Mass tourism catastrophe to Environment

No doubt that Tourism is an important factor in economy growth and in many cases it becomes backbone of  the daily earning for local  populace. Hill stations across India are major attraction for domestic as well as international tourists. Shimla, Manali, Dharamshala, Nainital in the North, Shillong, Darjeeling, Gangtok, Ranchi in the East, Mount Abu,Mahabaleshwar, Panchgani,Matheran in the West, Coorg, Ooty, Munnar, Idukki in the South and many other hill stations record heavy footfall of tourists all through the  years. 
On  the other hand, the side effects of this mass tourism is now seen in  a disaster  to the environment. Rampant proliferation of hotels and unregulated tourism has threatened not just the fragile ecology of these hill stations but also the very fabric of the indigenous communities. One of the tourist paradise, Kodagu in Karnataka drew attention very recently as a glare example of catastrophic breakdown.There was a time when Kodagu was hailed as Karnataka’s best kept secret tourist spot. The concept of tourism was never heard in this clandestine paradise. This idyllic paradise came into the limelight  in the early 90s when the Ramapuram brothers opened Orange County Resorts in their 300-acre property. Initially the  owners had to hard sell Kodagu first as a destination and then their themed working plantation resort to the discerning upmarket traveller.
According to the owner of this resort, their signature holidays that preserve the purity of nature and culture on the land launched Kodagu to the national and international tourist map. He said that the  tagline, ‘Spirit of the Land in luxury’ was fine-tuned to deliver coffee, spice and plantation life experiences to reflect the true spirit of Kodagu.
Kodagu, with its green-topped hills, downs and mist covered valleys, was once akin to scenic Europe and christened as ‘Scotland of India’. In the dense forest of  Kodagu, the travellers use to  walk through a waterfall, count coffee beans, and interact with planters. It was indeed the illustrious land of coffee, cardamom, colonels, Cariappas and Cauvery. With the proliferation of resorts, hotels and homestays this once quiet district evolved into a highly sought-after destination.
But the current scenario in Kodagu will  dismay the tourism lovers. Its population is 6 lakh while the number of tourists was a whopping 18 lakh in 2019. This fabulous hill station is now facing ecological and environmental disturbances at large. Visualizing threats from heavy footfall of tourists, the local residents began a 'Save Kodagu and Cauvery’ campaign. Instead of welcome boards, they put  boards on display urging tourists to ‘Visit Kodagu less often as mass tourism destroys Kodagu’. To save the environment, local population along with the Panchayats start to monitor the garbage disposal by resorts and tourists. In many instances,  tourists were made to clear the garbage that they had littered  on the roadside. Though plastic is officially banned in Kodagu district, the problem of garbage, sewage and effluents flowing to natural water bodies and the use of plastic by tourists still continues. Now giving top priority to safety and hygiene , it is imperative to take steps towards proper disposal of garbage and sewage.
Like Kodagu, almost all other hill stations and tourist places are also facing more or less very similar environmental hazards. Mass tourism  has become  the raging problem as it exceeds the carrying capacity of the destination. Rapid increase in tourist vehicular movement causing severe disturbance to wild animals and escalating the human-animal conflict becomes a major concern. The explosion of homestays and  thousands of unregistered and illegal accommodations contributed to overtourism. The recent landslides and floods in many tourist places also attributed to a large  extent to deforestation and indiscriminate felling of trees to make way for unplanned development. Pollution and improper location of hotels are another aspect. Water shortage and lack of proper waste management systems worsen the conditions. 
The need of the hour is responsible,planned and controlled tourism. To save both ecology and tourism, a mechanism of balance between tourism and sustainability must be evolved....said the experts. The experts opinion is that the focus should be on to make the place a ‘zero waste destination’ through controlling the footfall. Entry of large number of vehicles must be regulated by enforcing traffice rules. 
To protect the nature, the visitors should be sensitized to proper disposal of garbage. According to ecology experts, the treatment and recycling of waste water, proper flow of sewage to avoid contaminating natural water bodies, and usage of solar power to supplement the electricity requirements should be implemented. Besides, the stakeholders should formulate concrete steps for local employment, usage of local produce and eco-friendly products. The local populace should be sensitized to the benefits of tourism to local economy and employment. The idyllic paradise spread across the country  will  regain its original glory only if the the environmental hazards are tackled on a war footing. It’s high time to rethink, re-imagine and reboot in a more sustainable way to help save the natural beauty and peace of these tourist places.

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