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Documentation Update

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2005-06

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Our Note

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• HOW CREDIBLE IS "INCREDIBLE INDIA!"? • Making a mark on the international tourism map

The final report published in Feb, 06 of the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) for India prepared by the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) for the Ministry of Tourism provides insights into the role of tourism in Indian economy. The report emphasizes that Indian tourism has come of age and is internationally comparable and credible. Global recognition to Indian tourism has been accorded by the 73rd session of Executive Council of the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) where Secretary General, Francesco Frangialli, praising the country's tourism policy and the "Incredible India" campaign, said that he hoped the country would record the highest growth rate in tourist arrivals by the end of this year. I ndia's tourist arrival growth rate in 04·05 of 13%, matching that of China's, has upgraded India's position as a preferred tourism destination in Asia. India's status in the world tourism scenario was further enhanced when it was unanimously elected as a member of the Executive Council of the UNWTO. Financially too, tourism has become a priority sector at the central and state levels. The plan allocation for tourism sector at the central government level has increased from Rs. 786 crores in 2005·06 to Rs.830 crores in 2006-07, out of which 422.5 crores is for the development of tourism infrastructure alone.

The 'Incredible India' campaign and extensive promotional initiatives of the Iridian Government in tourism has been attributed as a key reason for India's positioning as an important tourism player. There has been a significant expansion of the Incredible India campaign and it has come to include several more states and regions under its focus. The campaign has also resulted in states competing with each other for central budgetary allocations and hiring national and international consultants to promote tourist destinations more aggressively, incorporating new rhetoric and concepts such as ecotourism, farm tourism, rural tourism and other such forms. In the light of the growing success of Indian tourism internationally, even greater emphasis has been laid on "high value, low volume" tourism in some of the states· the rationale of such assumption being that high value tourism will induce development of high end infrastructure with added financial gains through tourism revenues.

In its bid to continuously improvise and take new'shapes and forms to attract all kinds of clientele - the

latest buzzword is medical tourism. The trend is of promoting different cities such as Hyderabad, Bangalore and Delhi as hubs for medical tourism to attract international patients into large private·run hospitals that � offer specialized medical services at prices much lower than international standards. The 'greet and treat' concept is integral to this new idea. The central Tourism Ministry is participating at the Medical Tourism Expo in the UK in June 2006 to showcase the medical facilities available in India. Although foreigners and NRls coming to India for treatment is not a recent trend, the last few years have seen the Tourism Department leveraging this trend to package it as a new tourism product of "Medical Tourism" with simplified visa procedures for international patients being outlined prominently inthe national tourism website.

Flying high - tourism and the aviation sector boom in India

The tremendous boom in the aviation industry 2005·06 has resulted in better connectivity between tourism destinations all over the country. There has been a growing trend of low cost private airlines aggressively entering the market. The sectors, which were considered economically non viable earlier (like North Eastcand Andaman) are now well connected even by private airlines. Our section C24 - Civil aviation highlights this trend. It is expected that domestic tourism sector will witness an upward growth with air travel no longer a privileged mode of transport for the .soCial and economic elite. Entry of new players has not only Jed to aggressive p'rice wars but the adoption of novel marketing strategies by airlines to attract customers. One such strategy in particular chooses to highlight its female staff on board as "models in the air". The booming aviation sector has also brought in additional proposals of the modernization and privatization of airport.) at major I ndia cities -a move which saw vehement challenge by workers unions but which the central government is determined to see through ..

Business as usual

For the l a st 50 yea rs, min i ng, dam projects and industries cont inue to feed voraciously on natura l res'ource rich a reas and be major threats to i nd igenous and loca l communities, and the env i ronment. The threats from these deve lopments have been visib l e enough and have generated immense res i stance from adivas i com mu n ities across states. Tou rism too, i s gradua I ly a nd subtly penetrati ng t r i ba I a reas usi ng forests, water and triba l cu l tu re as potenti a l p roducts. In 2005 the Government of I ndia introdu ced the Forest Rights Bil l , which for the first t i me recogn ized the rights of forest dwe l l ing communities over their resources. However since its introduction in Pa rliament, 9 months a nd three parliamentary sessions l ater, no decision has been taken yet on its status . Significa nt opposition to its tab l ing has been from a section of 'conservationists and wild life experts' who have contested the bil l on the grounds that granting more rights to i ndigenous and l ocal communities over forest l ands woul d resu l t in biodiversity loss and hab itat change. Simultaneously the very same Government has, in a rather sneaky manner, brought back Schedu le V and VI a reas within the ambit of the country's commitments under WTO agreements like the GATS with 110 stakeholder consu l tation. With the a l ready rampant privatization of common property resources in these a reas, exposure to the GATS and the foil ow i ng investment in service sectors wil l increase the threat being faced by indigenous communities. Tou rism being a n important service sector wil l have a free reign, without being accou ntable for its adverse impacts.

No l onger a col l uder but a key faci l itator in the p rocess of non - pa rt icipatory deve lopment- is the centra l government with the star role being p layed by the Ministry of Environment a nd Forests- MoEF. The Ministry is on a d rive to do away with even the meager protection that cu rrent environmental l aws offer to suit the needs a nd demands of i n d u st ry gia nts_ As part of I ndia's commitments to impl ement the Convention on Biologica l Diversity (CBD), a Nationa l Biodiversity Strategy a nd Action P l a n (NBSAP) was prepared in 2002 through a consultative process but has not been a pproved to date. The reason quoted is that it is 'unscientific.' The Envi ronment a l I m pact Assessment (EIA) N ot i fication f i rst issued in 1 994 was withd rawn a nd E IA for tourism has been removed in the new draft Notification. The Coastal Regula tionZone (CRZ) Notification issued in 1 99 1 , first dil uted by tour ism lobby that wa nted a free entry into coastal stretches has been a mended 20 times to date - with each a mendment fur ther di l ut i ng i ts p rovisions . Bu t now the M oEF has deci ded to replace the CRZ N otification with a ma nagement p l an. These wel l orchestrated changes at the pol i cy a nd lega l spaces has effectively given tourism a hol iday f ro m accou ntability a nd is business a s usua l with no pretens ions of a tint of green.

As we go into press with this issue of the DocUpdate, pol icy battlel i nes a re being d rawn on SEZ, on Rehabilitation a n d Resel lement policies, and tryi ng to ensure that the hard fought Right to I nformation i s not dil uted.

As people continue to fight and struggle ...

With a deve lopment model that is c lear ly not i n favour of the majority of its people but o riented to suit the needs of the country's socia l a nd economic e l ite, communit ies and affected people have come together in their fight to recl ai m democracy and the right to determine the i r form and pace of development. The past yea r has seen many a struggle - by the adivasis of Ka linga Nagar against the min i ng p l ans of indust ry giant Tata on their lands; by the people of Chattisgarh to reclaim the right over their river water which was ca l l ous ly sold away, by the people of the Northeast against state oppression, m i l ita r ization and a n imposed model of deve lopment fue l led by money and s upport from internationa l institutions l ike the Wor ld Bank and ADB; by farmers from across the country protesting in Hong Kong against the WTO-induced trade regi me in agriculture that threatens the livelihoods of mil l i ons i n I ndia and other farming countries; by the v i l lagers of P lachimada against Coca Cola to stop the cola g iant from using and contam inating the water of the vil lage; by the s lum dwel lers of I ndia 's burgeoning metropolises to fight for space and the righ't to l ive with dignity; by the bar gir ls of M u m ba i to retain their right to work a nd feed their fami l ies. A s the poor, u nder- privileged and socia l ly m a rgina l ized continue to fight, the government has not on ly continued to endorse such a n a nti-people development model but has u sed its state and military power to suppress voices of opposition a nd rebe l l ion . The c urrent for m of tourism deve lopment is a component of this pa rad igm that continues to support the priv i leged without tendi ng to the needs and aspirations of communities which has a nd wil l continue to inspi re campa igns towards a more j ust and democratic model .

This issue of the DocUpdate covers the period April 2005 to March 2006. The information inc luded i s indicative, tracing tourism, development and other broader issues, with the focus being l a rgely on I ndia. The i nformation

is organised and presented based according to the sections and sub-sections of EQUAT IONS documentation centres c l assification code. T he data at the end of each item indicates the source. Please refer to the source index for a bbreviations used.

We wou ld l ike to a cknowledge the contribl6A bvr.is'Nfn a Rao{Oel hi), Bai la n cho Saad (Goa) and Citizen,

Consumer a nd Civic Action G roup (Chennai) for providing us with c l ippings a nd reports.

Notwithstanding the delay in bringing this issue to you, we hope you find it useful and informative. We would a ppreciate receiving feedback a bo�H9�};>��Upp�t�j:> I���write to us attnfo@equitab�!wris,fl,l!urg �:'

EQUAT,IQNS Team Novemb!;r 2006

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.CONTENTS. A - TOURISM AND TOURISM ALTERNATIVES

B - TOURISM POLICY AND TOURISM DEVELOPMENT

C -TOURISM ECONOMY, INDIAN ECONOMY

o - TOURISM PROMOTION AND TYPES OF TOURISM

E - TOURISM, S OCIETY AND IMPACTS

G. - COAS TAL REGIONS

H - HILL AND MOUNTAIN REGIONS

K - KARNATAKA

L - KERAL A

M - TAMIL NADU

N - ANDHRA PRADESH

P-GOA

Q -NORTH EAS T

S -OTHER S TATES

T - FOREIGN COUNTRIES

U - INTERNATIONAL ECONOMY

x - CULTURE AND S OCIETY

Z - MISCELLANEOUS

TSR - TSUNAMI

Source Index

5

8

14

45

61

75

77

79

93

105

109

113

120

121

145

150

156

162

163

167

• A - TOURISM AND TOURISM ALTERNATIV ES .

AOO Tourism, Travel

Destination tourism is a c rashing bore. To the globetrotter, Paris, New York, Dubai, S i ngapore, even the Alps, is so 'common' . For the domestic tourist, travel hotspots a re where you bump into the ver-y people you a re taking a b reak from: Pesky col lea gues and neighbou rs . Trekking, snorkeiling, even bird watching a re victims of mass tourism and brochure p romotions.

For the bored vacationer, the Lonely P lanet Guide to Experimenta l Travel offers refreshing departures. "Forget package hol idays a nd clas sic routes", it says. Rewr ite travel ru les.

Experience. Rel ate. Look at travel through a l a tera l filter. There a re a l ternative ways to be a tour ist , Vis i t the wor ld in creative, exciting a nd unusua l ways. The trick is to "discover p laces that have no rea son to exist".

Ear l ie r, hol iday-travel was for p leasu re i t was escape from rea lity today it is escape from comfort-induced boredom.

Disaster tourism or trave l l ing to a scene of d isaster - to tSunami-ravaged beach destinations l ike Phuket and the Andaman I s l ands; terrorist-ta rgets l ike Egypt's Luxor and Sheik- a l -Sharif, New York's Ground Zero and the Ba l i I s l ands a nd v is i ts to battl e-sites l ike Ka rgil - a re being described more as voyeur's choice, a hindrance to rel ief a nd rehabilitation work. P romoters say it sensitises peop le to the p l ight of the a ffected and hel ps kick-start the l oca l economy.

Surrea lists and psycho-geographers, modern a lternative thinkers, espouse a phi losophy that seems to say: Let chance be you r gu ide. A p a ra l l e l i s d rawn between experimenta l t ravel a n d sur rea l i st phi losophy: ' I t thrives o n the tension between premeditation a n d sponta neity. The rea lisation that reason a nd a nt i - reason, sen se and nonsense, design and chance, consciousness and u nconsciousness, be l ong to each other as necessary parts of the whole".

Experimenta l travel involves constant reinvention and c reativity expenments incl ude Blind Man's Bug, Slow­return and Era-tou rism_ Ero·tour ism is an experiment for couples, to a rrive sepa rately in an unknown foreign city and then find one another without having recourse to a ny means of communicati on, a nd without having decided on a meeting place. Blind Man's Buff, as the name suggests, is one partner blindfolding himself and ' seei ng' and experiencing the jou rney a nd destinat ion through the eyes of his companion. S low-retu rn travel means j ust that: Get to a destination via the fastest mode of trav�1 and then cha l k out you r retu rn through the s lowest possible way

A'nachronist i c adventure entai l s t rave l l ing back in time by u sing, for i nstance, a Penny Farthing or hot-air bal loon, navigating a town or vil l age in period costume, to experience the pace and style of travel of a bygone age with greater authenticity Past-travel wou ld include using an out-of-date gu idebook to explore a city while not i ng the changes that have occurred over time. The Lonely P lanet ca l l s this compa ra tive anachronistic tourism.

Counter·tourism a c ritique of c l assica l tou rism - doing the opposite of what you think a trave l ler shoul d do, l i ke taking pictu res with you r b a c k to key tourist sites, The resu l ts cou l d b e excitin g a n d reve l atory_ Experimenta l travel is a playful way of travel l ing, where the journey's methodology a c lear but the destination is unk nown . Get a dventu rous. Hasn ' t it been said that it is the jou rney not the destination that matters? (Death of the Destinat ion, TOLB, 05.09.05 , AOO)

Year 2005 can perhaps a pt ly be described as the 'Year of the Trave l ler ' . After a l l , when e lse has there been a time in the I nd i a n t ravel industry when air travel was cheaper than rail, air-tickets were commonly sold for Rs 1 a nd you bought you r rai l ticket on the mobile phone en route to the rai lway station!

Much has changed on the travel l andscape a nd then aga i n so much rema ins to be done. Whi l e domest ic aviat ion has clear ly led the march , novel d i st ri bution ideas have made a d ramatic i mpact on the landscape.

E lectro n i c d i str i but ion via the I nternet atta i ned pop u lar ity i n a relat i ve ly short t i me·span as customers embraced e·commerce for a ll the advantages i t brought to their f i ngertips.

Power to the consumer ( read trave l ler) was the dominant theme across most changes. Customers demanded more c ho i ce i n a l l aspects modes of t ravel , cho ice of carr iers , hote l s and dest i nat ions . And supp l i ers rea d i ly p layed bal l i n a desperate race for the ephemera l market l eader status . The i rony rem a i ned that supp ly rarely met demand and yet most a i rl i nes were prepared to bend over backwards to secure a lead i n the ephemeral market share game.

Adm i ttedly, the hosp ita l i ty sector p resented qu ite a d ifferent story. Demand outstr i pped supp ly at most t imes of the year and th is resu lted i n hotel s pr ic ing their rooms at ast ronomical pr ices and actua l ly getti ng away with i t . C it ies l i ke Bangalore, Pune and Delh i went i nto a chron ic 'so ld·out' s i tuat ion, fuel led l a rgely by busi ness travel that emanated fro m a booming corporate c l i me. It is a pit ifu l fact that the sum total of hotel rooms i n I nd ia i s less than that I d the c i ty of Las Vegas or as I recently learnt less than one sub·brand of the Marriott cha i n of hote l s !

Wh i l e we often tend to l u mp travel and tourism i n one compartment, the truth i s t hat wh i l e complementary, they are quite d i fferent i n nature. I ndia i s ga l lop ing away to new heights i n the travel category (a i r, hotel , taxis , etc. , fue l led by a robust economy); much remains to be achieved on the tourism s ide . The on ly form booming i s outbound tour ism a n d as the n a me suggests , its benefits accrue to fore ign countr ies that a re c lever enough to attract Ind ians to the i r modest but wel l ·packaged attractions. I nbound tourism i s actual ly grow ing at a mediocre rate. And it 's due to the i nherent i nfrastructural bottlenecks i n the travel ecosystem. (Advantage trave l ler, Deep Ka l ra , FE .B, 25 . 1 2.05 , AOO)

The Acropo l i s i n Athens made i t , as d id Angkor Wat tem ple in Cambodia , Chi na's Great Wal l , the Colosseum in Rome, the I nca temple of Machu P icchu in Peru , Stonehenge i n England and the Moai - the Easter I sland statues. Less i mmediately obvious choices i n a f ina l short l i st of 21 contenders for the New Seven Wonders of the World , a n nounced i n Switzerland , i nc lud ed the Kreml i n i n Moscow, the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Uberty.

