Kerala Tourism has launched its responsible tourism initiative in the beach resort of Kovalam near Thiruvananthapuram. The State Tourism Minister, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, launched the initiative in Kovalam recently.
With this, Kovalam becomes the second destination in the State to adopt the responsible tourism concept, the first being Kumarakom.
The concept will be introduced in Thekkady and Wayanad as well.
Aimed at ‘creating better places for people to live in and better places for people to visit’, responsible tourism focuses on the economic, social and environmental impacts of tourism. Dr V. Venu, Secretary-Tourism, Government of Kerala, said that the initiative will initially focus on economic responsibility.
The decision to this effect was taken following a series of workshops, surveys and dialogue with various stakeholders from across Kerala, he added.
In Kovalam, as in Kumarakom, the emphasis is on building micro enterprises, under the aegis of the Kerala’s State Poverty Eradication Mission or Kudumbashree, that use local resources to supply fruits, vegetables, milk and meat to hotels. Kudumbashree women’s self-help groups will form the micro enterprises that supply products to hotels.
Agreements have been inked to supply 22 hotels in Kovalam with 17 items including vegetables, based on the requirements of each hotel, Dr Venu said. The units will also supply baskets and paper bags.
Kerala Tourism plans to involve units of ‘Kudumbashree’ or the State Poverty Eradication Mission in a significant manner in its responsible tourism initiative, said Kerala Tourism Minister, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.
Speaking at a press conference here, he said that ‘Kudumbashree’ units would be encouraged to supply farm produce to hotels and manufacture souvenirs for tourists.
The initiative has already taken off in Kovalam and Kumarakom and would soon be launched in Thekkady and Wayanad.
Responsible Tourism Implementation Cells will be set up in all major destinations. Kerala Tourism has identified 110 products to be manufactured as souvenirs. Training will be given to members of Kudumbasree units in production, packaging and marketing of these products, he added.
The State Government also plans to hold a conference of persons representing non-resident Keralite organisations across the world to form a Global Kerala Alliance in Tourism, the Minister said. The Government also plans to form Tourism Destination Management Councils for major tourism destinations in Kerala.
The councils will play a major role in the management of each destination and will begin functioning this year itself, he added. The tourism department has initiated steps to implement projects worth Rs 111 crore during the current year.
Tourism projects worth Rs 75 crore supported by the Union Government and projects worth Rs 78 crore supported by Nabard are also being implemented.
In 2007, foreign tourist arrivals in Kerala grew by 20.37 per cent over 2006 to cross 5.15 lakh, he pointed out. Domestic tourist arrivals last year grew by 5.92 per cent over 2006 to cross 66.42 lakh. The total revenue from tourism grew by 25.28 per cent to touch Rs 11,433 crore last year, he added.
Kerala Tourism Development Corporation had earned the highest profit in its history last year and will implement projects worth Rs 40 crore this year, he said. Tourism Resorts Kerala Ltd will be reconstituted and new projects implemented in the public-private partnership mode at Nelliampathy, Peerumedu, Varkala and Veli.
India is set to earn $ 1.87 billion a year in foreign exchange from medical tourism by 2012, according to a study by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).
With easy visa facilities to overseas patients coupled with best emerging medical infrastructure facilities, India’s medical tourism can become a lead foreign exchange earner and the earnings will grow from the existing 800 million annually to 1.87 billion U.S. dollars a year by 2012, Assocham President Venugopal N. Dhoot said.
The study on Prospects of Medical Tourism for Higher Forex Earning was done under the supervision of the health committee of Assocham, headed by Sir Ganga Ram Hospital chairman B.K. Rao.
“The primary reasons as to why medical tourism would flourish in India include much lower medical treatment costs for various ailments, such as bone narrow transparent, bye-pass surgery, knee surgery and liver transplant as compared to western countries,” Dhoot said in a statement Monday.
“The cost of medical treatment is very high in the western countries, forcing patients from Africa, the Gulf and various other Asian countries to explore medical treatment in India,” he said.
He noted that the medical infrastructure in India has geared up to provide them non-subsidized medical treatment at far lower costs.
Other factors boosting medical tourism include India’s strength in traditional treatment in homeopathy, naturopathy, ayurvedic andunani systems which are becoming very popular because they do not have side effects, said Dhoot.
He called for more allocation for the health sector which would lead to proliferation of new health facilities and centers of medical excellence, which in turn will finally be able to service overseas patients.
India is witnessing encouraging trends in the tourism sector with foreign tourist inflows touching 5 million mark in the year 2007. Domestic tourism is also a key driver. The “Incredible India” campaign has led to immense interest and awareness and is likely to result in significantly larger numbers of tourists traveling to and within the country. All this requires infrastructure, particularly at the key destinations / circuits.
The Ministry of Tourism has taken a policy initiative to develop the tourist destinations / circuits of national importance in a holistic and integrated manner. The objective is to ensure that the infrastructure of these mega destinations / circuits is developed to the extent that it can cater to the future tourist inflows so that visitors get a satisfying and memorable experience.
Identification and development of mega destinations/circuits is a continuous process. So far 20 such destinations / circuits of national importance have been identified in consultation with the State Governments on the basis of data indicating foot falls and potential arrivals.
