All-round noise of tourism, when will people return to the deserted villages of Uttarakhand?

There is a village situated in Uttarakhand at an altitude of about 10,500 feet above sea level. This is a village, I mean. India’s first village. Once upon a time it was called the last village of India. After Mana, there is no population, far and wide. This village is the last village before Mana Pass. The geographical border of India and Tibet is about 26 kilometers away from here. Mana village is also in the news because these days people are reaching Badrinath Dham in large numbers under the Char Dham Yatra. People are also flocking to this last village situated just 3 kilometers away from Badrinath Dham.

Mana village is said to be the origin place of Saraswati river, from here Saraswati meets Alaknanda. There are many home stays in Mana village, where people stay. Some people work as stooges in Badrinath. The village is open to the general public from March to May to October or November. Due to the arrival of tourists, good income is also earned here, but many people of Bhotia community have now migrated from here in search of livelihood because a person needs income for 12 months, one cannot eat for a few months sitting for the whole year.

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Understand the pain of migration from Maana village

There are some stairs as soon as you enter Mana village. There are some shops on both the right and left corners of the stairs. Most of the shops belong to the Bhotiya community of Mana village. Some population lives here during the season, a large population has migrated, some houses are locked or those who are there, some are selling cold drinks, some hand-knitted sweaters. A few Maggi shops are visible here and there. Once upon a time, this community was an important trading class on inaccessible roads.

Before the 1962 war, trade with Tibet and China used to take place on this route. From Mana village to Tibet, trade took place near Mana. People know this as ‘Dungri La’. This pass is at an altitude of about 18,192 feet. Then, unlike today, the government was not making any efforts to build highways. Sometimes through yak, sometimes through mule, salt, grains, sweaters, hats and items related to Indian craftsmanship reached Tibet and China.

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This route, starting from Mana village, went from Devtal to Mana Pass along the banks of Saraswati river. When people passed the Mana Pass, they used to buy and sell goods in trading centers like ‘Daba’ and ‘Tholing’. From here people also used to travel till Kailash-Mansarovar. Now, circumstances are different and trade through this route has stopped. This international border was closed after the India-China war of 1962. The effect of the bandh was that Maana village was no longer a center of business. Now there are only posts of the Indian Army and ITBP on this route, whose job is to protect the borders of India.

Migration has become a curse for Uttarakhand

This is not the situation of a village in Uttarakhand. Most of the villages situated on high hills have locks. People simply flock to festivals or any religious-community events. People who were there during the snowfall also come down to the low lying areas. Some population lives here, some population moved towards plain areas like Dehradun, Rishikesh, Haridwar or Delhi. Many villages of Uttarakhand are now gradually becoming deserted.

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What is the picture of migration in Uttarakhand? understand from data

Rural Development and Migration Prevention Commission, Uttarakhand, Pauri had published an interim report on migration in the year 2023. The migration situation in rural areas of Uttarakhand between 2018 and 2022 shows that due to challenges in agriculture and lack of employment in the hilly areas, the population is fleeing towards cities. One reason is the ever-deepening crisis of natural disasters. The people living there have not forgotten the pain of the Dharali accident even today. They say that they are alive only at the mercy of nature.

Uttarakhand government is emphasizing on self-employment and ‘reverse migration’. Be it the cinema halls of Delhi or the metro stations, Uttarakhand is full of tourism pictures, the government is improving the road connectivity till Tibet border, all-weather accessible roads are being built but this alone is not enough.

In which districts is the migration situation scary?

Maximum migration has occurred in Pauri Garhwal, Almora, Tehri Garhwal and Pithoragarh. The data collected from 2018 to 2022 shows that so far, 5,926 people have migrated permanently and 54,519 people have migrated temporarily in Almora alone. Tehri Garhwal is one of the most affected places. 5,653 permanent and 41,359 temporary migrants have been registered here. In Pauri Garhwal district, 5,474 people have left their villages permanently and 29,093 people have left their villages temporarily.

