The Chief Minister's Office of Uttarakhand, on Wednesday, 22 July 2026, highlighted that border-zone destinations Devtal and Parvati Kund in Chamoli district are gaining traction among tourists alongside the district's established adventure sites, citing the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the leadership of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. The official post stated — 'देवताल और पार्वती कुंड भी पर्यटकों के बीच तेजी से लोकप्रिय हो रहे हैं' ('Devtal and Parvati Kund are also rapidly gaining popularity among tourists') — framing the trend as a product of coordinated central and state-level push for Himalayan tourism.

Context

Chamoli is a high-altitude district in Uttarakhand that shares a sensitive frontier with Tibet along the India-China border. It is already home to well-known adventure destinations such as Auli, a premier ski resort, and several pilgrimage corridors. Devtal is a glacial lake situated deep in the border zone, while Parvati Kund is a sacred water body in the same high-altitude belt, drawing both religious visitors and trekkers.

Policy Backdrop

The promotion of these sites fits into two overlapping central government frameworks. The Swadesh Darshan scheme, launched in 2014-15, allocated funds to develop thematic tourism circuits across Himalayan states including Uttarakhand. More directly relevant is the Vibrant Villages Programme, announced in 2023, which targets border villages along the India-China frontier for infrastructure upgrades, livelihood support, and regulated tourism access. Chamoli falls squarely within the programme's geographic scope. Similar coordinated efforts to open near-border natural and pilgrimage sites to regulated visitors have been pursued in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh, suggesting a broader national pattern of using tourism as a soft instrument of border-area development.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries of increased footfall at Devtal and Parvati Kund would be residents of border villages in Chamoli, who depend on tourism-linked livelihoods such as guide services, homestays, and porter work. Adventure tourists and religious pilgrims represent the two distinct visitor segments the state is simultaneously courting. Regulated access to sites this close to the Line of Actual Control also requires coordination with security agencies, making any expansion of tourist infrastructure a multi-ministry undertaking.

What's Next

The Uttarakhand government is expected to seek fresh project sanctions under the Vibrant Villages Programme in the next budget cycle to formalise and expand access to border-zone tourism sites. Visitor statistics and project completion timelines for Chamoli's border destinations have not yet been officially published. How quickly the state can build last-mile connectivity — roads, rest facilities, and emergency infrastructure — to sites as remote as Devtal will determine whether the stated popularity translates into sustained economic benefit for local communities.