Inaugurates 3-day Ladakh Sindhu Festival 

Leh, June 12: The chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad inaugurates the 3-day Ladakh Sindhu Festival here today with thousands of people witnessing the colourful inaugural ceremony held on the bank of the famous Indus River.

Speaking on the occasion, Azad said that rivers like the Indus have offered their laps for civilizations to take birth and thrive. He said the river is culturally very significant for the people and the civilization that has taken birth along its banks and flourished with the passage of time. He said India is proud to have rich civilization originated on the banks of its sacred rivers including the Indus and it should be our duty to keep alive their significance.

The CM said that the people of Ladakh region, through which the Indus flows, are peace loving and the river is the carrier of this message to the other side of the border. He said the Ladakh Sindhu Festival is an expression of the love and affinity the people feel with the river. He said it is also a strong medium to promote cultural values and tourism in the region. He said festival has helped in the promotion of tourism in Ladakh as tourists love to come and see the culture of the region, which is aptly depicted during the festival. He said the tourists visiting the area in summer should also be persuaded to visit Ladakh in winters when it is as beautiful and charming. He expressed satisfaction over the 400% increase in the arrival of domestic tourists till May this year over the corresponding period of the last year. 

Azad stressed on the need for development of facilities for the comfortable stay of tourists in Ladakh and alluded to the efforts made by his government in improving infrastructure in the region. He said the power scenario in Ladakh is in for a big change with the commissioning of the 45 MW Nimu-Bazgo power project work on which is apace. He said the project is the only one in the country on which round the clock work is going on and also continued under sub-zero temperature during the winter. He said along with Chhutak power project in Kargil, the project would be completed ahead of the time frame. He said Rs. 450 crore are being spent on the up-gradation of the Leh-Srinagar highway, which was declared a National Highway by the Prime Minister earlier.

Azad also released a book on Ladakh.
The opening ceremony was also attended by minister for Industries and Commerce, Nawang Rigzin Jora, chief executive councilor, LAHDC, Leh, Chhering Dorje, executive councilors and councilors of LAHDC, senior officers of civil, army and para military forces. The members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Art, Culture and Tourism, currently on a study tour of Ladakh, also witnessed the gala event that included cultural items performed by Ladakhi artistes who enthralled the audience with their performance.

In his speech, Jora said that the government is endeavoring to extend the tourist season in Ladakh so that more tourists could come and enjoy the beauty of the Moonland that Ladakh is known as. He called for celebrating the festival in a befitting manner so that it promotes both tourism and culture of the region.

The deputy commissioner, Leh said that 51,000 tourists have visited Ladakh last year. He said that 18,000 tourists, mostly domestic, have visited Leh till May this year and hoped that the number might cross 50,000 by the year-end. 

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