By Arpana, IANS,
Leh : Heeralal from Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh has been coming to this stretch of cold desert high up in Jammu and Kashmir without fail for the last 13 years – not as a tourist, but as a labourer. He says the perks are way higher than at home, in terms of pay and, of course, in terms of the altitude.
“In the beginning, we used to get Rs.90 per day, while back home it was about Rs.30 to Rs.35. Now we earn Rs.350 per day – I spend about Rs.100 and the rest is saving. We save enough to go home and pay back loans,” Heeralal, 37, who is an expert mason and has brought about 13 people from his state to Leh, told IANS.
From being unheard of to being a sought after tourist destination, Leh has grown tremendously. Apart from being a hit with travellers, it’s a paradise for labourers thanks to rapid development and commercialisation.
“For us, it’s pleasure-cum-work as we get to be in a place like this for free. Back home from April to October, there is not enough work; so we come here,” Brajesh Kumar from Bodh Gaya, who works as a cook at the Mahabodhi International Meditation Centre.
“Coming here and working here is not a bad deal — our travel is sponsored. We get food and a place to stay. I earn Rs.3,500 per month and most of the money I save. My senior gets Rs.5,000,” he said adding he returns home for the plantation of new crops.
Interestingly, there was a time when no one would think of coming to Leh, which is part of the Ladakh region, but now it is providing livelihood to outsiders.
“Ladakhis know the work, but there are not enough labourers; so we have to bring them from outside. We work from April to October and so we have limited time and we need more hands to finish the work,” contractor Tsering told IANS.
“For labourers from Bihar and Nepal, we get in touch with their contractors. We bring them here by flight and we deduct the money spent on the ticket from the payment we make to their contractors,” he said.
There is no dearth of work as construction work is proceeding on a war footing for roads, buildings, guest houses and private houses, engaging about 400 workers from other parts of the country as carpenters, masons and such like.
In April, Rs.61.99 crore was allocated for infrastructure creation related to promotion of tourism in the Ladakh region, of which Rs. 29.27 crore was released for Kargil and Rs.32.72 crore for Leh.
The growth in Leh can be estimated from the growth of the shopping complex that was spread over a 200- yard area in the 1980s and now extends over several kilometres, with shops, restaurants and guest houses.
“In 1984, Leh had a small little market of 200 yards. There was one main shop and no restaurants. In 1984-85, there were only three private vehicles, including those of the chief engineer and doctor. There was not enough transport, only one bus from Srinagar to Leh, and now there are around 1,500 taxis and 50 percent of Leh people have their own vehicles,” retired Col V.S. Jamwal, who is familiar with the area thanks to his posting to the area and frequent treks, told IANS on a trip to Leh.
“In 1984, Col (Late) Rinchin MVC** started constructing the first restaurant here – IBEX – and today there are big hotels,” he added.
According to a report, tourist footfall is expected to reach 100,000 in the region.
“Taxis are available. That was unthinkable 10 years ago. Internal migration is taking place, people from the remote areas are moving to the city for livelihoood,” he added.
In May, in order to boost adventure tourism in the country, the Indian government gave security clearance for opening an additional 104 peaks in the Leh region.
In terms of education, not only a branch of Central School and Delhi Public School have opened up, there are other private schools too.
“The place has grown manifold,” said Heeralal, who takes pride in being among those are helping build it.
(Arpana can be contacted at [email protected])