Deserted villages of Uttarakhand, for which the government is worried

After the year 2018, 24 villages of the state have become completely depopulated. About 9 villages are in Tehri Garhwal district. Between 2011 and 2018, there were 734 villages which became deserted. Pauri Garhwal was worst hit by migration. About 186 villages here are uninhabited.

According to the report of the Rural Development and Migration Prevention Commission, 50.16 percent of the population has migrated from here due to lack of livelihood and employment.

Due to lack of education facilities, about 15.21 percent of the population has moved out of Uttarakhand. About 8.83 percent people migrate due to lack of health services. About 5.61 percent people migrate due to terror of wild animals and about 5.44 percent people migrate due to low yield of agricultural land.

Where are people going after migrating?

About 35 percent of the people who migrated are settling in small towns near their district, where there are employment options. About 24 percent people are living in plain districts like Dehradun, Haridwar and Haldwani. 22 percent people are going out of the state, while about 1 percent people are going abroad.

What is the government doing to stop migration?

Uttarakhand government has constituted ‘Rural Development and Migration Prevention Commission’ to stop migration. The government runs ‘Mukhyamantri Migration Prevention Scheme’ (MPRY) to stop migration. This scheme has been made for migration affected villages. Chief Minister Self-Employment Scheme (MSY) Through this, the government gives loans and discounts to start businesses at the local level. Government, Homestay Scheme Encourages. Here, opportunities are provided to generate employment in villages through tourism.

Are these measures enough?

Jan Suraj Party founder Prashant Kishor, while speaking about the development of Bihar, had once said, ‘A big factory will do nothing. I don’t believe it. Development is not possible from a factory. No country has progressed beyond this. The rich countries of the world have not progressed because of big factories, every home should have the facility to work, 65 percent of America’s economy comes from here. The service sector will have to be improved. One way to stop migration from Uttarakhand could be to improve the service sector.

Rahul Pandey comes from Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand. Are associated with the tourism sector. Talking to Khabargaon, he said, ‘The main earning of Uttarakhand is tourism. There are some industries in the plains which are the backbone of the economy but setting up industries in the hilly areas is playing with nature. The government’s aim should be to provide employment based on local resources here.

Rahul Pandey says that here in the mountains, the trend of home stay and destination wedding has increased, similarly the trend of destination work has increased. The government should cash in on it. Better connectivity, roads and networks can help in this work. Medicines are better here, kiwi and apple can be cultivated. Uttarakhand can become number one in the service sector, just show interest in this by private and government players.

How does the work of Uttarakhand work?

The gross domestic product (GSDP) of Uttarakhand is estimated to reach Rs 4.29 lakh crore in FY 2026, while a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.86 percent has been recorded between FY 2019 to 2026. India Brand Equity Foundation report shows that foreign direct investment (FDI) of Rs 28,965 crore has come from October 2019 to June 2025.

How will Uttarakhand increase earnings?

In the tourism sector, the state government has set a target of doubling the number of tourists to 7 crore by 2030. GST on hotel tariff has been reduced from 12 percent to 5 percent. Sharda Corridor project worth Rs 18,520 crore was launched on 24 October 2025. Apart from this, big projects like Sonprayag-Gaurikund-Kedarnath Ropeway, Mussoorie-Yamunotri Ropeway and Govindghat-Hemkund Sahib Ropeway are going on.

What are the efforts to stop migration?

Uttarakhand government is emphasizing on more than 5 thousand home stays. Emphasis is being laid on enhancing local livelihood. Emphasis is being laid on agriculture, horticulture and small and medium industries (MSME). Uttarakhand is ideal for medicinal plants, floriculture and horticulture. Rs 688 crore has been allocated for horticulture in the budget, there are plans to build 50,000 polyhouses and develop 6 aroma valleys.

GST on hill products has been reduced to 5 percent. The target is to provide 8.5 lakh jobs to the MSME sector by 2030. Investments are increasing in IT, pharmaceuticals, food processing and hydropower. The government is also starting a power infra project worth Rs 547.8 crore in Rishikesh-Dehradun. The question is whether these measures will be enough to stop migration into the state or whether the state needs a bigger approach.