1 week ago
Pithoragarh Student Turns Tourism Challenge Into Uttarakhand Startup
Kartik Pandey is a student from Pithoragarh who saw that tourists had difficulty finding trustworthy travel services.
He noticed this problem while travelling with his father, who drives a taxi.
Tourists often struggled to find taxis, hotels and local guides at fair prices.
Kartik created a company called Namaste Saarthi to put these services together online.
A government-supported entrepreneurship programme taught him how to plan and grow a business.
Experts later helped him with marketing, branding and finding customers.
The platform now works in the Kumaon region and has a network of 15 buses.
Kartik says building a business means continuing to learn and improve.
BBA student Kartik Pandey launched Namaste Saarthi after noticing tourism problems in Pithoragarh and Champawat.
The online platform connects tourists with hotels, transportation and local guides in one place.
Pandey developed the business through a 2025 college bootcamp under Uttarakhand’s Devbhoomi Udyamita Yojana.
Further mentoring supported the startup’s digital marketing, branding, customer outreach and expansion efforts.
Namaste Saarthi now operates across Kumaon and has built a network of 15 buses.
- Who
- Kartik Pandey, a BBA student at LSM Government Postgraduate College, launched Namaste Saarthi with support from Uttarakhand’s Devbhoomi Udyamita Yojana.
- What
- He created an online platform connecting tourists with hotels, transportation and local guides.
- Where
- The startup operates in Uttarakhand’s Kumaon region, addressing tourism needs in places including Pithoragarh and Champawat.
- When
- Pandey joined an entrepreneurship bootcamp in 2025 and attended another residential bootcamp in 2026.
- Why
- He wanted to address tourists’ difficulty finding reliable, reasonably priced travel services and reduce their dependence on intermediaries.
Key facts
- Founder
- Kartik Pandey, a BBA student
- Startup
- Namaste Saarthi
- Support programme
- Devbhoomi Udyamita Yojana
- Initial training
- Entrepreneurship bootcamp held at LSM Government Postgraduate College in 2025
- Services
- Hotels, transportation and local guides
- Current reach
- The Kumaon region
- Transport network
- 15 buses







