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Capital View
The Ski (Village) is not the limit!
About a year ago, this column
had indicated that the proposed Manali Ski Village is poised to become a landmark
in Himachal Pradesh. The promoters, Himalayan Ski Village (HSV) and the state
government which had earlier initiated an MoU, signed an implementation agreement
in Shimla on June 5, 2006. Work on the project will start as soon as environmental
clearances have been obtained and studies on eco-protection and social impact
have been completed. This may take another six months or so. If all goes well,
the Ski Village should be fully operational by 2010.
Estimated
to cost well over Rs 1,000 crore (US $350 million), it will be the largest single
foreign investment in tourism in India. As was to be expected, the project did
not have a smooth ride. A series of hiccups and roadblocks tested the determination
of the state government and the patience of its promoters. At one stage, even
the devatas of Kullu Manali were invoked to scuttle it.
But
John Sims, MD of the project, sounded upbeat about HSV. He explained how it will
respect and promote Himachal's architectural traditions, its handcrafts, cultural
values and ensure that the community benefits. From the very beginning, the target
will be to make it a venue for international events and eventually to bid for
the Winter Olympics. He allayed fears of Manali hoteliers that HSV hotels might
eat into their business. The Ski Village hotels, he pointed out, will cater to
an up market clientele and an entirely new segment of travellers. Besides, only
one in five of those headed for skiing or otherwise will stay at the Village;
the rest will check in at Manali hotels.
In addition to
hiring big names among architects and ski slope developers, HSV has also taken
on well known foreign and Indian specialists to give concrete shape to assurances
on environment protection. Among them is Romi Khosla, a Himachali who spent 20
years as a UN consultant, who is senior consultant and architect at HSV. Then
there is Alison Henley with a PhD from London's Kings College in Environmental
Impacts Of Tourism and she is director for sustainable practices. The Indian Institute
of Forest Management in Bhopal has been retained to do an environmental audit.
And TERI (The Energy Research Institute) will be monitoring air quality, water,
economical use of energy and garbage disposal. There is much more on the anvil,
Sims said, suggesting how passionately green the project will be.
Interestingly,
the perseverance of the promoters of HSV in convincing the state's political leaders
of the benefits to tourism has encouraged the state government to think ahead.
One Ski Village near Manali, it now transpires, is not enough! It has identified
three more areas for similar projects. Global tenders would be invited for three
more sites - Chanshal, Kalka-Pattan and Basal-Kanda. That is not the only fallout.
With this FDI, many other overseas investors who had Himachal on the waitlist
have started coming forward. HSV's director, corporate affairs, Ajay Dabra's information
is that large investments in IT are under negotiation. The hospitality industry
will wait with bated breath to see the materialisation of a dream Ski Village.
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