Leh, Feb 22: The second day of the second edition of the Ladakh Winter Conclave, organised by the Tourism Department, UT Ladakh, started with three parallel panel sessions after which the participants attended Stok Guru Tsechu and later had lunch at the Stok Palace with King Jigmed Wangchuk Namgyal.

The major highlight of the day was the appearance of oracles at Stok on the occasion of Stok Guru Tsechu. Due to the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic, only a few guests were allowed for the event at Stok. Guests sought blessings from both the oracles who appear every year on Stok Guru Tsechu and make predictions for the future.

The guests had lunch at the 14th-century Stok Palace that was earlier the residence of descendants of the Namgyal dynasty.  King Jigmed Wangchuk Namgyal hosted the lunch.

* Click to Follow Voice of Ladakh on WhatsApp *

Earlier, three parallel panel sessions were conducted at three different venues. In the session on ‘Way Forward: Potential in Ladakh’, the panellists comprising Director, CGH Earth, Siddharth Dominic; Managing Director, Creative Travels, Rajeev Kohli, and Engineer, Indian Astronomical Observatory, Hanle, Dorje Angchuk, discussed developing Ladakh’s untapped tourism potential. The panellists highlighted the potential of Ladakh becoming a wellness tourism destination along with traditional medicinal practices, charging entry fee from tourists visiting Ladakh, making Ladakh a completely plastic-free region, and promoting Ladakh as an Astro-tourist destination.

In the second session, Director, LAMO, Monisha Ahmed; Managing Director, Eka Archiving Services, Pramod Kumar, Muzammil Hussain and Curator at National Museum of Australia, Jono Lineen, discussed the importance of museums in conserving the tangible heritage of Ladakh. The panellists highlighted categories of museums in Ladakh, including private museums, monastic museums and museums belonging to the Army; the curation, promotion and preservation of culture in all its forms; preservation of a range of micro-historical, culture and political identities, preserving material culture; and exhibitions, collections and programmes on indigenous histories and cultures, and history of European settlements and interaction with the environment.

In the open discussion on hitherto unexplored adventure activities in Ladakh, the participants discussed various topics, including adventure policy for Ladakh.