More than 1 9 m i l l ion voters have so fa r taken part i n what its organ i se rs ca l l the "wor ld 's f i rst g loba l vot ing campaign " , nominat i ng hundreds of s i tes they consider worthy riva l s to the seven wonders of the a nc ient world named by Anti pater of S idon and Ph i lon of Byzantiu m i n 200 BC. (Globa l vote for new seven wonders, Jon Hen ley, BL .B, 03. 0 1 .06, AOO)

AlO Tourism and Development

Giv ing a further boost to the aggressive ' I ncred i bl e I nd i a ' cam pa ign of Ind ia tou ri sm, the p rest ig ious U K magazine Conde N ast Trave l ler has rated the country 5th among the top 1 0 travel dest i nations i n the wor ld . "Conde Nast's recognit ion confirms I nd ia 's growing stature as a fastest growing tourism desti nation," Min ister of State for Tou ri sm Ren ukha Chowdhury sa id . The rank ings are an i ndex of satisfact ion with travel faci l it ies a nd servi ces , scored out of a max im u m of 1 00 . I n the readers' travel awa rds questionna i re , readers were asked to choose the best that the travel world has to offer· everyth i ng from hote ls and spas to a i r l i nes and a i rports. ( i nd ia a mong top 10 tour ist desti nat ions, I E. C, 1 1 . 1 0.05, A 1 0)

ABO Tourism Research / Education

F lustered by the growi ng poach ing of i ts a i r crew i nc l ud i ng co· p i lots and engi neers by the competitors, A i r Deccan , has decided t o meet the problem head on by sett ing up an i nternational standard school for tra i n ing p i lots, engi neers and a i r crew. The world class i nstitution wou ld not on ly meet the capt ive requ i rements of Air Deccan but even p rovide tra i n i ng fac i l it ies to other a i rl i nes in I nd ia and abroad . The overa l l i nvestment on the new project, schedu led to sta rt soon , would be over a round $25 m n . (Ai r Deccan to sta rt tra i n i ng school , TS .D, 1 3 .05.05, A80)

The Federat ion of Hotel & Restau ra nt Assoc iat ions of I nd ia ( FH RA I ) has s igned an agreement with Ecole Hote l i e r de Lausanne (EHL) of Switzer land for consu ltancy and its academic aff i l iat ion for the new F H RA I I n st itute of Hospita l i ty Management bei ng estab l i shed i n Greater No ida . The i n st i tute w i l l begi n operat ion from August 05. The federation's Vice· President , Mr S .K . Khu l lar, sa id that th is was f i rst t ime i n the country that a man agement i n st itute of i n ternationa l standards for the hosp ita lity i ndustry was be ing set u p by the a pex body, which has about 2 ,700 members i n 300 c it ies. (Hotels federation i n pact with Swiss co to set u p i n stitute, Badal Sanya l , B L.B , 20.05.05, A80)

The travel industry is fac ing a manpower cr is is with agencies not attracti ng the right k ind of ta lent any more. The opportun i ty to travel and have a good soc ia l l ife, once the perks of the travel busi ness, a re no longer the preserve of those who work i n th is f ie ld .

Ms Shobana Lazar ius , Managing D i rector, Sky Routes I nd ia Pvt Ltd, sa id that agencies are u nable to attract ta lent ma i n ly because of the i r i n a b i l i ty to match the sa lar ies pa id by the bus i ness process outsourc i ng (BPO) compan ies.

In t he smal ler age ncies, the e ntry- level sa l a ry for a fresh graduate in Chenna i w i l l be Rs 2 ,500 to Rs 3 ,000, whi le salar ies at the l arger ones may go up to Rs 4 ,000 to Rs 6,000. A fresher with a s im i la r q ua l i fi cation w i l l get about Rs 1 0 ,000 i n a BPO_

U ntra i ned manpower i s the b iggest d rawback for t he i ndust ry. Travel companies do not want to spend on tra i n i ng the i r manpower and moreover, there is no such i n frastructure ava i lab le with them, sa i d Mr Kan ia l H i ngora n i , Head & Vice President, Kuon i Academy of Trave l .

Accord i ng to the World Travel and Tou rism Counc i l report, the dema nd for tra i ned manpower i n the travel i ndustry i s 1 0 lakh persons a year. Mr Ki ngaran i said that on ly a fraction of th is demand is met. There a re a few i n stitutes a nd col l eges , which now offer travel and tour ism courses .

Travel agencies are adding a ca l l centre model to the trad itional busi ness model . The best part of i t i s that a you n g recru i t can a l so l ook at run n i ng h i s own bus i ness after ga i n ing the relevant experience i n a t rave l agency, he sai d . (Travel agenc ies face shortage o f manpower, N i na Varghese, BL . B, 06.09.05, A80)

The Kol ka ta -based I nternationa l Group, wh ich runs three hofel management i nstitutes i n I nd i a under the I n ternat iona l I n st i tute of Hotel Management ba nner, has f i r med up p lans to set up a hote l management i nst itute i n D u ba i . The proposed i n st itute, f i rst of its k i nd i n the Emi rates, i s set to become operationa l by Apri l th is yea r.

It wi l l offer a three·year, ful l ·t ime undergraduate degree course i n I nternational Hospita l i ty Management . I t wi l l be l ocated i n Duba i 's Knowledge Vi l lage.

The Duba i venture w i l l enta i l an i nvestment of Rs 20·25 c rore that w i l l be generated from i nterna l accrua l s and other sources o f f i nance. Wh i l e t he hospita l ity i ndust ry there generates a huge demand fo r tra i ned professionals, the ava i labi l ity of those tra i ned loca l ly i s scarce. ( I nternational Group plans hotel mgmt inst itute i n Duba i , Ambar Si ngh Roy, BL .B, 09.01 .06, A80)

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• B - TOUR I SM POLICY AN D TOURISM D EV ELOPMENT .

BOO Tourism Policy and Plans

Giving a major push to the Ati th i Devo Bhava campaign , Un ion M i n i stry of Tour ism i s conven i ng a national meet of noda l off icers f rom d i fferent U nion M i n i str ies and State Governments. "The bas ic i dea i s to a ss ign def in i t ive roles to a l l m i n i stries , departments and State Governments and gear them up for the campaign." The Delh i meeting was a imed at achieving coord ination between various Government departments that d irectly dea l t with i ssues related to tour ism . (Centre cal l s meet to rev up tour ism dr ive, K V Kurmanath , BloB; 1 2.5 .05 , BOO)

To attract more tourists, the home m i n i st ry i s consider i ng two crucia l proposals. F ir st , is the v i sa on ar riva l scheme for tour ists from 1 6 countries , i nc lud i ng Austral i a , New Zea land . Switzer land , Norway and some Lat in American countries. Second, the M in i stry is cons idering eas i ng the Restricted Area Permit and P rotected Area Permi t for foreigners goi ng to the Northeast. Th is w i l l help boost tour i sm in the region . (Govt. p lans to repackage Dest i nation I nd ia , Rajn i sh Sha rma , HT.D, 3 1 .05.05, BOO)

A reu n if ication of the m i n i str ies of cu lture and tour i sm i s l i ke ly to come about when the U nion Cab i net i s reshuff led i n J u ly. Both the cu lture a n d tour i sm m i n istries have been i n the eye of a storm ever since the formation of the UPA government last year. The Tour ism Min ister, M rs Renuka Chaudhary, has been a l ittle too outspoke n , much to the d iscomfort of her sen iors. A sen ior cu l tu re m i n i st ry offici a l s a i d there had been p ractical d iff icu l ties in executi ng projects as tourism and culture could not rea l ly be looked upon as separate entit ies. (M in i stry meld i ng l i kely for culture, tourism, Sanjay S i ngh, TS.D, 03.06.05, BOO)

The M in i stry of Tourism recently announced plan s to restart the tour ist guide exam after n ine years. Last held i n 1 996, the exam w i l l now be conducted on December 29 , 2005.

Language experts had approached the court with a pet it ion to hold the exa m so that they too coul d qual ify as tou r i st gu ides . The exam wil l be he ld every two years i n a b i d to streaml i ne the need for p rofess iona l guides in the country. Two t ra i ni ng program mes w i l l a l so sta rt from August 29, a fou r month fre shers course and a one-month refreshers course. These programmes w i l l i nculcate in the takers knowledge a bout Ind ian cu l ture and p repare a s pi ra n ts for the exam . The m i n i st ry a l so p l a n s to have a s pecia l quota for wives of defence personne l . (Tour ist gu ide exam to be started aga i n after 9 years, Shveta Bhagat, TOI . D, 06.09.05, BOO)

Among the new projects of the Un ion M in i st ry of Tour ism i nclude: + Air India to d isp lay ' Incredib l e I nd ia ' on ta i l of sel ected a i rcraft +Tour ism themes mus ic to be made ava i l able at M icrosoft Window + Touri st taxis to run with ' I ncred i ble I nd ia ' graffiti + Sight see ing package for u nderpriv i leged ch i ldre n from orphanages + Exc lus ive website on rura l desti nat ions (New i n i t iatives launched on World Tour ism Day, I E.C. 28.09.05, BOO)

U nion Tour ism M i n i ster Renuka Chowdhury sa i d that the M i n i stry has ea rmarked Rs. 488 crore for tour ism projects in various states for the current f inancia l yea r without a ny pre-condit ion of match ing grant.

At a meet ing to revi ew tourism p rojects i n the states , she said that states have to ensure on ly t ime ly completion of these projects and regu lar submiss ion of reports to the Centre for future p lann i ng. Expressing cor.cern over s low imple mentation in some of the cases, she said that the condit ion of matching grant from the state has been waived-off a n d n ow the states have to ensure on ly the avail ab i l i ty of l a n d for gett i ng

. hundred percent f inanc ia l s upports from the Cent re. She asked the s tates to actively cons ider redef i n i ng land use norms to faci l i tate construction of budget accommodation, rat iona l i sation of various taxes i n tour ism i ndustry and si ngle·win dow cleara nce for tour ism p rojects. The M i n i ster suggested the states to adopt eco-

2005 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I fr iendly p ra ct ices at tourism desti nations and to keep its role l i mi ted up to i nfrastructure developments. (Rs 488 cr to reva mp tourism i n states, IE .B, 28. 1 0 .05 , BOO)

Even as tour operators and agencies plead with the Central Government for easier visa regulations for tourists, the Tourism M i n istry has recommended outsourc ing visas to private compan ies, to loosen the strangleho ld of the "visa bureaucracy" regi me.

M i n i stry off i c i a ls be l ieve the on ly way to cash i n on the growi ng I nd i a · boom wor ldwide is to make visas access ib le to maximum people, in maximum cit ies, in maximum countries.

The outsourci ng of v isas he lp help reckon offic ia ls i n two ways. "Fi rst, it is cheaper to outsource rather than set up 20 consu lates to process visas. Two, i t ma kes it safer and easier to p rocess a v isa through a p rivate firm than risk the loss of passport through a travel agent.

The US has outsourced its visas through TI Services, a subs id iary of TTK I ndustries, which services requests from northern and southern regions. (Tourism M i n istry pushes to outsource visas, Vr i nda Gopi nath, I E. D, 28. 1 0.05, BOO)

I n a n i ni t i at ive a i med at giv i ng a boost to the tourism sector, the M i n istry of Tourism has a pproached the P l a n n i ng Com miss ion to mandate every M in i stry to make tourism a sub-pl a n under wh ich, at l east 5- 1 0% funds should be a l located towards tourism i nfrastructure development. T he proposal was made by the M inister of Tourism Renuka Chowdhury.

The government i n i ts Budget 2005-06 had a l l ocated Rs 786 crore for tourism as aga i nst Rs 500 crore i n 2004-0 5 . It has a lso proposed Rs 4 1 5 crore for tourism i nfrastructure.

Ta l king a bout the other new i nit iatives taken by MOT, Ms Chowdhury sa id the m i n istry was a lso looki ng at the viab i l ity of sign i ng MoUs with 'sma l ler a i rl i nes'. (,Make tourism a sub-pla n in a l l m in istr ies', FE.C, 20. 12 .05 , BOO)

After long being at sea over cruise tourism's huge potential evident through its fast-growing global popu larity - the gover n ment is f i n a l l y formulat i ng a n e la borate pol i cy to make Ind i a a n a ttractive cruise tour ism desti n ation . This i ncludes deve lopment of i nfrastructure and other faci l it ies at various ports, in a b id to d rift the flow of such foreign tour ists i n to I nd i an shores.

A si ngle c ruise sh i p, usua l l y hav ing 1 0 decks, can eas i l y a ccommodate 8,000-9,000 tourists, who need to book themselves for such package tours to visit pre·speci f ied dest i nations.

Whi le a h igh· power steering group has been constituted to formulate pol icy in the matter, a working group has identified Mumbai , Mormugao, New Manga lore, Coch i n ports on the west coast and Chenna i , Tut icorin ports on the east coast for i nfrastructural development. Spec ia l theme c i r9uits a re bei ng prepared by the Tourism M in istry keepi ng in v iew loca l cultura l and geographica l deta i ls.

Pol i cy components: • I m migrat ion: Ava i l a bi l ity of proper visa . In the a bsence of proper visa, each port may have tempora ry

l a n d i n g permit for one month for c ru ise passengers a nd c rew. Cruise t ravel agents a re registered . Nomination and tra i n i ng of i mmigration officers at each port.

• Custom Clea rance: Custom off icers a re a l ready ava i l a bl e at each port. They may ensure hassle free movement of passengers and goods.

• Quarant ine Restr ictions: The M i n istry of Hea lth may nomi nate an officer for each selected port to tackle quara ntine issue related with yel low fever.

• I nfrastructure: Necessary i nf rastructure l i ke dedicated terminals, rest rooms, lounges, publ ic conveniences, bui l t up space for duty restaura nts, p roper gangway for easy embarkation and d isembarkation, baggage hand l i ng thrc,,,c. '1 conveyor belts, baggage storage cloak rooms to be created.

• Con nectiv ity: Besirles creating i nfrastructure for smooth a nd hassle free cal l i ng of cruise sh ips i n Ind ian ports, connectl v ty ':1 rough ra i l, road and a i r have been sought.

I Documcntat ion Update 12005 06 • Taxation Issues: A favourable taxation reg ime to be put i n p lace i n consultation with the RB I a nd CBO:r

under the f i na nce m i n istry, bes ides consultation with state govern ments with rega rd to loca l taxes l i ke service tax, luxury tax, octroi on supply of services, enterta i n ment tax.

(Centre to fra me policy to attract tour ists, A bhigyan Hans, AA. B, 15.0 1 .06, BOO)

The CAG has pul led up the Tourism Min istry for incurring irregular expenditure of over RS.80 lakh on engagement of staff i n I nd ia tourism off i ces ab road. Noting that engagement of staff was 'in d isrega rd ' of i n structions, CAG, i n its report tab led i n Pa r l i a ment sa id "the I nd ia tourism off ices i n London, M i l a n a nd Pa ri s had been engagi ng contingency·paid staff from July 2001 to March 2005 for work of regu lar nature or against vacant posts a nd i n curred i rregul ar.expenditure of Rs 83. 1 7 Ia kh." CAG a lso described the response of the m in i stry as "not tenable". It said wh i le M i l an was appoint ing the temporary staff only during peak season to cope with heavy workload, the Pa r is office was f i nding i t diff icult to appoint a candidate to the post of secretary as the benefits offered were not attractive enough . (CAG pul l s up tourism min istry for i rregu la r expenditure, 22.03 .06, BOO)

820 Tour ism Legis l at ion

A Nationa l Tourism Adv isory Council, cha i red by the M in i ster o f State for Tourism, has been constituted with members from m i nistr ies, experts i n travel a nd tourism management a nd pres idents of travel a nd trade associations . T he secretary tour ism would be the member secreta ry. (Touri sm Counc i l Constituted, T S.O, 04.05.05 , B20)

The Maharashtra cabi net a pproved the controvers i a l ord inance ba nn ing over 1 ,300 da nce bars in the face of opposition from sections within the government a wel l as f rom outside. T itled the Bombay Pol i ce (Amendment) Ordi na nce 2005, i t bans da nce performances i n side bars and eateries. I t i n c ludes a stri ngent p rovis ion to p rovide for pun ishment upto t h ree yea rs a nd pena l ty upto Rs. 2 l a kh for v io lations, and ma kes the offence non ·ba i l a b le. C lubs, f ive·star hotel s a nd tourism·re lated performances have been exempted from the ban. (Ord inance ba ns da nce ba rs but keeps 5·sta rs out of it, ILO, 19.05.05, B20)

830 ITDC

I n what is bei ng seen by the Tour ism M in i stry as a v i ndication of thei r stand, l i quor major UOV O iageo has offered addit ion a l 1 ,700 cases·20,400 bott les worth Rs 2.6 crore, free to ITOC for its 2004 supp ly. The compa ny's most wel l·known product Black Label is the best·sel l i ng brand at ITOC's duty·free shops, account i ng for nea rly ha lf the turnover.

