Factors Involved in the Success of Bir-Billing (H.P.) as One of the Top-Rated Paragliding Site in the World and Learning's for Uttarakhand

Abstract

Adventure sports such as River Rafting, Zip-Line, Paragliding and Skiing become popular in India in last few years, there are many factors which helped this trend to increase and millennials are driving this entire sector. Adventure Sports provide an unexplainable thrill and kills the stress with recreation and unforgettable life time experiences. Paragliding is one of the most popular adventure sports in India and there are more than 25 sites and still growing. Due to the increased popularity, all states are exploring the opportunities to develop sites wherever its feasible. When we talk about Paragliding in India, the first site which comes to the mind is Bir-Billing in Himachal Pradesh. These twin town are not only famous in India but in the entire world and also hosted the world cup in 2015. Now Bir-Billing emerges as the role model for other sites. There is yet another state – Uttarakhand, which has approximately 5 operational sites for paragliding however, could not become popular like Bir- Billing despite having all the necessary elevation and large landing fields. This study is based on the exploratory research and intended to draw conclusions based on expert’s opinion, on site observations and other secondary source of data and aimed in finding out the factors which played a key role in the success of Bir-Billing and how Uttarakhand can learn from it to develop Paragliding in the state. The findings can provide a substantial base for the further development and scope of improvement to attract more tourists.