These include:
- Agra – Revitalization of Taj (Uttar Pradesh)
- Varanasi – Sarnath (Uttar Pradesh)
- Bodhgaya – Rajgir – Nalanda (Bihar)
- Illumination of monuments of Delhi (Delhi)
- Mahabalipuram (Tamil Nadu)
- Puri – Bhubaneswar – Konark-Chilka (Orissa)
- Haridwar-Rishikesh (Uttarakhand)
- Hampi (Karnataka)
- Gangtok (Sikkim)
- Ajmer – Pushkar (Rajasthan)
- Kurukshetra (Haryana)
- Charminar area of Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh)
- Jagdalpur-Tirathgarh-Chitrakoot-Barsoo (Chattisgarh)
- Dwarka (Gujarat)
- Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh)
- Churches of Goa
- Ganga Heritage River Cruise Circuit (West Bengal)
- Vidarbha Circuit (Maharashtra)
- Aurangabad (Maharashtra)
- Amritsar (Punjab)
Under this new initiative, Ministry of Tourism will provide Financial Assistance up to Rs. 25 crore for development of a mega destination and Rs.50 crore for a mega circuit. Apart from this financial assistance, Ministry of Tourism is also working with other central government ministries and concerned state governments to achieve convergence and synergy with other government programmes so that the impact of investment on these destinations is maximized.
For identified destinations / circuits covered by the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, convergence of the resources is being ensured so that the tourism related infrastructure and urban civic infrastructure complement each other.
Ministry of Tourism has already sanctioned Rs.102 Crore for mega projects at Agra, Varanasi-Sarnath, Bodhgaya-Rajgir-Nalanda, and Illumination of monuments of Delhi, Mahabalipuram, Kurukshetra & Charminar area of Hyderabad.
It has been recognized that the infrastructure bottlenecks related to air, rail and road connectivity as well as hotel accommodation will also have to be addressed to ensure that identified circuit / destinations develop to their fullest potential. Therefore, Ministry of Tourism has also taken up these issues with the Ministries of Civil Aviation, Railways and Road Transport and Highways for upgradation / modernization of airports, increasing of air seat capacities, improving and modernization of railway stations, improved rail connectivity and improved linkage of these places with national / state highways.
The Ministry of Tourism’s objective is to ensure that with enhanced investments and an integrated approach, the mega destinations/ circuit will be developed to maximize their potential. The resulting increase in tourist inflows, in turn, will lead to economic development and employment generation in and around these places.
The Union Tourism Ministry has been according top priority to development of tourism in the North-east of India, since tourism has great potential for employment generation and economic growth.
This was stated by the Union Tourism Secretary S. Banerjee recently while reviewing the progress of projects sanctioned to the State Governments for development and promotion of tourism in the North-Eastern Region.
He said during the 10th plan period a total amount of Rs.319 crore was released to the North Eastern states including Sikkim, as against the mandatory provision of 10% amounting to Rs.269 crore.
Similarly in the first year of the 11th plan i.e. 2007-08, against the target of Rs.95.3 crore (10% allocation of the budget) the actual expenditure on the North East including HRD & publicity amounted to Rs.170 crore.
Banerjee said out of this amount, the amount released to the States for infrastructure development, Fairs and Festivals, Capacity Building for Service Providers and Information Technology was Rs.139.7 Crore.
Banerjee said, the Ministry has continuously been promoting the North Eastern Region through its publicity campaigns in the print, online and electronic media.
In 2006, 4.45 million foreign tourists arrived in the country, 0.038 million foreign tourists visited the North East region and the number of domestic tourists who visited the North East was 3.9 million.
The Union Tourism Secretary said however in order to tap the immense tourism potential of the region it is required that a concerted effort be made for upgrading infrastructure and ensuring better connectivity of important tourist destinations and circuits.
The Union Ministry highlighted the status of implementation of projects sanctioned in the first three years of the 10th Plan during the meeting. It was emphasized by the Senior Union Tourism Ministry officials that all projects must be completed and commissioned by December this year.
It was also impressed upon the states that actual implementation of the sanctioned projects will be closely monitored by the Union Government.
He directed that maintenance of assets is a must and in the absence of a proper institutional mechanism for solid waste management and civic amenities at sites, projects would not be considered for sanction.
Banerjee stated that as sustainable tourism is the way forward, due emphasis to eco tourism and rural tourism must be given.
In particular, rural tourism has the potential of showcasing the craft, cuisine and culture of a village in a very attractive manner, so while the Central Govt. with the cooperation of the State and District authorities is developing rural tourism sites, it is up the travel trade to effectively market them and bring tourists to these villages, for truly enjoying their authentic flavor and ambiance.
The representatives of State Governments from the North East briefed the meeting about their tourism strategy and the status of implementation of projects. They welcomed the recent decision regarding LTC for Govt. officials which will boost tourism to the region. They emphasized that guidance from Ministry of Tourism on creativity and publicity is greatly required for better marketing of their tourism products.
The States also stressed that relaxation of permits is essential for facilitating travel. Secretary, Arunachal Pradesh mentioned that the Ministry of Home Affairs has just relaxed the RAP regulations by opening up four more circuits, increasing the length of stay and allowing a minimum of two persons to travel rather than the earlier minimum number of four persons.
Apart from the tourism Review Meeting at Guwahati, there was a meeting with the Travel Trade in the North-East on May 12.
The Meghalaya Tourism Development Forum made a presentation about its activities and strategy for future development.
The leading members of the travel trade such as tour operators and hoteliers spoke about the boost that tourism has received in recent years because of the domestic media campaign and reiterated that continuous promotion and marketing efforts, together with relaxation of permits would ensure greater inflow of tourists to the region.
They emphasized the need for better connectivity of all States It was decided that the calendar of events of all the States would be finalized and communicated to the Ministry of Tourism for publicity through the website and collaterals.
The tour operators were also informed that the Marketing Development Assistance guidelines have been amended to enable tour operators from the North Eastern region to participate in the International Marts. At all these Marts, space is provided free of cost for the participants of the North East States hence they were urged to avail of this opportunity.