T his effectively mea ns that the company has pushed down the purchase pri ce of the best-se l l i ng b ra nd a nd a l so has set a benchmark for future purchases a nd may now be i n a pos ition to compete with a new private player i n New Del h i 's duty·free busi ness.

T he rights a nd wrongs of how ITOC procures i ts l iquor have been the subject of a war between bureaucrats a nd pol i tic ians for over s i x months. (L iquor gia nt's bounty for ITOC, TOLD, 20.04.05, B30)

The Leel a G roup is acqui r ing the erstwhi le [TO C five-star resort i n Kova l a m, its maiden operating hotel , for a bout Rs 120 crore f rom a Gul f·based non-resident bus i nessma n who current ly runs it under the Meridien brand name. Another Rs 15·20 cr is l i ke ly to be i nvested in upgrading the 192·room property. T he acquisit ion p rocess, wh i ch i s expected to be completed with i n the next 8·9 weeks, w i l l expand the s ize of the Lee la 's i n the south to four hotels by 2008. In the past, the cha in has a lways buil t the hotel from a scratch. The Kova l a m resort w a s acqui red by the Muscat N R I during the ITOC dis investment progra mme. A 5th hote l , a 65 a l l·suite boutique property in Uda i pur, wil l be ready by October 2006. Lee la 's expa ns ion p lan i ncludes l and acqui red i n Chenna i near the beachfront to bui ld a 360·room lUXUry hotel compl imented by commerc ia l development for a tech park To support its recent dr ive to aggress ively expand its footpri nt, it is ra i s i ng a round Rs 350 crore (through a mix of options i nc ludi ng foreign currency converti ble bonds, AO R, equity). (Leela in Rs 1 20· cr dea l for former ITOC resort; A l so P l a ns Rs 15·20 Cr U pg radation of the Kova l a m Property, G i rish Rao, ET.B, 24.05.05, B30)

�005-06 1 DO('Wnc12talioll Updale I B32 Tourism Facilities

In a major d i rective which has far-reach ing i mp l ications, P ri me Mi n ister Manmohan Si ngh has asked various m i nistries to treat I nd ian a nd foreign nationals a l i ke, doing away with the present "discr i m i natory" f�es for various services and faci l it ies, i nc lud i ng hotel tariffs, domestic a i r fare and entry fee at h istor ica l monuments and other tou rist sites.

Pr i me M i nister Manmohan Si ngh has asked Cabinet Secretary B K Chaturvedi to review with the m in istries concerned the d iscr i m inatory charges being lev ied for services to foreign passport holders, i nc ludi ng N Rls. He has suggested that the m i n istries concerned should exa m i ne the feas ib i l ity of end ing th is a nomaly and treati ng a l l consumers of such services equa l ly i rrespective of the i r nat iona l i ti es. (,Treat foreigners, I ndia ns a l i ke' , DH .B, 1 1 .02 .06, B32)

B40 Bilatera l and Mu lt ilatera l Agreements of Ind ian Government i n Tourism

While moving towards a Regional Trade Arrangement (RTA), I nd ia a nd China entered i nto formal understanding to engage i n a wide·ra ngi ng d i a logue over the f i nanc i a l sector and to substa nti a l ly l i bera l ise c iv i l av iation l i nkages that would resu lt i n a major i ncrease i n f l ight frequencies between the two cou ntries. The c iv i l aviation agreement seeks to i ncrease the f l ight frequencies of designated a i rl ines of each side to 14 per week on the lATA summer season of 2005 that would go up to 28 f l ights during the wi nter season and to 42 f l ights dur ing the summer season of 2006. At present, each side operates seven f l ights a week. The two sides would a lso adopt 'open Skies' pol i cy for cargo with un l imited capacity entitlement for dedicated cargo services. Agreement has a lso been reached to simp l i fy visa procedures for operat ing a nd cab in c rew a nd e mployment of foreign pi lots by the designated a i rl ines of either side. The a i rl i nes wou ld a lso be a l lowed to d ry l ease a i rcraft for both combi n ation services a n d cargo sha ri ng services. (I nd ia , Ch i na sign pact to rel a x av iat ion l i nkages; Jo int group moots regiona l trade a rrangement, BL .B, 1 2 .04.05, B40)

I nd i a a nd Aust ra l ia have agreed to jointly promote the Commonwealth Games i n Melbourne i n 2006 a n d i n De lh i i n 20 1 0 to s ign i f ica nt ly i nc rease the tour ist f low. T h is was agreed a t t h e f i rst Joi n t Worki ng Group meet i ng on tou rism between the two countries.

Agree i ng to adopt an action p lan to have effective b i latera l cooperation in various a reas of tourism and travel , both the M in isters a lso a greed to estab l ish a b i l a tera l eco·tourism work ing group to ident ify joint research and tra i n i ng projects, a n off ic ial release sa id . The Austra l i a n s ide agreed to host an Austra l i a- I nd ia Tourism Business Forum to coinc ide with the Mel bourne Commonwealth Ga mes. ( Ind ia , Austra l i a to joint ly promote Commonwealth Games, BL.B, 20.09.05, B40)

As a fol low-up to the i n it iat ives taken at the revived joint commission meeting here, I nd i a a nd Pakistan have for med a joi nt worki ng group (JWG) to explore opportunit ies for promot ing tour i sm between them. The JWG would workout moda l i t ies for promot ing tour ism i n a b ig way between the two countri es, Joi nt Secretary, Tourism Mi n istry Amita bh Ka nt, who a ccompan ied Externa l Affa i rs M i n ister K N atwa r Si ngh to h is v is it to Pakistan .

Mr Kantand other offic ia ls made v ideo presentations to Pakistan's group tour operators and tourism offic ia ls to impress upon them that through l iberal isation of visa regime and promoting group tourism the two countries could tap a huge market i nvolv ing over a mi l l ion tourists.

I n a n effort to promote tou rism, I nd i a has proposed to Pakistan to a mend the existi ng agreement on visa to increase group tours to rel igious shrines and cultura l exchange programme. T he two sides agreed to pursue these proposa ls under the next round of composite d i alogue process begi nn i ng i n January. ( I nd ia , Pak form JWG to explore ways to p romote tourism, FE.C, 06. 1 0.05, B40)

"T here is tremendous potenti a l for I nd i a n i nvestors in Maurit i us, espec ia lly i n tourism, pha rmaceutica ls, manufacturi ng, BPOs, information technology and the energy sector and i nvestors could make the best use of them to the benef i t of both the countries," sa id Maurit i us Deputy Pr ime M i n i ster Rama S i th a nen . T he Maurit ius government offered to i nvestors spec ia l ly designed i ncentives, which could be i n the form of lower corporate tax, exemption from custom duty on equ ipment a n d raw materi a ls, p referentia l loan rates a n d

I Documen tation Update 12005 - 0 6 .

reduced tariff for power and water. D ividend was exempted f rom tax and free repatriation of profits, d ividends and capita l was a l lowed .

Mr. Rama Sithanen sa id his country's economy was no more based l a rgely on sugarcane and tourism and had over the years shi fted to other sectors l i ke manufacturing, f inanc ia l services, i nformation tech nology, seafood i ndustry, hea l th , energy a nd BPOs.

The government wanted to convert the is land i nto a duty·free port l i ke Duba i , Hong Kong a nd S i ngapore and a p lace for host ing i nternationa l conventions a nd conferences. I t wa nted to attract f lagsh i p hotel cha i ns of i nternationa l repute through a comprehensive hotel management scheme. S i m i la r ly i t wa nted to deve lop health tourism through health resorts coupled with golf courses. (Mauritius i nvites I nd i an i nvestment; P lenty of scope in both manufacturi ng a n d services, says Deputy Pr ime M i n ister, T H. B, 30. 10 .05, B40)

P ri me M i n ister Manmohan S i ngh's a pprec iation of I ndones ia 's adoption of a visa·on·arriva l pol i cy for I nd i an nationals dur ing the visi t o f P resident Susi lo Bambang

Yud hoyono set the tone for a whole range of MoUs to be s igned between the two countries. Both countries agreed to wor k together to i mprove con nectiv i ty a n d peopl e·to·peop le contacts between the i r countr ies through enha nced tourism, c iv i l aviation and sh i pp i ng l i n ks. (Visa·on·arriva l i n I ndones ia ha rbi nger of closer cooperat ion, FE .B, 24. 1 1 .05, B40)

I nd i a and M aurit ius a re looking at whether the Ind ian rupee can be used by I nd i an tourists visit ing the isla nd, the Deputy Prime M in ister and Min ister of Tourism, Leisure and External Communications, Mr Charles Gaetan Xavier Luc Duva l , sa id.

The proposa l i s one of the several measures that a re bei ng exam i ned to fac i l i tate travel of more I nd i a ns to Mauritius. There has been a steady i ncrease i n the number of I nd i ans visit i ng Mauritius. Duri ng 2005, more than 29,000 I nd i ans v is ited the country and the number of v is itors f rom Ind ia is l i ke ly to cross 55,000 by next year, sen ior off ic ia ls sa id . The two countries have a lso decided to further strengthen cooperation i n the a rea of tour ism a nd culture and have agreed to exchange expertise in the a rea of is la nd tour ism, huma n resource deve lopment and joi nt ma rket i ng of tourism de,st i na tions. (Tourists may be ab le to use rupee i n Maurit ius, BL.B, 1 5 .02.06, B40)

Ind ia and France signed severa l agreements to boost trade and push nuclear energy co·operation between the two countries. Ind i a and Fra nce a lso signed a n agreement on defence co-operation, to bui l d and expand t ies i n va rious a reas, i n clud i ng procurement, production and research and development o f defence materia l . Seven other pacts i n the f ie ld of space, commerce, education, tourism, environment, culture a n d civi l aviation were a lso signed . ( I nd i a , Fra nce s ign pacts to boost trade, nuc lear energy cooperation, B L . B, 2 1 .02.06, B40)

Looki ng beyond o i l , I nd i a and the six nation Gulf Cooperation Counci l (GCC) have decided to work together i n new a reas i nclud ing i nformation technology, manufacturing and tourism. After two days o f del iberations during the second GCC·I nd ia busi ness conference, both sides decided to forge a n economic partnershi p that would focus o n joi nt ventures d riven by private i ni t iat ive. In the Muscat Dec laration, that was unvei led a t the end of the conference, i t was decided that i nformation technology, b iotechnology, tourism, i ndustry, energy and petrochemica ls would become the core a reas o f col l a borat ion. (Muscat Dec l aration looks beyond o i l , Atul Aneja, T H . B, 27.03.06, B40)

B611nternational Tou ri sm Legis lat ion

I nd i a has urged Saarc countr ies to issue more busi ness visas to partner countr ies and rec i proca l ly provide each other transit fac i l it i es to th i rd countries .

Pr i me M i n ister Manmohan S ingh sai d that these would not on ly l i n k the Saarc n ations, but more i mportantly, wou ld con nect the region to the ongoi ng economic m i rac le i n South East a nd East Asia . Ta l ki ng a bout the potentia l of the South Asia Free Trade Agreement (Safta), which he sai d would hopeful ly be i mplemented on Janua ry 1 2006, the PM poi nted out that the current level of i ntra·regiona l t rade is expected to rise from $6

2005 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I bil l ion to $ 1 4 bil l ion within two years of Satta's existence. Dr Singh said there was a need to expand the ambit of Satta to include trade in services in addition to widening the scope of trade i n goods . ( I ndia as Saa rc n ations to issue more visas, FE.8, 1 8 . 1 1 .05, 86 1 )

B62 U N Wor ld Tou rism O rgan isation· OMT (UNWTO)

The United N ations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), an apex body of tourism, having been more than 200 countries as its member has unanimously e lected I ndia as the member of its Executive Council . In view of its e merging status in wor ld tourism, I ndia was e lected in the Counci l to represent South Asia in the UNWTO meeting at Senegal, Ministry of Tourism said . I ndian official representative at the conference, Amitabh Ka nt, has been elected member of core working group of the organisation to cha l k out programmes and a l lot specific projects to a particula r country for the promotion of tourism. I n 2005, its membership is comprised of 1 45 countries, seven territories a n d more than 300 Affiliate Members representing the private sector, educational institutions, tourism associations and loca l tourism authorities. ( I ndia elected executive member of U N wo r l d tou r i s m o r g a n i s a t i o n , 0 5 . 1 2 . 05 , h ttp:// n ew s . w e b i n d i a 1 23 . co m/ ne ws / showdetail s .asp?id= 182040&cat=8usiness, 862)

I Documenta t ion Update 1:2 0 05 -06

• C - TOUR I S M ECONOMY, IN DIAN ECONOMY .

COO Tou rism Economy and Tour ism Infrastructure

Should i nfrastructure be accorded priority sector status for credit delivery? The Reserve Bank of I ndia Governor, Dr Y. V. Reddy, raised the question i n the Annua l (Monetary) Pol icy Statement presented on April 28. He sa id the issue was debatable for the fol lowi ng reasons:

• En largi ng the scope of priority sectors may result in loss of focus; • Credit growth has been s luggish i n a gr iculture a nd smal l·sca le i ndustries, but that in i nfrastructure

has been strong; • Only sectors that i mpact l arge population, weaker sections a nd are employment-intensive are e l ig ib le

for priority status.

This sta nce of the centra l bank sign a l l i ng tentativeness on fi n anc ing i nfrastructure is surprisi ng, given the crit ica l role that the sector p lays in the economy.

The Pr ime M i n ister, in h is Independence Day address (2004) to the nation, identi f ied Sa at Sutras seven priority sectors as "p i l l ars of the development bridge to ensure h igher economic growth a nd more equita ble socia l and economic development". These are agriculture, water, education , hea lthcare, employment, urban renewal a nd in frastructure.

The P lanning Commission has reiterated the need for world-class, cost-effective infrastructure in the context of a global is ing economy. (Monetary Pol i cy 2005·06 · Lendi ng priority to i nfrastructure, Padmalatha Suresh, BL .B, 1 2 .05.05, COO)

To give a big push to the tourism sector, the Government is for mulat ing a new scheme that could see a qua ntum jump i n the funds bei ng made ava i l a ble for i nfrastructure development at tourism sites. T he new scheme bei ng drawn up by the Min istry of Tourism and P lann ing Commission proposes providing up to Rs 50 crore to every tourist project identif ied. The M inistry hopes to fund between 1 0·15 such projects a n nua l ly.

T he scheme wi l l be i n the form of 1 00 % centra l assistance. The states wi l l set up a nodal body for disbursi ng the funds. The Ministry has already held one round of discussions with the Archaeologica l Survey of I ndia to identify the s ites that should be covered under the scheme. (Each tourism project to get Rs 50 cr for development, BL.C, 06.08.05, COO)

I nd ia p l a ns to double i ts foreign excha nge earnings from tour ism i n the next three years a nd make i t the number one foreign exchange earner, tourism m in ister Renuka Chowdhury has said. "We earned $4.8 bil lion i n foreign excha nge from tourism i n 2004 a nd we expect it to cross $ 1 0 b i l l ion in the next three years."

The unprecedented growth and a successful ca mpaign have resulted in the nat iona l geographica l trave l ler call i ng India "the la nd of mystery a nd majesty," she said. The Lone ly P l anet i n a survey of 1 67 countries selected I nd ia as one of the top 5 destinations of the wor ld. "It is a lso a matter of great pride for us that our efforts are getting i ntern at iona l acknowledgement," she sa id, adding India has won the 2005 PATA grand award in the heritage category for the 'Aja nta E l lora conservation a nd tourism development project' a nd the PATA Gold Award i n the pri nt media category for I ndia 's i ncredi bl e· Taj campa ign . ( I ndia to double forex earni ngs from tourism, FE.B. 17. 1 1 .05, COO)

T he Tourism Ministry said it favoured allowing 100 % FD I in developing tourist infrastructure i n the country to give a major boost to the sector. ' People a nd corporates must come forward a nd work for the development of tourism sector. When they share their views a nd opin ions with the government a nd work towards a common goal , the sector would get a major boost," Renuka Chaudhary said. (Renuka for ful l FDI i n tourism i nfrastructure. IE .B. 30. 1 1 .05, COO)

20 0 5 - 0 6 I Documen tatio/l Update I A recent F inance M i n istry paper seeki ng Asi an Deve lopment Bank (AD B) funds for tour ism in frast ructure projects has proposed a l ign i ng i nvestment pol i cy of the country tourism pol icy. It a lso mooted rationa l isation of tax structure for the tou rism i ndustry at par with globa l benchmarks.

