Kathmandu, February 11
Pretty soon, lawmaker Rabindra Adhikari hopes, Pokhara denizens’ four-decade-old dream of constructing an international airport in the Lake City will become a reality. Most probably, the airport construction work will gain pace after signing of a loan agreement with China during Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s visit in March.
It is learnt that the agreement with China’s Exim Bank. Lawmaker Adhikari says airport construction work will begin right after the deal. The operation of the international airport at Pokhara will transform Pokhara’s tourism industry for good. Within two years after operation of international flights from Pokhara, tourist arrivals will increase by 15 folds, he says.
Around 1.25 lakh tourists visit Pokhara every year. Adhikari, chair of the parliamentary Development Committee, says 20 lakh tourists will visit Pokhara within five years from now.
We can easily bring in 30 lakh tourists from India and China, Adhikari told Onlinekhabar. “But we have to upgrade our roads to connect China and India (via Nepal), apart from the air route.”
By the year 2020, the government aims to bring in 20 lakh tourists to Nepal, which recorded eight lakh tourist arrivals every year. According to estimates, the earthquakes, blockade and the Tarai movement brought down the arrivals this year to three lakh. Given the dwindling numbers, it may not be easy to bring in 20 lakh tourists in four years.
But lawmaker Adhikari is upbeat. He says we can easily attract 20 lakh tourists to Pokhara alone in five years, with the international airport giving a major boost to the Lake City’s tourism industry.
