Bengaluru: With temperatures rising in Karnataka, the number of visitors to Hampi, a UNESCO World Heritage site, has dropped to its lowest level in ten years. Hospete deputy commissioner (DC) MS Diwakar provided data indicating that the site typically receives 5,000 visitors per day on average. With temperatures as high as 42 degrees Celsius, this number of tourists decreases to about 150 on weekends and a mere few throughout the week. Diwakar stressed that rain was sorely required to alleviate the situation and voiced concern about the effect on local livelihoods, particularly those of vendors and small enterprises.
almost 25,000 visitors visited Hampi each day in January of this year, and almost 15 lakh people came for the three-day Hampi festival. But the current drop in tourism is a result of both a notable decrease in rainfall and an ongoing, extreme heat wave in Karnataka. In order to accommodate working-class tourists, locals have also voiced their displeasure with the area's lack of tourist amenities and emphasized the urgent need for hotels close to the Hampi temple.
The drop in visitor numbers has had a severe negative impact on the hotel sector in the area, with occupancy rates dropping to fewer than 30%. The proprietor of a well-known hotel in Hospet expressed sorrow at the dreadful circumstances, revealing that only thirty of the 200 rooms are occupied.