H i gh l ight i ng the 'pos it ive role' of F DI i n the tou r ism development, the paper sa i d FD I cou l d resu l t i n a n ' i ncome·mult iplying effect' i n the sector. Concessions and i ncentives ava i l able to i nvestors i n other sectors must be extended to the tourism sector as wel l . The paper sa id tourism industry shou ld be accorded national treatment. Accord i n g to the paper, tour ism act iv it ies must be i nc l uded in the provis ions of the b i l a tera l i nvestment treaties and double taxation avo idance agreements that I nd i a enters into.

On tou rism i nfrastructure, the paper said government funds cou l d flow to projects such as h ighways, a i rports, u rban i nf rastructu re a n d power. Pr i vate funds cou ld be used for hotels, t ravel a genc ies. tou r operators, dea lers and hand icraft stores. Pub l i c· pr ivate partnersh i ps can occur i n BOT projects for roads, a i rports, reports, heritages etc.

Every Rs 10 l a kh i nvestment in tourism creates 47.5 jobs d i rectly a n d 89 jobs i nd i rect ly. Forex i nf lows from tou rism surpass FD I i nf lows i n recent years. (Fi nm i n paper for rat iona l isation of tax structure i n tou rism i ndustry, FE. B, 22. 12.05, COO)

Tourism has emerged as a major sou rce of employment i n I nd i a , with a share of 8.27 % i n tota l number of jobs in the cou ntry. Accord i ng to the f i nd i ngs of a study commissioned by the Tourism department, for every 100 jobs created d i rectly i n the tour ism sector i n I nd i a, 80 i nd i rect jobs a re created. It sa i d the tota l d i rect employment i n the tour ism sector for the yea r 2002·03 i n the cou ntry was 2 1 .54 m i l l ion jobs and when i nd i rect jobs were a lso added, the employment f igure came to 38.6 m i l l ion. D i rect contri bution of tourism to the G D P for the yea r 2002·03 was 2.78 per cent and when i nd i rect effects were considered, the sha re of th is sector contributes to the G D P goes up to 5.83 per cent.

Compar ing the d i rect contr i bution of tou rism to the G D P of major tour ist receivi ng countr ies in the world, I nd ia's f igure of 2.8 per cent is fai rly wel l with developed nations l i ke Canada (2.4 per cent), the US (2.2 per cent) and Japan (2 .2 per cent) however, i t i s less when compared to cou ntr ies l i ke Spa i n ( 1 1 .2 per cent), Austr a l i a (4.5 per cent), Switzerl a nd (3.4 per cent) a nd Sweden (3.2 per cent.

The study was conducted u nder the Tourism Satel l ite Account (TSA), a new framework recently adopted by the Un ited Nations Statist ica l Commission that provide a n i mportant platform for better understanding of the role of tou rism i n the economy. (Tourism a major source of jobs in India: Study, Un i Shankar, 0 1 .03.06, http:/ /news.webind ia 123.com/news/showdetai ls .asp?id=265151&cat=l nd ia , COO)

A l ready on a h igh, the travel and tourism i ndustry got a f i l l ip with the Fi n ance M i n ister a n nounc ing severa l sops incl u d i ng i ncrease in tou rism budget f ro m Rs 786 c rore to Rs 830 c rore; development of 1 5 new locations a n d red uction in fr i nge benefit tax (FBT) on tour and trave l a nd hotels f rom 20 to 5%.

I nternational a i r travel wi l l a lso become expensive as the government decided to bring upper c lass i nternational a i r travel under the net of service tax though economy c lass travel h as been exempted .

At the same t i me, however, the Budget d isappointed the sector by not grant i ng the i ndustry the much dema nded i nf rastructure status. A lso, i n c rease in servi ce tax from 1 0 to 12% ca me as a b ig let down part icu l a rly when the i ndustry had sought 90% a batement on service tax i mposed on it s i nce l ast yea r.

The Budget proposa l a lso i nc l udes travel on cru ise ships i n the ambit of service tax. I t has a l so not offered a ny i n cent ives or spec i a l sops to set up new hotel projects a t a t i me when there's a cute shortage of hotel rooms and tar iffs a re skyrocket i ng.

Besides tak i ng up 15 tourist dest i nations a nd c i rcu its for development, the government w i l l a lso identify 50 v i l lages with core competency in hand ic rafts, hand looms, a n d cultu re, c lose to exist ing dest i nations and circuits, and deve lop them for enha nc ing tou r ists' exper ience. T he government a lso proposes to establish fou r new i nstitutes of hotel management i n Chattisgarh, Haryana, Jha rkhand a nd Uttaranchal . (A mixed bag for travel a nd tou rism, FE .D, 0 1 .03.06, COO)

I Docllmentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

The domest ic segment i s ra k i ng i n 7 1 . 1 % of the moo lah i n tourism, end i ng up encouraging the growth of sectors which wou ld otherwise face threat of exti nction .

A maze of sectors - hotels, transport, food and beverage, have vi rtual ly become tourism·speci f ic i ndustries, thr iv ing on domest i c a n d outbou nd tou rists a l i ke. T he hote l i ndustry essent i a l ly d epends on tou rism. I t accounts for 9 1 .7 % o f tota l revenue. The generated by 'accommodation services' . As much a s 1 8.4% of 'food and beverage serv ing services' f lows out of tou rism.

T he transport sector, too, is celebrat i ng big on men and women moving with i n I nd ian boundaries and f ly ing in from a broa d. Ai r t ravel has 93.8% money coming from tou rism, whi le its contri bution to Ra i lway revenue is 294%. The money raked in by ' buses' because of tou r ists is 62.6%. T he charm of sma l l p l aces and the or iental attracti on - rickshaw r ides i s bu i l t on tour ist movement. As much as 89.8% money generated by 'non·mechan ised road transport' comes from tourism.

Enterta i nment busi ness is d rawing 49% of its revenue from tourism. A l l these figures have emerged from a study done by Nat iona l Counci l of Appl ied Economic Research (NCAER) on the turnover·trends of tou rism i n 2002·03.

The f i rst·of·its·k ind stu dy, commissioned by M i nistry of Tourism, surveyed eight lakh domest ic households and used other stud ies to br ing out the sta rt l i ng f igu res.

The tou rism turnover i n 2002·03 was esti mated at Rs. 62,436 crore. Of th is f igure, the domesti c segment contri buted Rs 44,403 crore wh i l e fore igners tota l l ed for Rs 1 1 ,683 c ro re or 1 8.7%. ( Home t ruths: Desi hol idayers key to tour ism survival , Subodh Gh i ld iya l , TOI . D, 04.03.06, COO)

The Economic Survey reports earn ings f rom tou rism, once cr i t ica l to the BOP a n d sti l l g rowing at 25 %, before touch i ng on software exports, which were admitted ly near zero t i l l j ust the other day. We did earn $5 b i l l ion from the 3.6 m i l l io n tour ists who v is ited I nd i a l a st yea r. But software exports, wh ich grew 35 %, brought in four t imes as much.

- (i n Rs crore)

Tourism 198011 199011 2000/1 2003/4 2004/5

oreign travel recei pts 964 2,613 16,064 23,054 29, 105

ore ign travel payments 90 703 1 2,741 1 6,534 24,744

Besides, the b i rd 's eye view p rovided i n the Survey by the M in istry of Tou rism on ly gives data on tour ists coming in; leaving it to the RB I to furnish a table, quietly relegated to the a ppendices, a bout tourists who a re on thei r way out. (Tourism: on its way out? Sudha nshu Ranade, BL.B, 1 0.03.06, COO)

C02 Foreign I nvestment in Tou rism Sector

Ancient monuments and h istor ical objects of I nd ia have caught the attention of world community a nd many foreign countries have proposed contri buting to thei r conservat ion.

Un ion Culture M in ister S Jaipal Reddy i nformed the Lok Sabha that the government had received proposa ls from Japan, I ta ly and Belgium and World Monument Fund for Conservation for the ma intenance of h istorica l monuments. The government is a lso p lann ing to l aunch a national mission to provide a comprehensive l isting of bu i l t he ritage, monuments, s i tes a n d a nt i qu it ies . M r Reddy added that Japan was provid ing f i nanc i a l assistance through UNESCO for the conservation o f B�ddhist sites a t Sanchi and Satdhara in Madhya P radesh wh i l e a MoU has been signed with I ta ly for the conservat ion of pa i nti ngs at Aj a nta a n d E l l ora . ( Fore ign countries propose to conserve I nd ian monuments, TS.D, 22.04.05, C02 / D20d)

2 a 05 - 0 6 I Documentation 1 Tpdatc I New York hote l ier Sant S i ngh Chatwal , founder-president of the $750 m i l l ion Manhattan-based Ham pshi re Hotels and Resorts, is sett ing up a series of h igh-end boutique hotels i n I nd i a . The hotels, f i rst i n Mumbai , w i l l be opened under the brand "Dream".

"We a re negotiat ing to acqu i re l a nd and necessary permissions for the project i n Mumba i . S i m i l a r super­luxury hotels wi l l be opened i n Bangalore, Ja ipur and Delh i ," Sant S i ngh Chatwal sa id . (Chatwal 's boutique hotels to open soon in India, Arv ind Padmanabhan, AA.D, 24.05.05, C02)

Aitken Spence & Co, Sri Lanka's b iggest hotel operator, sa id it is l ook ing to expand i ts operat ions to I nd ia , tak i ng advantage of r is ing busi ness and le isure travel to the .country_

A itken Spence, which runs 1 0 hotels i n the is land-nation, three resorts i n the Ma ldives and owns Sri Lan ka 's biggest travel agency, is looki ng to expand after the December 26 tsunami damaged its beachfront properties. (Lanka hotel major to foray i nto I n d ia, BL .B, 24 .05.05, C02)

Even as the govern ment has dec ided to l aunch med ica l v isas for fore igners v is it i ng I nd i a n for hea lthca re services, Wor ld Hea lthcare Network a n US-based faci l itator has stepped i n to tap the I nd i a n market. With the a i m of bringing patients from the US to I nd i a for comprehensive med ica l services combined with a bit of tourism, of course - the American organ isation has t ied up with ST I C Care, a new i n it iat ive of ST I C Travel group_ The move assumes sign if icance since the medical tourism segment is witnessing brisk growth. Nearly 1 , 1 80,000 patients f rom var ious parts of the world a r rived in I nd i a for treatment in 2004. (US f i rm to tap hea lth tourism i n Ind ia , ET. C, 31 .07.05, C02)

Turner I nternationa l I nd i a Pvt Ltd, the company in charge of sales and marketi ng of entertai n ment channels Cartoon Network and Pogo in the country announced that it wou ld soon l aunch two theme parks. Designed a round its k ids' channels - Ca rtoon Network and Pogo - the parks would requi re an i nvestment of a round Rs 550 cro re.

To be ca l led P l anet Pogo and Cartoon Network Townsv i l le, the parks wi l l be situated i n Del h i -NCR, i n Rohi n i a n d No ida respectively. Both the theme parks w i l l have 1 00 % i m ported theme r ides a n d w i l l sat isfy g loba l safety standards. (Turner I nternati ona l to launch two theme parks, BL.B, 22.02.06, C02 / D20a)

C03 Tou rism F inance

State Bank of Travancore (SBT) has l aunched a 'tou rism spec ia l ' loan scheme for the benefit of hotels, tour operators, pi lgrimage conductors, and eco-tourism operators.

T he loan is ava i l a ble for construct ion and modern isation of yatri n ivas, hotels, motels, and cottages, and to travel agents for sett ing up offices and purchase of computers a nd equ ipment. accord i ng to a bank release. The loan can a lso be uti l i sed for purchase of veh i cles and houseboats by tour operators and for those who i ntend to set up restaura nts, ice-cream parlours, a musement parks, hea lth c lubs and m assage par lours i n tourism zones. (SBT 'tourism spec i a l ' loa n scheme, BL .C, 2 1 .04.05, C03)

Tourist i nf lows to I nd i a have registered a 15% growth i n' a r riva ls -forex earn i ngs from tourism have a l ready c rossed the $4· b i l l i on mark i n the f i rst n i ne months of 2005. About 2.64 m i l l ion , foreign tour ists have visited the country i n January·September, rak i ng i n over Rs 1 8,000 crore i n foreign exchange.

The figure stands tal l as against the 2 .29 m i l l ion v isitors duri ng the correspond i ng period l ast yea r, a growth of 15 .2%. Th is a l so marks 20 .6% jump i n fore ign exchange ea rn i ngs i n rupee terms, at Rs 1 8,379 crore, com pa red to Rs 15,243 crore ea rned l ast yea r i n the same per iod, as per l atest est imates by M i n i stry of Tourism . I n dol l a r terms, ea rn i ngs crossed the $4. 1 b i l l ion mark i n the f i rst n i ne months, as aga i nst $3.4 b i l l i on registered l ast yea r duri ng the sa me per iod. (Tour ists br i ng forex, a rr ivals i nc rease 15%, earn ings c ross the $4-bn m ark, Sudi pto Dey, ET.C, 08. 10 .05, C03)

Trave l i nsura nce is g rowi ng i n terms of volume though i nsura nce compa n ies say thei r p rofits a re under pressure due to severe com petition.

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 0

Leading insure rs say the business has been growing at a n average rate of 25 % per annu m, t hough they do not have a ny a ctua l f igu res to back it up.

Mr Sudhi r Menon, Nationa l Sales Manager of IC IC I Lombard, attri buted the 25% growth mainl y to the increasing number of people travel l i ng a broad a nd the fact that they rea l ise the need for travel i nsurance, especi a l l y i n the l i ght of natu ra l disasters such a s tsunami and floods.

I n fact, I C I C I Lombard has witnessed a growth of 70% i n travel i nsura nce i n the ha [f·yea r period over the same period l ast f isca l .

However, the premium has dropped signif ica ntly i n some sectors. For i nsta nce, t h e travel cover that used to cost Rs 700 for a six·day tr ip to E urope a few yea rs ago, now costs on ly Rs 400. The prem ium for the US, Europe a nd South· East Asia, exc l uding Japan, now has different rates.

But travel i nsura nce to the US now attracts h igher premi u m than cou ntr ies in Asi a as compa red to a few years ago when there was a f lat rate for a f ixed t ime period.

With business trave l lers constituting the bulk of the annua l seven m i l l ion outbound travel lers from the country, i nsurance compan ies a re increasi ngly look ing at corporate trave l i nsurance. "Corporate travel i nsurance i s a phenomeno n that has occu rred post pr ivatisation of the i ndustry. We have c l i ents such as Infosys, Wipro, Oracle and i - Fl ex for whom we develop customised travel insurance," (Travel i nsurance going pla'ces, Radhi ka Menon, B L.C, 19 , 1 2.05, C03)

A 1 0-year tax hol iday for new hotel projects, si ngle-wi ndow c learances, infrastructure development a nd of taxes a re a mong the budget expectations of the hotel i ndust ry which has been on the growth path for the past two yea rs. The i ndustry also i s seek ing permission to set up rea l estate i nvestment t rusts (REITs). M r R . Venkatacha lam, Chief Fi nancia l Off icer, The Leel a Group, sa id a tax holiday wou ld encourage more players to set up hotels, to bridge the shortage of rooms which according to government est imates stood at one l akh rooms. With a v i ew to gett i ng th is benefit, the Federation of Hotels a nd Restau rants Associat ion of I ndia (FH RAI), has i n its pre-budget memora ndum to the Govern ment, sought i nfrastructure status for the hotel i ndustry under Section 801 of the IT Act. ( lO·year tax holiday sought for new hotel projects, BL. B, 1 7.02 .06, C03)

ell Liberal isation Policies

The Lok Sabha passed the Speci a l Economic Zones Bil l , 2005 after adopting an offici a l a mendment to drop the B i l l 's provision i n gra nting f lex ib i l ity in l abour l aws by the States i n the proposed Centra l Act. The origin a l Act i n a ny case h a d n o di rect Centra l rol e i n l ayi ng down l abour pol icy i n the SEZs. The Left parties had been demanding scrapping of the C lause !?O of the B i l l . The Centra l l egislation proposed that the States may take su ita bl e steps to gra nt exemption from l a bour laws appl icab le i n the specia l econom i c zones. Hence, the Government moved an amendment to the SEZ Act, 2005 by droppi ng this c lause. Now with the apprehensions' voi ced by the Left pa rt ies that the c l a use wou ld be misused by States wil l i ng to attract foreign i nvestment, the lSovern ment assuaged their apprehensions by moving a n a mendment to drop th is c l a use. ( Lok Sabha passes S EZ Bil l , B L . B, 1 l .05.05, C l l )

The Federation of I ndian Chambers of Commerce a nd I ndustry ca l led forf[exible labour laws i n special economic zones (SEZs) a nd export un its as part of a three·phase strategy for t ime·bound i mplementation of reforms. Under the phase-I of F ICCI proposa l , i t was suggested that a self-certification system by corporates shou ld be i ntroduced for envi ronmental clea rances a nd electron i c ti l i ng of records be a l lowed. [ t was a lso suggested that a com mon format be developed for computerisation of deta i ls a nd i ssuance of c l ea ra nces for new i nvestment proposa ls_ As per the phase-I I of F ICC I 's proposa l , which cou ld he i mplemented with i n 1 2-18 months period, contract l abour shou ld be a l lowed i n sma l l and medium enterprises. Further, va l ue-added tax (VAT) rates should be harmon ised, withdrawing a l l state and l oca [ l evies l i ke a CST, entry tax, Octroi etc. Under the phase - I I [ , F ICel suggested the i mplementation of contract l a bour i n a ll industr ies and this phase targeted reforms where l a rger pol itica l consensus was required. (F ICC I for f lex ib [e l abour l aws in exporti ng u n i ts, Vl B, 30.08.05, C 1 1 )

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I C20 Transport

With the government accept ing in pr i nc ip le a proposa l to a l low global luxury tax i compa n ies to operate i n Del h i , th is could wel l be the scene i n c ity ca bs. Hertz and Super Cab, two i nternationa l taxi compan ies, have asked the government to a l low operations i n Del h i . However, both the compan ies won ' t p lunge head·on . Accord i ng to the proposa l , Hertz w i l l i n it ia l ly sta rt with 100 taxis. I f the concept works, they may increase the f leet to 750. Super Cab wi l l start w i l l 50 taxis and may go up to 500. De lh i hasn 't had much success with another experiment i n ca bs - rad io taxis. T here a re on ly a bout 200 rad io taxis i n De lh i , of wh i ch 135 a re owned by one com pa ny and a bout 60 by a nother. (MNCs step i n with luxury ca bs, Cheta n Chauhan, HT.D, 18.05.05, C20)

C2l Road Transport

Enthused by the success of publ ic -pr iva te pa rtnersh i p (PPP) model in the development of h ighways, the government i s p lann i ng to develop an add itiona l 30,000 km of h ighways under N H D P I I I at a cost of a bout Rs 1 ,72,000 crore during the next seven yea rs.

