Lok Sabha Question No. 5853 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-30
Subject: Regulating Tourist Numbers in Ecologically Sensitive areas and Trekking zones
Ministry: TOURISM
Asked by: Ms. Praniti Sushilkumar Shinde

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TOURISM

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5853 ANSWERED ON 30.03.2026

## REGULATING TOURIST NUMBERS IN ECOLOGICALLY SENSITIVE AREAS AND TREKKING ZONES

## 5853. MS. PRANITI SUSHILKUMAR SHINDE:

Will the Minister of TOURISM be pleased to state:

- whether the Government has considered or implemented any policy to  fix  a  carrying  capacity  or  upper  limit  on  the  number  of  tourists visiting  ecologically  sensitive  areas,  wildlife  reserves  and  popular
- (a) trekking routes across the country;
- (b) the details of criteria and scientific studies used to determine such limits, if any along with the areas where these have been notified so far;
- (c) whether instances of environmental degradation, waste generation and disturbance to wildlife have been reported due to unregulated tourism and trekking in such sensitive regions;
- (d)
- the  details  of  coordination  mechanism  among  the  Ministry  of Environment, State Governments and forest authorities is in place to regulate tourist inflow and enforce sustainable tourism practices; and
- (e) the  details  of  steps  taken  or  proposed  to  be  taken  to  ensure  that tourism in ecologically sensitive and trekking areas is environmentally sustainable while safeguarding local livelihoods?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF TOURISM (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH SHEKHAWAT)

- (a) to (e): Development, promotion and maintenance of tourist destinations is primarily undertaken by the respective State Government / Union Territory (UT) Administration.

The  Ministry  of  Tourism  through  its  central  sector  schemes  of 'S wadesh  Darshan ', ' Pilgrimage  Rejuvenation  and  Spiritual,  Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) ' and ' Assistance to Central Agencies for Tourism Infrastructure Development ' e xtends financial assistance to the

State Governments  / UT  Administrations for tourism infrastructure development  in  the  country. The  central  financial  assistance  is  being extended according to guidelines and based on proposals / detailed project reports received from the States and UT Governments. The  Ministry  of  Tourism  has  issued  guidelines  for  its  Swadesh Darshan  scheme  (SD2.0),  which  emphasises  benchmarking  and  gap analysis with respect to multiple items including carrying capacity.  The Ministry of Tourism has also circulated a Template for Destination Master Plan, Strategy and Action Plan to the State Governments which includes guidance on assessment  of carrying capacity of destination and managing  carrying  capacity.  The  said  method  guides  to  undertake assessment of physical carrying capacity of the destination in terms of number of visitors that can be allowed over a period of time in a delineated limit. It further advises to consider other natural and/or man-made factors affecting the tourism carrying capacity of destination based on significance and criticality of these factors to the said destination. These factors may include variables such as heavy rainfall days, heavy snowfall days  etc.  Reviewing  and  updating  criteria  based  on  change  in  visitor number,  environmental  conditions  and  local  community  needs  can  be done  as  per  destination  requirement  in  order  to  ensure  destination's ability to sustainably and safely accommodate visitors without degrading the environment, resources and to ensure long-term tourism viability. and responsible tourism practices in various projects and initiatives and also viz. environmental sustainability, socio-cultural sustainability and economic

The scheme focuses on implementation of sustainable encourages adoption of principles of sustainable tourism sustainability including employment generation.

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