Uttarakhand, officials said yesterday.
According to the finance ministry, the project targets Tehri Garhwal district, one of Uttarakhand’s most climate-vulnerable and economically disadvantaged regions.
It aims to benefit over 87,000 residents and 2.7 million annual visitors, through improved tourism planning, upgraded infrastructure, enhanced sanitation and waste management, and disaster preparedness, the ministry said.
The ministry said, notable features of the project included a livelihood matching grant programme, to support tourism led by women, youth, and micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, universal access design, including for persons with disability, and a women-led disaster risk management initiative in pilot villages.– NNN-PTI