Under this scheme, it is proposed to cover an add itiona l 30,000 km besides four- Ian i ng of 10,000 km under N H D P I I I. The committee of I nfrastructure headed by the P rime M in iste r was consideri ng six· lan i ng of 5,000 km of nat iona l h ighways a n d construction of 1,000 km of expressways under N HD P V a nd N HD P V I respective ly. A length o f 6,000 km has a l ready been developed to four· l ane standards i n the ea r l ier phases. PPP would be the major p lank of the h ighways development progra mme i n which pri vate enterprises would i nvest money for develop ing these h ighways and woul d get returns th rough fees col lected from the users. Developing h ighways th rough PPP enta i led certa i n benefits l i ke generat ing awa reness a mong the users to pay for the benefits ensured to them. (Govt p lans to develop 30,000km of h ighways: Baa lu, VT.B, 22.07.05, C2 1)

A super Hi ma layan Highway connect ing a l l the tourist desti nations in Uttarancha l and l i nk ing the State with H i macha l P ra desh and Utta r P radesh is reported ly on the anv i l .

The proposed 660-km long H imalayan H ighway w i l l span two fa r flung outposts in the State. I t w i l l sta rt from T iyun i i n the outer reaches of Garhwal in the Dehra .Dun d istrict, abutting the neighbouring state of Himachal a nd stretch across al l the major tourist desti nations in Garhwa l and provide con nectivity i n to Kumaon right up to Lohaghat. Here it w i l l connect the State to the footh i l ls of Utta r Pradesh.

Additiona l Chief Secretary M Ramachandran sa i d the idea had been derived from the Asia n Highway concept which proposed to l i n k I nd i a with Bangladesh and Pakistan . He said there was a proposal to eventua l ly l ink a l l the Hi ma layan states vi a a tranS-Hima layan H ighway that woul d stretch from Ja mmu a n d Kashmi r to the North east.

In the context of the Himalaya n H ighway in the state, a deta i led Project report has a l ready been sent to the Centra l govern ment. A feasib i l ity report has a l ready been commissioned by the Centra l M i n istry of Surface Transport for a sum of a round Rs 6 crore. The p roposed Highway w i l l sta rt from T iyun i a n d run across Deoban, Cha krata, Nagnath, Lakhwad, Musoorie i n the Dehradun d istr ict and cut across Dhanolt i , Chamba and Ma letha i n Tehri d istrict before reach ing Sri N agar (Pauri d istr ict), Rudraprayag (Rudraprayag d istrict) and then goi ng on i nto the Chamoli d istrict via Karnprayag and Garsa i n . From Garsai n the proposed h ighway w i l l run into Kumaon via Dwarahat and A lmora, a l l the way to Lohaghat in the Pithoragarh district. (H i malayan Highway to connect tourist hot spots, N a mita Ka la , T P. D, 03.09.05, C21)

T he govern ment has fi n a l ly a pproved the construction of an a l ternative route to Leh, via Mana li . Six yea rs after the trad it ional Sri nagar, Leh route IA was h i t by Pakistan i shel l i ng dur ing the Kargi l conf l i ct, the Centre sanctioned Rs 943.32 crore for the project, to be completed in n i ne yea rs. "The a l l·weather 292 km route v ia Da rchu, Pad a m and N i mu wi l l be constructed a t a tota l cost of Rs 1 ,355 c rore, i n clud i ng an 8.8 km long tun nel under the Rohtang Pass," Defence M i n ister P ra nab Mukherjee sa i d . (Centre paves way for new Leh route, via Mana l i , IE. D, 07.09.05, C21)

1 Documentation Update 1 2005 -0 6

C22 Water Transport

Only 40,000 tourists from I ndia opt for cruise hol idays every year as aga i nst over 10 mi l l ion global ly, according to i ndustry estimates. But, considering the 5-m i l l ion outbound tourists from I nd ia , there's room for growth i n the cruise l i ner segment. Wi.th i nternationa l a i rfa re from I nd ia gett i ng slashed, cruise tourism i s l i kely to ga i n i n popularity. Besides, i nternational cruise l iners are looki ng a t I nd ia too - Star Cruise, for i nstance, i s p lann i ng a service i n the country. A lso, the fi rst I nd ian l iner, Ocean Cruises India, is set to begi n operation between Goa and La kshwadeep by the end of this year.

A lthough i t's the economica l 'Sta r Cruise' that's much more attract ive than the h igh-end luxury l i ners for tourists from India, the tota l numbers have a l ready grown. From 8,000-10,000 I nd ian tourists taki ng hol iday cru ises f i ve yea rs ago, the numbers have gone up to 40,000 now, accordi ng to M r Chaddha. Max imum number of I nd ian tourists opts for cru is.e i n the South-East Asia region. On the Far-East and South-East.Asia routes, a two-n ight cru ise comes for a round $300. Longer cru ises cater to the high-end ma rket, a nd a re not typica l ly mea nt for tourists from I nd ia , a rgues Pr ime Travel M anaging D i rector A run Verma. (Short le isu re cruises a re catch i ng on with India ns, N ivedita Mookerji, T P.D, 19_05.05, C22)

Cruisi ng the r iverways is now catch ing on with the new age tourist who wants to do th ings which a re sl ightly d ifferent . The trend started w ith Kera l a , with i ts backwaters tou rism. However, other states have qui ck ly i ntroduced different versions of thei r own . Goa 's cru ises on the Mandovi a nd other r ivers a re very popu l a r w h i l e t h e Bra hmaputra r iver cru ise i s a favourite with eco-tourists s ince i t offers a spectacu l a r v iew o f the Kaziranga .

And with demand a lso comes supply. The latest to joi n the bandwagon is Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) which has i ntroduced overn ight cru ises on Godavari , with a s ingle boat. I n other cit ies, var i at ions a re bei ng tr ied out. I n Mumba i a f loat i ng restaurant docks out at sea wh i l e a si m i l a r restaurant f loats on the r iver Hooghly in Kol kata. I n Ka rnata ka, Jungle lodges and Resorts (J LR) has started cru ises off the Karwar coast, though overn ight stays a re sti l l some way off.

Accord ingto the i ndustry river cru ises i s a fast growing segment. Though it is a n i nsign if icant number i n other states, i n Kera la , over 1 1akh tourists patronised backwaters tourism l ast yea r. (They love to go up a nd down the r iver, An i ta Rao Kashi , TOI . B, 0 1 .07.05, C22)

I n a major boost to cruise shippi ng i n the country, the U nion Government a l lowed operation of cruise services by a Ma l aysia n cru ise l i ner on two sectors · Mumbai to La kshadweep (Kadmat is la nd) a nd Mumba i to Goa, expected to sta rt operat ions by October th is yea r. The Sh i ppi ng, Road Transport- and Highways M i n istry conveyed its ' no objection' for cru ise operat ion, setti ng i nto motion the l aunch of the service. Out of a tota l of n i ne subgroups const ituted by the steeri ng group to make specif ic recommendations, four sub·groups have submitted the ir reports on identification of ports, immigration issues, taxation issues and issues pertai n i ng to customs clearances for su itab le i ncorporation i n the draft cruise shippi ng pol i cy of the country. (Govt nod for cru ise services i n 2 sectors, IE.C, 05.08.05, C22)

A comprehensive nat ional ma rit ime development programme envisaging a publ i c pr ivate i nvestment of over Rs 1 00,000 c rore i s on the a nv i l . Of th is Rs 6 1 ,000 crore w i l l be i nvested i n the port sector. I nvestments i n the shi pp ing a n d i n l a nd water transport i s expected to b e Rs 40,000 core. A l l these i nvestments, proposed to be made i n the nex� 1 0 yea rs, would be part of the Nationa l M ar it i me Pol i cy to be presented before the U nion Cab inet shortly for a pprova l , the Un ion M i nister for Sh ipp ing a nd Road Transport, Mr T R Baa lu sa id. "The pol i cy envisages a compre hensive strategy for the country's maritime sector i nclud ing ports, sh ipping, i n l and waterways and shi p bui lding. It has been f i na l ised after its draft was discussed at the i nter-m in ister ia l coordination committee meet ings.

I n the port sector the projects p lan ned a re construction of berths (Rs 33,000 crore), deepen i ng of a pproach cha nne ls (25 projects - Rs 83 1 0 crore), Port equ i pment (32 p rojec�s - Rs 1 700 crore), ra i l and road connectivity to ports (36 projects. Rs 12,950 crore) a nd developmenfof spec ia l economic zones (47 projects . Rs 5 1 00 c rore). (Rs 1 00,000 cr i nvestment i n mar it ime sector on cards, FE. B, 22.08.05, C22)

2005 - 06 I Documentat ion Update I Travel lers weary of Kol kata 's congested roads now have a faster option for visiti ng p laces l i ke Budge Budge to the south or t he temple town of Belur i n the north with the launch of a water taxi serv ice by Vivada In l a nd Water Transport .

Beati ng the state's government to i ts pla ns of launch ing publ i c transport on two cana ls in north a nd south Kol kata , Vivada has taken on the r iver Hoogh ly with sma l l motorboats that ca n carry 10 passengers.

A crude oi l transportation company, Vivada has joi ned ha nds with the West Benga l Surface Transport Corp (WBST C) to l aunch two water tax is in the f i rst p ha se of a Rs 12 .5 crore project . I t expects to have ten of t hese 'on ca l l ' taxis run n i ng by the end of this year.

By January 2006, Vivada wi l l a lso start a f ive·star floating hote l l i nk ing Kol kata with the Sunderbans mangrove forest region. I t expects the f ive·star vessel with 34 double cab i ns to be a cash cow that wi l l keep t he water taxi servi ce afloat t i ll i t ga i ns momentum. It w i l l a lso offer the water taxis for tourism or fu n cruises. (Ko lkata gets water taxis can a l transport by Jan, FE .D, 04. 1 0 .05, C22/SlO)

The government may open u p the cruise shi pping sector for foreign d irect i nvestment, as par t of its efforts to promote tourism. It may a lso amend the Merchant Shippi ng Act to s impl ify registration procedures for foreign cruise companies.

A n exclus ive pol i cy for cruise tourism is being evolved, wh ich is l i kely to prepare deta i ls of the FD I reg ime and spel l out measures to u pgrade ports a nd other rel ated i nfrastructure. A h igh·power steeri ng group under the cha i rmansh i p of the M i n ister of Sh ipp ing �lnd the M i n ister of State for Tourism as its co·cha i rman had a l ready been set up to f i na l ise a c ruise pol i cy. T he sh i pp ing m i n istry has a l ready rel axed cabotage to a l low foreign flag cruise vessels to coastal a reas without hassle in the absence of India n flag vessels in this segment.

The government is a lso contemplat i ng to develop seven ports as cruise sh ipp ing stations. These a re Coch in in Kerala, New Manga lore i n Ka rnataka, Marmugao i n Goa, Mumba i i n Maha rashtra, Kol kata i n West Benga l , Port B la i r in the Andaman & N i cobar Is land Tut icorin in Tam i l N adu, the statement has sa id.

Besides th is , smal l berth i ng p laces w i l l a lso be developed a t various sites for sma l l vessels . Spec ia l tou rism c i rcuits for each port would a lso be prepared keeping in v iew the local cultural heritage, it sa id.

S im i l arly, New Manga lore cou ld be l i n ked with the tourism c i rcu i t of Bangalore, Bel u r, Ha lebid a nd Hamp i . (Govt may open up cruise sh i pp ing for FDI to boost tourism , FE .C, 13 . 1 0 .05, C22)

I ndia and the Bahamas have decided to enter i nto a Memorandum of Understandi ng (MoU) for explori ng the poss ib i l it ies of cooperation i n the a rea of cruise sh ipp i ng.

Th is was decided at a meet i ng between Bahamas M i n ister of Foreign Affai rs a nd Publ i c Serv ice Freder ick M itchel l and Shipping, Road Transport a nd H ighways M i nister TR Baa lu.

Baha mas is a favoured cru ise sh i ppi ng desti nation i n the world a nd its expertise could be used as va l ua ble sign-post i n the development of the I ndia n c ruise shippi ng i ndustry. ( I ndia to joi n Bahamas, exp lore cruise sh ipp i ng, FE .B , 24.0 l .06, C22)

e23 Railways

T he I nd ian Ra i lways could f i na l ly be open ing i ts doors for i ncreased p rivate partic ipat ion_

The Pr ime M i n ister's Com m ittee on I nfrastructure has asked the M i n istry of Ra i l ways to submit a pol i cy paper on pub l ic -pr ivate partnersh ip (PPP) i n various areas, i nc l ud ing runn i ng goods tra i ns between specif ic poi nts such as coa l mi nes a nd power stations a nd runn i ng passenger tra i ns between tourist dest i nations.

P P P i n run n i ng passenger tra i ns between tourist dest i n at ions cou ld be a further extension of Ra i lways' Pa l ace on Wheels servi ce that cater to premium tourist segment, wh ich a re run i n partnersh i p with the

I Docl/mentatio1l l Tpdate I 2 c o :; � 0 6

respective State tour ism departments. (R ly M i n istry to submit pol i cy paper to Cab i net by Sept, P u bl i c· private partnership, Mamun i Das, BL .B, 1 9.05.05, C23)

500 workers a re completi ng the Lhasa R iver Br idge, part of a 1 , 1 42·km project that wi l l l i n k T i bet by ra i l to the outside world for the f i rst -t ime. Foreign observers have long cr it icised the ra i l project, begun i n 200 1 , for favour ing mem bers of C h i na's H a n major ity over T i beta ns. But they a lso fea r that once the ra i l road has connected T i bet with neighbou r ing Qinghai prov ince in two yea rs' t ime, i t wi l l conti nue to benefit the Han Chi nese f i rst and l oca l T ibetans last.

Offic i a ls i n Lhasa, by contrast, emphasise the advantages they say the ra i l l i ne w i l l br ing to the T ibetans, such as greatly reduced transportation costs for T ibeta n products.

But what worries pro-Tibet advocates overseas is that when the ra i l l i n k is completed, a tra i n r ide from Beijing to Lhasa w i l l ta ke just 48 hours, a n d T i bet w i l l sudden ly be w ith i n much easier reac h for m i l l i ons of job hunters.

