News Date: 3 Feb 2026
The Uttarakhand Government has opened 83 Himalayan peaks across the Garhwal and Kumaon regions for mountaineering expeditions. The decision is expected to improve access for climbers, promote adventure tourism, and generate livelihood opportunities for local communities involved in trekking and mountaineering activities.
The peaks range in altitude from about 5,700 metres to 7,756 metres and include several well-known summits that were previously subject to additional restrictions or permissions.
The decision has been implemented by the Uttarakhand Tourism Development Council (UTDB) in coordination with the Forest Department. According to the government, the initiative is intended to simplify expedition planning, encourage responsible mountaineering, and strengthen tourism in remote Himalayan regions.
The notified peaks include several prominent Himalayan summits such as Kamet, Nanda Devi East, Chaukhamba, Trishul, Shivling, Satopanth, Changabang, Panchachuli and Neelkanth, offering opportunities for expeditions across different difficulty levels.
According to the state government, the initiative is expected to promote adventure tourism, encourage participation in mountaineering, support local employment and improve tourism-related economic activity in remote mountain regions while emphasising sustainable and environmentally responsible expeditions.
Indian climbers undertaking expeditions to the notified peaks will not be required to pay expedition-related charges such as peak fees, camping fees or environmental fees. These expenses will be borne by the Uttarakhand Government, reducing the overall cost of mountaineering expeditions.
Foreign mountaineers will now pay only the expedition charges prescribed by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF). Additional state-level expedition fees have been removed under the revised policy.
Expedition applications will be processed through the Uttarakhand Mountaineering Permission System (UKMPS), providing an online process for submitting applications and obtaining approvals.
Higher expedition activity is expected to increase demand for local guides, porters, transport services, homestays and other tourism-related businesses operating in mountain villages.
The opening of these Himalayan peaks is one of Uttarakhand's largest recent initiatives for mountaineering tourism. If implemented effectively with proper environmental safeguards, the policy is expected to improve expedition access while supporting sustainable tourism and economic opportunities in high-altitude regions.
