Una, March 21- Work is going on on an ambitious project of Rs 14.53 crore to promote eco tourism on a large scale in Una district. Deputy Commissioner Jatin Lal informed after the district level committee meeting on Friday that under this project, eco tourism facilities are being developed and expanded in Sohari of Andaroli and Lathiani adjacent to Govind Sagar Lake in Bangana sub-division. This will not only promote tourism but will also create new employment opportunities for the local youth.

Emphasis on biodiversity conservation along with eco tourism
The Deputy Commissioner said that this project is dedicated to promoting holistic eco tourism, biodiversity conservation and livelihood generation in the area. Along with this, arrangements will also be made for institutional capacity building, monitoring and evaluation for its effective implementation.
In the first phase of the project, water sports, adventure and eco tourism facilities have been developed in Andaroli. Now an amount of Rs 56 lakh has been approved for the construction of road and gate there, the tender process of which will start soon.

Eco park to be built in Sohari
Jatin Lal said that now in the second phase, an eco tourism park will be developed in Sohari of Lathiani. Facilities like cafeteria, skating rink, tree cottage and alpine hut, play area for children, bird watching zone to watch the frolic of birds, health club, botanical cottage, water lily and lotus fish pond will be developed in this park. These works will be done in a phased manner. A detailed project report of Rs 3.50 crore has been prepared for its first phase. Soon it will be finalized and the tender process will be started.

Local youth will get employment
The Deputy Commissioner said that as per the instructions of Chief Minister Mr. Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, participation of local youth will be ensured in this project. Under this, special training and awareness camps will be organized in local panchayats, where youth will be taught boating and other tourism related necessary skills, so that they can get employment in this area.

12 Panchayats will get direct benefit
It is noteworthy that 12 panchayats of Kutlehad area will directly benefit from this project. These include Raipur, Puroiya Kalan, Dhundhla, Sihan, Piplu, Jasana, Dobar, Sihana, Mandli, Tanoh, Lathiani, Budhwar and Thahra Panchayats. The local people here will be able to get employment from tourism based activities.
In the meeting, District Panchayat Officer Shravan Kumar gave detailed information on the progress of the project. During this, DRDA Project Officer KL Verma, Tehsildar Bangana Amit Sharma, District Language Officer Nikku Ram and officials of various departments were present.