The T ibetans, who a re a l ready under pressure from massive Han i mmigration, cou ld end up becoming even more margina l ised, said Kate Saunders, the Washington·based spokeswoman for the I nternationa l Campaign for T i bet. Loca l off ic ia ls acknowledge that the ra i l w i l l make it easier for Han Chi nese to go to T i bet, but deny that T i beta ns have so fa r l ost jobs to m igrant workers. (A ra i l l i n k to ' Roof of the World', BL.C, 07.08.05, C23)

I n a n attempt to counter d ippi ng a i r fa res, the Ra i lways have dec ided to go SOFT- Scheme of Frequent Trave l lers_ Ra i l passengers ca n soon earn poi nts for frequent trave l , wh i ch they can use to ava i l a free t icket or concess ion of the sa me a mount. Ra i l travel dur ing lean per iods w i l l get passengers poi nts equ iva lent to 10% of the t icket cost- 4% dur ing peak season . The scheme wi l l be hand led by the I RCTC, which is ready with the software. The scheme wi l l be in place by next month. The Rai lways had earl ier i ntroduced an a utomatic upgradat ion scheme to ensu re that coaches-especi a l ly AC I a n d II-do not rem a i n empty. As per th is scheme, i f there is heavy rush in the S leeper category, wa it- l isted passengers can be upgraded to AC I I I , I I o r even I . (R lys to go SOFT o n frequent trave l , Bhavnav i j Aurora IE_ D, 03. 1 0 .05, C23)

The Rai lways has identified five possible routes to Bhutan. Ra i l I nd ia Technica l and Economic Services, entrusted with conducti ng a feas ib i l ity study of the routes, is expected to submit a report by October. Whi le two of the routes l i n k north Benga l with Bhutan , the rest or igi nate from Assam . The l ocat ions have been proposed consider ing the i r prox i m ity to the Nation a l H ighway and the road connectivity between the towns on e ither s ide of the border. (Ra i l routes to Bhutan i dentif ied, TH .B , 06_01 .06, C23)

The I nd ian Ra i lways a re now giving f ina l touches to a proposal to set op a ra i l l i nk with Burma crossing through the north·eastern states to boost b i latera l trade a n d people-to· people contact between the two cou ntr ies. The M i n istry of Externa l Affa i rs was i n touch with i ts cou nterparts i n Burma to fac i l i ta te th is project. This i n i t iat ive has been taken in the l ight of the reso l ut ions of Bay of Bengal In i t iati ve for Techn ica l a nd Mu lt i · Sectora l I n i t i at ive ( B I MSTEC). The Ra i lways have a l ready sta rted work to construct a 60 km long track connecting J i ri bam , h i therto the l ast rai l-head in the east, to Touple in Man ipur. (Trai n to Burma via N·E soon, Manoj Anand, AA. B, 08.0 1 .06, C23)

The U n i on M in i ster of State for Ra i lways, Mr R . Vel u, sa i d as many as 290 projects were pend i ng with the Ra i lway Board a nd Rs 47,000 crore was requ i red for tak ing up these projects. He said these projects had a l ready been sa nct ioned after conduct i ng necessary surveys, but cou l d not be taken up due to wa nt of funds. To a questi on, Mr Vel u said the requ i red fu n.ds wou l d be ra ised through Budget support , i nterna l borrowing, assistance from World Bank a nd Asian Development Ban k, by creating a 'Spec ia l Purpose Veh icle' (SPV) i n whi ch sta ke-ho lders, state governments and private sector wou ld be i nvo lved. I t was proposed to t a ke up a l l pend i ng"projects i n backward a reas th rough SPV. ( '290 Ra i lway projects pend i ng due l a c k of funds', BL .B, 08.02.06, C23)

The much·ta l ked about budget hotel concept of the Ra i lways may f i na l ly take off with the M in istry reworking terms of bu i ld , operate, transfer (BOT) a rrangement that cou ld resu lt in easier revenue share regi me for hote l iers.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I The terms bei ng reworked i nc lude provision of a " letter of comfort" from the Ra i lways for the l an d on which the hotel would be bui l t and a l i kely i ncrease i n the period for which compan ies would be a l l owed to operate the hotel. There would be a revenue shari ng arrangement between Ra i lways, I nd i a n Ra i lways Cater i ng and Tourism Corporation (I RCTC) and the hotel operator, which would be dec ided through a b idd ing process.

Letter of comfort : One of the reasons why the project wasn't tak ing off was whi l e I RCTC was the executi ng body, the l a nd was bei ng provided by the I nd i a n Ra i lways and the i nterested part ies wa nted a guara ntee from the l a nd provider to ensure that the terms of l and use do not change m idway.

Tariff f i x ing: The operator would be free to f i x tar i ffs though some accommodation shoul d be reserved for economy segments. Ear l ier proposa l made it mandatory for operators to provide 50% of rooms for below Rs 1 , 000 per d ay. This cond it ion, which compa n ies found stri ngent, may be rel axed to some extent .

S ites identif ied: Mea nwhi le, the Ra i lways has identif ied 34 s ites to set up budget hotels. The b ids for these sites woul d be i nvited and there would be a two·t ier tender.

P l ayers with prior experience i n hospita l i ty woul d be chosen, after techn ica l qua l i f icat ions. F inanc ia l b ids woul d then be i nvited from these pl ayers. (Ra i lways' budget hotel concept on track, Mamun i D as, BL .B, 13.02.06, C23)

With low·cost a i r l i nes eat i ng i nto its premium category, the ra i lways has f i na l ly a n nounced steep cuts i n its f irst AC a nd second AC fares for the first t ime in many years. The s leeper c lass has, however, been spared from any hike. The fare of 200 mai l ·express tra i ns that would now run as super fast tra i ns may, however, go up margi n a l ly as it would attract add it iona l 'superfast l evy: Presenti ng the Ra i l Budget i n Par l i ament, Ra i lway M i n ister Lalu Prasad pared AC f irst c l ass fares by 1 8% and cut the fares for AC second by 1 0%. ( La lu cuts AC fares to check onslaught by a ir l i nes, FE .D, 25. 02.06, C23)

A 13 ·mem ber de legation of c it izens from Pak istan who came to I nd i a by the ra i l l i n k vi a the Muna bao· Khokhrapar route revived recently ca l led for easi ng the restr ictions on travel between the two countries and evolving a lenient visa regime to make the historic "unlocking" o f the western border a success. The delegation, compr is ing trade un ion activists, l abour leaders, soc i a l workers and peace activ ists, trave l led by the Thar Express. The group i nteracted with a cross·section of soc iety to f ind that the people i n Rajasthan are jubi l ant a bout the tra i n from Pakistan restarted after four long decades.

The leader of the delegation, Abdul Lateef Mugha l , poi nted out that the "reluctant" governments of India and Pakista n had been compe l led to restore the ra i l l i nk by the popular demand of people at l arge. (Ca l l to ease restri ctions on travel between I nd ia , Pakistan, T H . D, 0 1 .03.06, C23)

C23a Luxur.y Tra i ns

I n a b id to foster stronger relationship, the southern states are working together through the tourism sector to posit ion South I n d i a as one large b lock to a ttract both domest i c a n d i nternat iona l tourists. As a step towards this, the f irst luxury tra i n chugging across the southern states is l i kely to be i ntroduced i n the next 18 months. An nounc ing this at the South I nd i a Tour ism M in isters' conference' hel d in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh Chief M i n ister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy sa i d that a feasib i l i ty report has been prepared for the Rs 40· crore Southern Splendour South I nd ia tourism tra i n by the state tourism department. The report has received a n i n ·pri nciple approva l from the Un ion government and a spec i a l purpose vehic le wi l l soon be registered . Andhra Pradesh government sa id besides a committee w i l l a lso be formed i nvolv ing other state governments to look i nto the soc ia l and other security issues for the benef it of tourists. (Luxury tra i n for South l ikely, FE .B, 29.04.05, C23a)

Sett ing as ide strong protests, the Vasundhara Raje Govern ment has decided to pr ivat i se the country 's premium tourist trai n, Pa lace on Wheels.

Whi le the opposition Congress and the employees of the Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation ( RTDC) the Government agency which runs the tra i n - are opposi ng the decision, the Government has decided to

hand over the tra i n to a f ive·star cha i n before the start of the tourist season i n September.

I Documentation Update I 2005 -0 6

The Government i nvited app l ications from leading five-star cha ins for the ma intenance and management of the tra in . The hote l iers have been given a fortnight to make their presentations, fol lowlng which the Government wou ld select the successfu l bidder.

Although many agree that the tra i n , considered among the top 1 0 luxury tra i n s i n the wor ld , wou l d benefit from privatisation, the haste with which the Government has decided to go ahead with the process has d rawn f lak . ( Pa l ace on Wheels open to p rivate p l ayers , I E .C, 28.07 .05 , C23a)

The Pa l ace on Wheels i s maki ng news even before i t begins i ts f i rst Journey of the new season on September 7. Reason : the ongo i ng controversy over the outsourc i ng of serv ices on board the l u xu ry tou r i st tra i n . A seemingly desperate Rajasthan government swung i nto action to open the fi nanc ia l b ids for the contract for the outsourc i ng. The b ids were opened in the presence of representatives of the Taj Group of Hote l s - the on ly bidder. The Rajasthan HC asked the govern ment to continue with the cu rrent management of the tra i n and not get its activities outsourced . (Who' l l get Pa lace o n Wheels? Siddhartha Bose, HTD, 03.09.05, C23a)

The Ra i lways wi l l i ntrodu ce l uxury tou ri st tra i n s for foreign as we l l as domest ic tou ri sts . The Ra i l ways i s p l a n n i ng t o r u n stea m engi ne -hau l ed toy t ra i ns on h i l l stati ons . I t i s a l so gea ri ng u p t o woo tou ri sts by i ntroduc ing tourist cars which wou ld be attached to the regu l a r passenger tra i ns . All these tour ist packages w i l l be done on the bas is of pub l i c-p rivate partners h i p (PPP) . The tickets for these touri st packages can be made ava i lab le through I nd ian Ra i lway Catering and Tourism Corporation's (I RCTC) website or through tour operators .

Fi rst on the anv i l i s the l uxury segment t ra i n a imed a t i nternat iona l tour ists . For th is , a second Pa l ace on Wheels tra i n has been given the pri nc ipa l approva l by the government to the ra i lways, wh ich wi l l enta i l a cost of Rs 24 crore. The tra i n wi l l be made operat iona l by 2007. This second roya l t ra i n w i l l beckon you to step aboa rd for a week of sp lendour as it offers fac i l i t ies l i ke spa , gym, conference room, beauty sa loon, fax a nd i nternet.

For domestic tou rists , ra i lways a re i ntroduc ing a l uxury tra i n on the l i nes of Pa l ace on Whee l s but with less fri l l s and cost. Hotel Obero i has approached ra i lways to i nvest on th i s tra i n .

A l s o i n l i n e i s a proposa l t o i n troduce tour ist ca rs i n passenger tra i n s wh ich wou ld b e h i red b y a group of tour ists w ish ing to travel to a part icu l a r location. These tour ist ca rs would be attached to regula r passenger tra i n s to be hau led to dest inat ions booked. Taj Group of Hotels is i n ta lks with the ra i lways for i nvest ing on these toy tra i ns .

I n a b id to focus more on tour ism, the ra i lways a re p lann ing to ea rmark some seats for the tour ists i n every segment of trave l . Ca l l i ng it a Va lue Added Tou r Package (VAT), th is w i l l enable ra i lways to f i l l up the vacant seats dur ing the lean season and a l so to reta i n the i r market share. Spec ia l food cou ld be part of the va lue added package. I t i s p l ann i ng to keep a round 1 5-20 seats in th is category i n every c lass . For these tour ism packages, the ra i lways is p lann ing to rope in private travel agents l i ke Thomas Cook and Sita Travels. (Ra i lways p lans l uxury tourist tra i ns , Corporates to ch ip in with funds and ideas on tapp ing tour is , Ema Vasudev, ETB, 27 .02 .06, C23a)

C24 C iv i l Avi at ion Plans and Pol ic ies

The new a greement to be s igned between I nd i a a n d the US w i l l p rovide for u n restr icted a i r l i ne services between the countr ies a n d from the re to th i rd countr ies . There wi l l a l so be no restr ict ion on tariff, f l ight frequency o r type of a i rcraft dep loyed . I nd ia and the US a re expected to d raw u p a new, more l i beral open skies agreement.

At present, a pproximately two mi l l ion passengers travel a year between the two countries. The broad contours of the new agreement were fi na l i sed d uring the vis it of Mr Patel (Civi l Aviation M in i ster) to the US ea rly 2005. The new agreement wi l l reRlace the exist ing I nd ia -US aviation agreement, wh ich was negotiated in 1 956 and l im its the number of a i r l i nes that ca n f ly between the two countries, the cit ies they can serve, the frequency of the i r f l i ghts and the i r fares. ( I ndo- U S open sk ies to a l l ow th i rd country f l i ghts, Sudh i r Chowdhary, FE . B, 1 4.04 .05 , C24)

:; 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta t iol l Update I The Pr ime M in ister, Dr Manmohan S ingh, proposed a South As ian open skies agreement that wou ld remove restrict ions on fl ights operated by State owned and private a i rl i nes from seven countries. I nd ia was ready to offer the open sk ies fac i l i ty on a reci p roca l bas is . I nd i a , wh ich now has such an a rra ngement on ly w i th Sri La nka . ( I nd i a offers S. Asia open sk ies pact, T H . B, 1 3 .05 .05 , C24)

The Government has no immediate plans to review the foreign d i rect i nvestment l imit in the domestic aviation sector, the M i ni ster for Civi l Aviat ion, Mr P raful Pate l . "The p resent 49 % cap on foreign d i rect i nvestment i n the aviation sector i s suff ic ient. The Government recently h i ked the cap i n the domestic aviation sector t o 49 % f rom the ear l ie r l evel of 40 % . However, foreign a i rl i nes a re n ot a l l owed to p ick u p a stake i n domestic a i r l i nes. (No immed iate p l ans to review FD I cap i n c ivi l avi at ion : M in i ster, BL .B, 25 .05 .05 , C24)

F l ights between I nd ia and Germany are set to more than double i n a phased manner i n the nea r future with the two countries agreei ng to a l low their designated ca rriers up to 50 f l ights a week either way. These a i rl i ne s have a l so been a l l owed t o f ly onwa rd s t o a th i rd country. Moreover, a i rl i nes from Germany have been a l l owed to operate to Koch i , Hyderabad and Goa, whi le specif ied a i r l i nes from I nd ia w i l l be a l lowed to operate to three more c i t ies i n Germany. I nd i a i s , however, yet to s pecify the three German cit ies to which its a i r l i nes wou ld l i ke to sta rt f lyi ng. Th i s was agreed to at the conc lus ion of b i l atera l a i r services ta l ks between I nd i a a nd Germany. ( I nd i a , Germany agree to increase a i r connectivity, B L. B, 26.05 .05 , C24)

I n its spree to expand f l ights to and from I nd i a , the government has updated the b i latera l agreements with Belgiu m and the Netherlands , a l l owing a tota l of 42 frequencies per week to and from the two countries. With the s ign i n g of a i r· services agreements with the se countr ies, the tota l number of n at ions with whom such a ccords have been entered i nto by I nd i a th is yea r has r isen to 9 . The other countries a re France, UK, US, Qata r, Germany, Ch ina and Oman. Both Belgi u m and the N ether lands have agreed to a l l ow mult ip le carr ier designat ions , through which more tha n one I nd i an a i rl i ne can operate to these two nations and vice·versa . (42 new f l ights to a nd from Belg ium, Netherl a nds , FE.B, 28.05 .05 , C24)

The Centra l Government is not keen on a l lowing State Governments to f loat their own a i rl i nes for operations on i nternat iona l routes. The Centre 's l a test th i nk i ng cou ld put a spoke i n the p ro posed p l a n s of the Kera l a government to float a n a i rl i ne t o operate f l ights t o the Gulf region. The Centra l Government would not change the exi s t i ng ru les to a l l ow Kera l a or a ny other State Government to f loat a n a i r l i ne pure ly for opera t i ng i n ternat iona l f l i ghts . The cu rrent ru les a l l ow on ly those a i r l i nes that have comp leted at l ea st f ive yea rs of domest ic operations and have a f leet of 20 a i rcraft to operate i nternati ona l fl i ghts. The Kera l a Government recently sent a p roposa l to the Centre seek ing re laxat ion i n rules and a l low i t to start an a i rl i ne that cou l d opera te between t h e State a nd the Gulf region . The State has been keen to start t h e a i r l i ne , a s passengers trave l l i ng from there to the Gu l f have been fac i ng prob lems.

Centra l Government off ici a l s poi nt out that acceding·to the request of the Keral a Government a t the moment w i l l go aga inst the decis ion of the Un ion Cabinet, which has ba rred even the two p rivate sector a i rl ines Jet A i rways and A i r Sahara - from operat ing to the G u lf reg ion for t h ree yea rs. Th i s , the offi c i a l s s a i d , was a conscious decis ion of the Government to protect A i r I nd ia a nd I nd i an A i rl i n es.

