Tourist Registration in Mussoorie: RTI Data Raises Serious Concerns Over Gross Underreporting, Need to Examine if Barely 5 to 10% Tourists may be Getting Registered
SUNIL NEGI
Dehradun: Data obtained under the Right to Information Act by social worker Anoop Nautiyal has raised serious concerns over the low number of tourist registrations in Mussoorie and the reliability of the data for assessing the hill station’s carrying capacity. According to an RTI reply dated June 10, 2026, only 116,008 tourists were registered during the 10-month period from August 2025 to May 2026, despite heavy tourist inflows during weekends, holidays, festivals and summer season.
The month-wise data shows that 27,349 tourists were registered in August 2025, 5,876 in September, 8,571 in October, 6,134 in November, 9,346 in December, 4,983 in January 2026, 3,003 in February, 4,759 in March, 20,731 in April and 25,256 in May. The total registration during these 10 months was 116,008 tourists, which appears to represent only a small fraction of actual tourist arrivals.
The issue is significant because the tourist-registration mechanism was introduced following the National Green Tribunal’s intervention after the Joshimath land-subsidence crisis in January 2023. The NGT had then taken suo motu cognisance and directed a scientific carrying-capacity assessment for Mussoorie. Subsequently, the Uttarakhand Government constituted a nine-member committee under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary to assess Mussoorie’s carrying capacity and recommend preventive and remedial measures.
In its extensive report submitted to the NGT by the Uttarakhand Government on July 24, 2023, 18 preventive and remedial measures were identified. The State Government informed that tourist registration should be undertaken in accordance with the carrying capacity of the area, making accurate visitor data essential for scientific planning.
The State Government’s report recorded that 378,037 tourists visited Mussoorie between January and May 2022. In contrast, the RTI response shows that only 58,732 tourists were registered between January and May 2026. Thus, the 2026 registration figure is only about 15 percent of the tourist arrivals recorded during the corresponding period in 2022, raising serious questions about the coverage and implementation of the registration system.
Social worker Anoop Nautiyal said, “The Uttarakhand Government’s own report recorded that 378,037 tourists visited Mussoorie four years ago between January and May 2022. However, only 58,732 tourists were registered during the same period in 2026. With the commencement of the Delhi Dehradun Expressway and the likelihood of a massive increase in tourist inflow towards Mussoorie, it can reasonably be concluded that barely 5 to 10 percent of the actual tourists may currently be getting registered. These numbers need to be validated with the existing registration system. This requires immediate review and a drastic overhaul.”
He added that accurate visitor data is fundamental to a scientific carrying-capacity assessment. “Without comprehensive information on actual tourist arrivals, it is impossible to assess pressure on roads, traffic, parking, water supply, waste management systems, accommodation, emergency services and Mussoorie’s fragile ecosystem. Incomplete data leads to misleading conclusions and undermines both immediate and long-term planning,” he said.
He added that the registration system must become an effective management tool rather than remain a procedural requirement on paper. An immediate review is needed to identify implementation gaps and improve coordination among all tourism stakeholders.
Given the substantial gap between the 2022 tourist figures and current registrations, Anoop Nautiyal said the National Green Tribunal should take note of the ground situation and immediately direct corrective measures. Unless registration data reflects the true scale of tourist arrivals, carrying capacity assessment and scientific management of Mussoorie’s tourism growth is not possible.
