Indian tourists breathe easy with astro tourismーNHK WORLD-JAPAN NEWS
People in urban India put up with some of the world’s worst air pollution. Those lucky enough to escape are driving a new travel boom. It’s called astro tourism. And the attractions are simple. Good air and stargazing. We go with NHK World’s Nomatus gate to where the heavens are clear. The famous India gate is a sight synced road when you can see it. Drivers switch on their lights even during the day. These scenes are common in the capital New Delhi. Even breathing can be risky. In mid November, airborne concentrations of hazardous PM2.5 particles reached 30 times World Health Organization standards. It has become very difficult to live here in Delhi these days with all these problems due to the terrible pollution and huge traffic jams. I want to move to the mountains. In such of a break, we flew over an hour from New Delhi. Then drove more than 200 kilometers along often deserted roads into northern India to where the mountains open up. The Sepi Valley is a high altitude region of Himachar Pradesh state. The Himalayan landscape has caught the attention of urban stargazers. This year through July it drew about 160,000 visitors. There is no pollution only mountains and so uh people want to see stargazing and we cannot see in Delhi and famous places like Mumbai there is no stars. There is lot of pollution. At 900 p.m. we follow a group of about 20 tourists who have come from near New Delhi. They settle in for the show. 1 2 3 4 5 W three basically I feel very happy that I got to know about the stars and the constellations and uh that I’ve also captured some pictures. The state government is taking initiatives to promote astro tourism. It has invested about $110,000 to support the local economy. Construction is underway on the staging center with a museum. It’s scheduled to open next year. In here, people are dependent on tourism and uh second agriculture only. Tourism has uh has given them new opportunities and new fields to explore. This project will definitely benefit the locals. Unsported nature offers a sharp contrast with the worsening man-made pollution of cities. Starry skies are changing how many Indians relax. Numera Yusuke NHK word speedy body.
Suffocating air pollution is driving urban Indians to holiday in remote mountainous regions. There’s little to do but breathe deeply, lie back and gaze at the infinite stars.
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