To ensure that i nternationa l a i r trave l lers do not face a ny problems, the Government has fol lowed a l i bera l a i r services b i lateral regime that h a s seen a huge i ncrease i n t h e a i r seats a l l otted t o a i rl i nes of various countries i nc l ud ing the Gu lf region . (Centre not to a l low States to float a i rl i nes for i nternationa l routes, BL .B, 09. 1 1 .05 , C24)

I n its bid to step up efforts to a ttract more I nd ian tourists, a tour operator i n I ta ly i s mul l i ng over a chartered f l ight from Punjab to cash in on the recent increase in visitors from I nd i a . This i s part of the concerted effort made by bot h Government a nd private a gencies to susta i n the 20 % growth of tourist f low from I nd i a . The I ta l i a n State Tou ri st Boa rd ( l STB) i s a lso exp lor ing the poss ib i l i ty of a t ie- u p w i th a l ead i ng I nd i a n tour operator for ta ppi ng the potenti a l of operati ng cha rtered f l ights to Ita ly. ( Ita ly for strategic t ie -ups to attract I nd i an tour ists , B L . B, 24. 1 1 .05 , C24)

Government is actively consider ing a l lowing 1 00 % foreign d i rect i nvestment (FD I ) in a i rports through the a utomatic route, doi ng away with the FI PB c learances. The Commerce M in istry has suggested a s lew of FDI pol i cy changes a nd the G roup of M i n i sters headed by Agricu l ture M i n i ster Sharad Pawar is eva l uat ing the pros and cons before a l lowing 1 00 % foreign partici pation in the development of a irports through the automatic

I Docume n ta tion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

route. Cu rrently 1 00 pc fore ign part ic i pati on i n sector is a l l owed but there i s a sectoral cap of 74 %. If the foreign company wa nts to i nvest more than 74 pc it has to a p ply to F I P B a pprova l . The move would give a boost to the proposed u p gradation and modernisation programme announced by the aviation min istry for 35 non-metro a i rports a n d the g reenfie ld a i rports to be set up in consu ltat ion with the states . ( 1 00 pc FDI i n a i rports through automatic route, VT_ B , 1 1 .0 1 .06, C24)

The I nd i an av iat ion i ndustry has been rap id ly expand i ng i n the l a st few yea rs with the entry of severa l new a i rl i nes espec ia l ly low-cost operators, the openi ng u p of i nternat iona l routes for private domest ic ca rr iers, the i ntroduction of open skies regimes: the substantia l i ncrease in -fl ight entitlements under bi lateral agreements and i n it iat ion of private sector pa rt ic i pat ion in the development a nd management of a i rports. However, a s the i ndustry moves away from the state-centric model where the government was the only signif icant p layer i n the e nt i re i ndustry to the mu l t i - p l ayer model of the post- l i bera l i sat ion era where there is l a rge sca le part ic i pation from private players, there is a n u rgent need to estab l ish a n i ndependent regulator who has the mandate to regu late techn ica l and economica l a spects i n the sector.

At present, the Min istry of Civ i l Avi at ion i s the a pex civi l aviation regu lator i nstitution i n I nd i a . I t i s responsible for formulat ing and i m pl ementi ng the nat iona l aviat ion pol i cy. Tak ing key dec i sions on a l l i ssues related to av iati on , i n it iat ing major i n it iatives i n aviat ion. Other regu latory bodies l i ke the d i rectorate - Genera l of Civi l Avi at ion (DGCA) a n d the Bureau of Civ i l Aviat ion Security (BCAS) a re under its pu rview.

The need for a regu l ator authority to deal with the i mportant economic issues in the sector is acutely, i .e. the M in i stry of Civ i l Avi at ion , a n d substa nti a l i nterest in major i n d u stry p layers l i ke I nd i a n A i rl i nes , A i r- I nd ia , Pawan Hans Corporation and the A irport Authority of I nd ia . There is a c lear potentia l for confl i ct of interest in th is case a n d therefore the regul atory funct ions of the m i n i st ry need to be tra nsfe rred to an i n dependent regulator.

Second ly, an i ndependent regu lator with i ntegrated regulatory functions can address a l l technica l , economic, management, operationa l , env i ronmenta l , l i cens i ng, l i abi l ity, safety a nd security-re lated issues in a hol i st ic manne r and create sta ndards in l i n e with global best practices. The cu rrent p iecemea l a pproach where a regulator's mandate i s restricted to just one aspect leads to a n overa l l i neffective regulatory framework a nd severa l key i ssues a re not properly addressed at a l l .

I ndependent ' super ' regu lators have been created for other sectors l i ke te lecom (the Tra i ) a n d i n su ra nce (the I rda) , wh ich a l so u nderwent a s i m i l a r trans i tion from a state- monopoly model . The N a resh Chandra Committee has recommended creation of a regulatory mechan i sm cons isti ng of a n independent regulatory authori ty with a mandate to dea l on ly with economic funct ions w h i l e the DGCA wou l d reta i n i ts tech n ica l regulatory functions. However, regulatory experience i n the civi l aviation sector from other countries ind icate that divorc ing economic a nd techn ica l i ssues in modern aviati on leads to severa l regu l atory problems and h i nder the g rowth of the sector. Therefore, the pro posed civ i l av iat ion regu latory author ity needs to cover both economic and techn i ca l i ssues so that it can effectively dea l w ith the complex it ies of modern c iv i l aviat ion i n I nd i a . ( For a n independent aviation regu lator, Sud i p Mahapatra . EIB, 23 .01 .06, C24)

The Delh i and Mumbai a irport modernisation process was d isrupted. once aga in , when the A i rports Authority of I nd ia (AAI ) employees d id not a l low the government to open fi nanc ia l b ids.

The fi nanci a l b ids of p re·qua l if ied b idders wou l d not be opened a n d the Civi l Avi at ion M in i stry wou ld hold d iscuss ions with the e m ployees on the ' a lternate p l an ' they have submitted on the matter.

This assura nce was given to the agitati ng employees by the AAI management, fol lowing which the AM Employees Joi nt Forum suspended the i r agitation to protest the proposed privatisation move. (AAI workers suspend sti r aga i n st pr ivat isat ion, FE -B, 28 .01 .06. C24)

The U n ion Budget 2006-07 has provided some re l i ef to the domestic aviat ion sector whi l e i nternationa l a i r travel a nd travel by cru ise s h i ps i s set t o become s l ightly more expen s ive. The Budget, however, has a l so p roposed l evyi ng a 1 2 % cess on a i r passengers f lyi ng a broad i n bus i ness or fi rst c l ass and on trave l on cru ise ships.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I However, the Fri nge Benefi t Tax wou l d be l evied at 5 % i n stead of 20 % for a i rl i ne com pa n ies and sh ipp ing i ndustry to va l ue the benefits i n the form of ' hospita l ity' a n d 'use of hotel and lodgi ng fac i l it ies . (Domestic a i rl i nes get tax exe mption for 1 more yea r, B L. B, 0 1 .03 .06 , C24)

The boom i n a i r travel a ppears to have encouraged the F inance M in i ster to tap the sector for more revenues i n the next f isca l . M r P.Ch idamba ra m has decided to tax the p redominantly corporate and h igh net·worth i nd ividua ls who patron ise the u pper deck (fi rst and business c la ss) of i nternationa l fl ights from I nd i a with a service tax , a nd that too, a n enhanced one ( 1 2% now).

In fact , av iat ion th ink tank CAPA country head Kap i l Kau l says there is not much i n the budget to cheer the aviat ion sector. For an i ndustry which is t i pped to attract $50 b i l l io n i nvestment (a i rcraft acqu is i t ion , new a i rports in 10 yea rs), there is l itt le to show - on the part of the government - on how to make the industry more v iab le by a ddressing its cost structu re. (H igh f l i ers face a downer, ET. B , 0 1 .03 .06 , C24)

Asserti ng that passenger r ights shou ld be c lear ly def i ned, A i r Passengers Assoc iat ion of I nd i a (APA I ) sa id d raft gu ide l i nes , on the l i nes of a n Act in the Eu ropean U n i o n , was expected to be ready by Apri l . A PA I pres ident D Sudhaka ra Reddy sa id such rights were vita l because there were many i nstances when a i rl i ne s services h a d been def ic ient a n d t h e passengers had not been compensated appropr iate ly.

C it i ng one i nstance a passenger recent ly had confi rmed booki ng from Bangkok to C henna i a n d when he rea ched the a i rport he was to ld that the f l ight had l eft two·hours in advance as it had been reschedu led . When the passenger i ns i sted that he wanted to f ly to Chen n a i , despite hol d i ng a f i rst c l a ss reservat ion , he was booked to f ly by a nother a i rl ine i n the economy c lass .

M r Reddy sa id A PAT had rece ived many com pl a i nts that a low cost a i r l i ne d id not a l l ot seat n u m bers a n d there w a s a mad rush t o occupy vantage seats caus ing great i nconven ience t o e lderly people , women a n d chi ldren.

Even some of the a i rl i nes were demanding payment for providi ng wheel cha i r to physica l ly cha l lenged persons a nd some of them were chargi ng exorbitantly for minera l water.

Reiterat ing the demand for a n independent f l ight safety body l i ke the N at iona l Transportation Safety Board in the US, he said safety audits had to be carried out on a l l the a i rl i nes, espec ia l ly those recru i t ing foreign pi lots. (Draft gu ide l i nes for passenger rights gett ing ready, FE. B, 1 6 .03.06, C24)

Government-owned a irl ines

With an eye on the Rs 1 ,000-crore gro u nd h a nd l i ng serv ices ma rket , I nd i a n A i rl i nes has decided to ask pr ivate a i rl i nes l i ke Jet A i rways to contract such serv ice s to the state-owned carr ier i f they wanted i t to f ly the mandatory u nviable routes for them.

Accord i ng to the C ivi l Aviat ion M i n i stry's route d i spersal gu ide l i nes (RDG). a l l des ignated a i rl i nes have to deploy part of thei r capa ci ty to connect c it ies in the northeast , Jammu & Kas h m i r, Andama n & N i cobar. Lakshwadeep, a nd some state cap ita l s to fulf i l thei r soci a l obl igat ions_ I nd i an A ir l i nes had recently entered i nto a comprehensive agreement with Vijay Ma l lya's Kingfisher Air l ines. As part of the Rs 1 20-crore dea l , the state·owned carrier wi l l fly for Kingfisher on the mandatory loss·making sectors and undertake ground handl i ng and maintenance for the l atter. Soon. after th is , Jet A i rways N a resh Goya l a pproached I nd i an A i rl i nes to take over Jet's obl igat ions . lA , which i s t ryi ng to d ivers ify its revenue streams , c lea rly l i n ked f lyi ng uneconomic routes to contracti ng ground hand l i ng operat ions . ( I nd i an A i r l i nes eyes Je t A i rways' mandatory u nvia ble routes, Sudh i r Chowdhary, FE. B, 1 9 .05.05, C24)

The Maharaja w i l l now be f lying with the Tourism Min istry's much·touted ' I ncredi ble I nd ia ' logo. The M inister of State for Tourism, Ms Renuka Chowdhury, a nd the Civi l Aviat ion M ini ster, Mr P raful Patel , f lagged off the fi rst Ai r· l nd ia p l a ne with the logo, symbol iz i ng the synergy between the two m i n i str ies to attract more tou ri sts , domest ic and fore ign . (A· I adopts I nc red ib le I nd ia logo, TS .D, 28.09.05 , C24)

1 [)o('umcniu t iol l Updat e 1 2 005 - 0 6 Private a ir l ines

Private a i rl i nes may agree on enforci ng a mandatory three month notice to be served by p i l ot s before they qu it to jo in a competitor. The C iv i l Aviat ion M i n i ster convened a meet ing of a l l a i rl i nes · p riva te a n d state­owned to fac i l itate a ' code of conduct' and a 'se lf· i mposed d i sc ip l i ne' to counter the menace of poachi ng.

With the entry of at least fou r new a i rl i nes K ingf isher, Sp ice Jet, Go A i r a n d Magic A i r l i nes · a scra m ble i s expected for tra i ned p i l ots. At present, I nd i a has on ly 1 ,500 p i l ots and accord i ng t o est i mates, the country wou ld need three-times more p i lots i n the next f ive years. Whi le the m in i stry i s not l ega l ly bound to i ntervene in the process of free movement of p i l ots , i t i s in favour of a i rl i ne compan ies forma l i s i ng some ground ru les l i ke a three·month not ice period that p i lots are requ i red to serve before switch ing jobs.

Wh i l e h i ri ng fore ign p i l ots i s a l ways a n opt ion , i t can prove very expens ive. Accord i ng to i ndu stry sources, foreign p i l ots a re at least thr ice as expens ive as I nd ia ns . Low·cost as we l l as regu lar a i rl i nes a re poach i ng staff with attract ive pay packages. They a re a lso employ ing fore ign p i l ots with pay packets of a bout Rs f ive l akh per month v i s·a-v is Rs 1 .5 -2 l akh pa id to I n d i a n p i l ots . ( P i l ots may get to hop jobs, but with 3 -month notice, Sudh i r C howdhary, FE.B, 1 6 .04.05 , C24)

The government may revi ew the five·year exper ience condit ion in the open· sky pol i cy, for f ly i ng overseas . Speaki ng on the i ssue of 'd iscrim inatory' open·a i r pol i cy, U B group cha i rman and MP Vijay Ma l lya sa id , i t ' s a fundamenta l i ssue, but the Civi l Aviat ion M i ni ster Praful Patel has assured me that the government pol icy i s not cast i n stone, it 's a lways subject t o review. When I ' m ready, I ' m goi ng t o app ly aga i n . I have the confidence that the gover n me nt wi l l take a rat iona l view. (K i ngfi sher to revive b id to fly overseas , open to stake sa le , N ived i ta Mookerj i , FE . B, 26.04.05 , C24)

After a lmost a decade of l a ngu i sh i ng i n the hangar, East West A i rl i nes hopes to take w i ngs aga i n by the end of th i s year. After bei ng grounded in the m id-90s, the a i r l i nes expecti ng a renewal of its l i cence soon . I t i s i n ta lks with Boei ng and A i rbus for buying a i rc raft, a nd with two i nvestors t o ra ise $50-60 mi l l i on i n the next two yea rs . Sen ior company sources decl i ned to name the foreign i nvestors, who, they sa id , had a track record of i nvest ing i n the aviat ion i ndustry. A domestic i nvestor was a lso i n the p i pe l i ne, they sa id . The money rai sed from these i nvestors wi l l comprise ha l f debt and ha l f equ ity.

If East West takes to the skies aga i n , i t w i l l be the second a i rl ine wh ich cl osed shop i n the '90s to recommence operati ons . The f i rst i s Mod i l uft, wh ich is now reborn as S p iceJet . ( East West to f ly a g a i n by yea r·end , Neelasri Barman , FE .B, 1 6 .05 .05 , C24)

Jet Ai rways p l ans to expand its f leet a nd ta p new desti nat ions a broad , revealed Mr N a resh Goya l . "Over the next 3-4 years , we a re poi sed to ta ke advanta ge of promis i ng opportun it ies both d omest i ca l ly a nd i nternationa l ly. Est imates suggest that the domest ic I nd ian aviat ion market wi l l cont inue to grow at above 20 % each year over the com i ng 3-5 yea rs. A i r travel i s bei ng propel led by r is ing d i sposable i n comes, i ncreas ing propens i ty to travel a nd ava i lab i l i ty of lower fares. As I nd i a 's l ead i ng domestic a i rl i ne, we a re wel l p laced to ach ieve growth rates that are broad ly i n l i ne with the market" .

Wel comi ng recent i n i t iat ives a l l ow i ng pr ivate ca rriers to f ly overseas, he sa id that th is w i l l a l l ow Jet Airways to capture substa nti a l growth i n i nternat iona l traff ic to and from I nd i a , a m arket wh ich i s a lso expected to grow i n t he region of 20 % per a n n u m over the comi ng years . (Jet p l a n s to expand , a l l set to tap new desti nat ions , AA. D, 28.09 .05 , C24)

Owner of Ki ngfi sher A i rl i nes Vijay Mal lya sa id he was one of those studyi ng the prospect of p ick i ng up equity stake i n A i r Sahara . The i nformation memorandum, Mr Ma l lya sa id , had defi ned a n a mount of $ 1 00 m i l l i on , wh ich A i r Sahara proposed to ra ise for i t s expans ion p lans . He was , however, not sure what percentage of total equ ity it a mounted to. He sa i d non-b ind ing offers would have to be made aga inst the memorandum by October 30. Mr Ma l lya sa id wh i le he was "certa i n ly i nterested" i n look ing a t the proposa l , he had not made a ny offer to A i r Sahara as yet. (Ma l lya wa nts to board Air Sa hara , FE. D, 1 9 . 1 0 .05 , C24)

The pr ice war in the I nd i an aviat ion i ndustry is l i ke ly to i ntens i fy i n the com ing days with new entrant GoA i r unve i l i ng a s,:heme t o offer 1 0 ,000 free t ickets per month on a f i rst-come-fi rst ·serve bas is , o n a l l i ts routes.

:: 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documen t a t ion l Tpclate I GoAi r w i l l i n it i a l ly operate on the Mumba i , Goa , Ahmedabad and Co imba tore routes . Under the scheme, which w i l l be va l i d for s i x months start ing October, passengers who book ear ly wou l d get a zero fare. They wou ld , however, have to pay the taxes amounting to Rs 221 . The a i r l ine c l a imed its fares woul d be 40 % lower than that of trad it iona l a i rl ines and on a n average, 1 0 % higher than a i r-condit ioned f irst a nd second-c lass ra i lway fa res. (GoA i r to offer 1 0 ,000 free t ickets a month, I E. D, 2 1 . 1 0 .05 , C24)

Coimbatore -based sta rt -up Pa ramount A i rways may be a l ow-prof i l e operator, but it has p l ans to capture a l a rge s l i ce of the h igh-brow corporate t ravel p ie with i ts super ior bus i ness a n d f i rst c l ass i n ·f l ight services. The a i r l i ne's Managi n g D i rector M Th i agaraja n said that it has decided to i ntroduce f lat beds a nd sate l l ite te lev i s ion on its f leet of new generat ion Embraer a i rcraft by mid 2006. A long with f i rst and bus iness c lass cabins, a l l a i rcraft w i l l be equipped w i th modern i n·f l ight enterta inment systems inc lud i ng personal TV screens on a l l seats. The programmes on offer wi l l i nc lude music, videos and l ive news through a sate l l i te up l i nk.

Meanwh i le, Bennett, Coleman & Co has taken a 2% stake i n the a i r l i ne for a n und isclosed sum. The t ie ·up wi l l be the med i a behemoth 's ma iden equ i ty exposure i n the rap i d ly grow ing aviat ion space. Accord i ng to M r Thiaga rajan , the a i rl i ne w i l l constantly seek to differentiate i ts on·ground and i n ·f l ight services, and the cabin offer ing was part of th is exercise. I nc idental ly, the a i r l i ne, which commenced operat ions on October 1 9 , w i l l conti n ue with i t s focus of l i nk ing metros with secondary towns of commerc ia l importance. (Pa ra mount A i r to offer f l a t beds, satel l ite TV, EI B, 23. 1 1 .05 , C24)

Cha rtered services operator Jagson A i r l i nes i s the l a test a i r l i ne p l ann i ng to enter the domest is a i r space as a n a l l · l nd i a scheduled operator. I nd i a a l ready has 12 scheduied operators and 44 non-schedu led operators. The a i r l i ne , promoted by cha i rman Jagd i sh P G u pta , has brought onboard former A i r Sa hara CEO Uttam Kumar Bose. I t is u nc lear whether Jagson w i l l pos it ion itself as a l ow cost carr ier or a fu l l ·f ledged service a i rl ine.

When the government opened a i rl i ne business for private sector i n 199 1 , Jagson A i rl i nes was among the fi rst private a i r l i nes to ava i l the l i cence. It l a u nched its chartered services i n 1 992 and is currently operat i ng i n H i machal Pradesh a n d Rajastha n . The a i rl ine w i l l now have t o convert its non·schedu led operator l icence to that of a scheduled operator. It w i l l have to i ncrease i ts pa id up cap i ta l from the cu rrent Rs 1 .06 crore to Rs 30 crore to qua l i fy as a schedu led operator. I t's not clear yet how the a i rl i ne proposes to ra ise funds to meet with the mandatory regu lat ions . (Jagson takes off i nto crowded sk ies, Pummy Kau l , FE .B , 04.01 .06, C24)

L iquor house Mohan Meak in supported I ndus A i rways wi l l f i na l ly take to the w i ngs th is March with 1 0 l eased p lanes u nder i ts belt in the fi rst yea r of operat ions. The a i r l i ne is being cap i ta l i sed with a Rs 250 crore fund pool , which includes equal contribution of Rs 1 00 crore each from the two promoters. Using Del h i , Chandigarh a n d Amritsa r is its base, I ndus A i rways p l a n s to connect town s l i ke Jammu , S h i m l a , a n d Sri nagar i n the north . ( I ndus A i r to hit skies i n March , G i ri sh Rao & Boby Kuri a n , EIB, 25 .01 .06, C24)

J ha rkhand is p l a n n i ng to in t roduce a u n i que model of a i r travel that would help i ts people access charte r f l ights a n d state·run scheduled f l ights t o d i fferent destinat ions i n the state. I n i ti a l ly there wou ld b e two sma l l ut i l ity p lanes, a n d one sma l l a n d one med i um he l icopter. The state i s i n the process of buyi ng a sma l l f leet of 1 1 ·seater, 5 ·seater and 4-seater a i rcraft , a s wel l a s he l i co pters of passenger capaC ity 7 to 14 . Depend i ng on the demand of the service, the state government would expand the f leet. (Jharkhand mu l l s novel a i r trave l model , Ari ndam S i nha , FE .D, 16 .02.06, C24)

Foreign a i r l i nes

Tha i land ·ba sed Nok A i r i s consideri ng enter ing the I nd i a n market i n 2006, a nd i s look ing for a t ie'u p with a low-cost ca rrier i n I nd i a . Nok A i r i s a l ow·cost a i r l i ne regi stered u nder Sky As ia Co, a jo in t venture between pub l i c and private i nvestors. The carr ier star ted operat ions i n Tha i l a nd i n J u ly 2004. At present , the on ly foreign l ow cost carr ier opera t i ng to I nd i a is Sharjah -ba sed Air A ra bi a . The ca rr ier sta rted operat ions in March th i s yea r and operates seven f l ights a week to Mumba i . Nok A i r has a l ready approached Vijay Ma l l ya ­promoted K i ngf i sher A i r l i nes for a poss ibl e t ie -up. The domest i c fa res offered by Nok A i r a re a lmost 30% cheaper than l egacy carr iers operati ng in Tha i la nd . (Tha i low-cost carr ier Nok Air may ente r I nd i a , Neelasr i Ba rman , FE .D, 08. 1 0 .05, C24)

I Documenta tion Update 1 2005 -06 Jetsta r Asi a , S ingapore's l ead ing low·cost a i rl i ne has l aunched its serv ices to Banga lore and w i l l operate five days a week . Bangalore w i l l be its second desti nat ion i n I nd i a after Kol kata. The a i rl ine w i l l ta rget corporate travelers, more specifica l ly from the IT sector, those from smal l and medium enterprises and leisure trave l lers. (Jetsta r services to Bangalore, T H . B, 24. 0 1 .06, C24)

Ma urit iu s may soon open its ski es for I nd i an carriers, both pub l ic and private. A c lea r i ndicat ion of this was g iven by the Deputy P r i m e M i n i ster of Ma u ri t i us , Mr Xav ier Luc Duva l , d u r ing h i s v i s i t to Mumba i . "The country's strateg ic geographica l locat ion a dvantage for the growing I nd ian outbound trave l l i ng traffic would be very soon passed to the I nd i a n Government. Th i s would pave way for I nd i an publ ic and private a i rl i nes to use Mauri t ius as a gateway for onward journey." He a lso reiterated the Mauriti us Government's commitment on the early i mplementation of rupee converti b i l i ty. Mauritiu s had asked its centra l ban k to work on this, a s i t could give a s ign if ica nt boost to b i l ateral relat ions between the two countr ies, especia l ly on the tou r ism front. (Mauri t ius may open sk ies for I nd i an carriers, BL .B, 1 7 .02,06, C24)

The European Un ion banned more than 90 foreign a i rl i nes from countries inc lud ing Tha i land, Afghan istan a nd Swaz i l and , pub l i sh i ng the f i rst EU-wide b lack l i st of u nsafe carr iers after crashes i n the previous two years k i l l ed hundreds of European trave l lers.

The ban across the 25 ·nat ion EU covers passenger and cargo o perators. The l i st a l so targets carr iers from Comoros, the Democratic Republ ic of Congo, Equatoria l Gu inea , Liberi a , North Korea , Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Rwanda and Sierra Leone. Severa l p l ane acc idents last August prompted EU law makers to seek a un i form approach to a i rl i ne safety. The l i st, to be u pdated at least every three months, i s based on d efic iencies found dur ing checks at European a i rports, the use of a nt iquated a i rcraft by compan ies and shortcomings by non­EU a i rl i ne regu lators. (EU bans more than 90 foreign a i rl i nes from 25· nation bloc, FE. B, 23 .02 .06, C24)

Charter Air l i nes

After l ow cost a i r l i nes the concept of genera l av iat ion (GA) or cha rtered av iat ion is catc h i ng the fan cy of corporates and N Rl s, Tech nica l ly, it means a l l commercia l aviation operations other than schedu led and non­schedu led a i r services for h i re. But i n I nd i a , GA is l a rgely perce ived as a l e i su re a ct ivity i ndu lged in by the nouveau r ich and corporate houses. But now, even tradit iona l busi ness houses a re opting for professiona l chartered aviat ion services, And companies provid ing these services are mushroomi ng as fast as the demand. Saja A i r, a newly- i ncorporated company, for i nstance, is sta rt ing its operat ions with a seed capita l of $3-mn. S imi la rly, another company promoted by a group of N R l s ca l led Fidel ity Aviation i s worki ng over t ime to tap the chartered av iat ion market. (Cha rtered av iat ion takes wings, Pummy Kau l , FE .D, 1 0,09.05, C24)

I nd i an tour operators have gone a head and done what the government has been proposing for a long time­developing smal l a i rport hubs for i nternationa l charter arr iva l s . The latest to jo in the charter c l ub, after Goa, Amritsar and Coch i n , is Agra , i n the hea rt of the north· l nd i a c i rcu it . The touri sm season for 2005·06 has a l ready been kicked off with the a rrival of the f i rst cha rter which l anded last week . The charter, operated by Sita-Kuoni Travel Ltd , w i l l fly d i rect from Gatwick Ai rport, London , to Agra I nternat ional A i rport Schedule for the season inc l udes one f l ight a week , with a week- long stay i n the country. The tour operator has got f l ights booked th rough N ovem be r, up to March 2006, wh ich runs i nto 24 weeks of book ings . I t can not be better news for tour operators runn i ng the i r busi ness i n th is h ighly-vis ited circuit , a lso popu larly know as the Golden Tria ng le of Del h i ·Agra -Ja ipur. I t w i l l take the pressure off the congested air corri dors to De lh i I nternat iona l A i rport and get ta ke·off and l and ing perm issions eas i ly i n the l esser-used Agra Ai rport . (Agra takes off a s fi rst cha rter l a nds, I E . D, 14 , 1 0 .05 , C24)

Trends and Patterns

Low·cost carriers in the country l ike Ki ngfisher A i rl i nes a nd SpiceJet a re i ncreasi ngly outsourcing ma intena nce and overha u l i ng work to keep operati ng expenses down. They a re looki ng to save a lmost 20· 25% in costs by contracting such work to pl ayers such as Lufthansa , KLM, SAS and S ingapore A i rl i nes. Publ ic sector carr iers I nd ian A i rl i nes and A i r· l nd i a , who have rich expertise in a i rcraft ma i ntenance with a combi ned m a n power exceed i ng 9 ,000, a re a l so eyeing a major p ie of the contract ma i ntena nce and over· hau l i ng bus iness. (No­fri l l s a i rl i nes see 25% savings by outsourcing ma i ntenance, Sudh i r Chowdhary, FE .B, 26 .05 .05 , C24)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I Domestic touri sm i ndust ry i n I nd ia a l ready d isadva ntaged d ue to h igh domest ic a i rfares is of late ser iously cha l lenged with the l aunch of low internationa l a i rfares. A Delh i-Trivandrum round trip costs over Rs 34,000, wh ich is more expensive than f lyi ng to London a n d back . Domest ic tou ri sts now prefer to go to low cost i nternat ional desti nat ions l i ke Malaysia , S i ngapore and the Middle East i nstead of domestic desti nations l i ke Kera l a . I nternat iona l touri sts on ly a ccount for a bout 8% of the tota l tourists i n I nd i a . Therefore, if domestic tourists fi nd it chea per to trave l a broad than with i n the country, i t wou l d become extremely difficu l t for the domestic tou rism industry to survive.

Conventiona l a i rl i nes i n I nd ia a re posit ioned to target the business segment, which is not so pr ice sensit ive. The le isure segment, on the other hand, tends to be extremely price sensitive. If domestic tou ri st desti nations have to reta i n the i r v iab i l i ty they have to ach ieve a high level of l ow-cost a i rl i ne connectivity.

Steady economi c growth i s generating a n aspirat ional push a mongst consumers. 1 5 mi l l ion I nd ians travel by ra i l everyday. A i r trave l apart from bei ng asp i rat iona l i s a l so t ime savi ng espec i a l ly for d istant desti nat ions . I t is on ly a matter of t ime before a part of these ra i l users moves on to a i rcraft.

I nd ia is today the th i rd fastest growing domestic aviat ion market in the world posti ng a growth of 23% in the l a st f i nanc i a l yea r. The project ions a re that i t w i l l grow at an ave rage of over 20% for the next f ive yea rs . A i rbus I ndustr ie reckons that I nd i an ca rriers w i I I p rocure nea rly 400 a i rcraft by the yea r 201 7 . One way of putt ing th is potent ia l i n perspective is to compa re it with Ch ina , which has 140 mi l l ion domestic a i r trave l lers every yea r compared to 1 4 m i l l ion i n I nd i a .

Low·cost a i r l i nes have to pay just a s much for the a i rcraft , c rew, fue l , l a nd i ng charges , etc . , a s a ny norma l a i rl i ne. The model , therefore, works on higher capacity ut i l isation i n terms of fi l l i ng u p the a i rcraft as wel l as by quicker turn a round.

The state governments can step in to i ncent iv ise low-cost carr iers for i ncreas i ng connectiv ity as we l l as to support tour i sm. H igh ra te of sa les tax on a i rc raft turb ine fuel by a l most a l l the states is a factor that has consistently kept a i rfa res h igh . Another a rea is i n subsidis ing the ground ha ndl i ng charges for a l im i ted period of about two yea rs . The government could possibly meet, say, about 40% of the ground hand l i ng charges as a n i ncentive. (Leverage low-cost a i rl i nes for tour ism, Suman B i l l a , ET.C, 1 8. 08.05, C24)

With the aviation industry soaring, lack of suffic ient i nfrastructu re to cope with i ncreased a i r traffic has led to a sharp r ise i n the number of near-acc idents i n the cou ntry. D u ri ng 200 5 , 2 1 a i r m iss , or near·acc ident , cases i nvolvi ng commerc ia l a i rc raft were reported , a n i ncrease of a lmost 33 % over the p revious yea r. What is more a l a rm ing i s that of the 2 1 , two i n ci dents where a "near-co l l i s ion was avo ided " cou l d have been d i sast rous , i nvolvi ng a bout 500 passengers. I n fact, in the wake of the r ise in the number of a i rcraft, the m in i stry "has sta rted i m pos ing a ba n on genera l av iat ion a i rcraft d u ri n g the pea k periods at De lh i a n d Mumbai a i rports ," one source sa id . (Growing a i r traffic lead ing t o near-accidents, TS. D, 1 0.03.06, C24)

General

A i r passengers a rrivi ng at the I G I A i rport wi l l soon get a safe transport to the ir hoste l s . The U n ion Tou ri sm M i ni stry has asked Del hi Tourism to start a service which wi l l f i rst transport passengers to DTTDC's CP office i n buses a n d from there take them to the i r hote l s i n "safe" tax is and a utos . The I G I A i rport l a cks space for provid i ng bus service to the thousands of people who fly in da i ly. The min istry w i l l ask severa l other agencies to i mprove infrastructu re and make a tou rist-friendly p lace. The DDA needs to provide l and for hote l s. About a dozen f ive stars need to be bu i lt in new and south De l h i . Budget hotels a re a l so needed a l l over the p lace, ' Rajeev Ta l war, addit ional d i rector·genera l (tour ism) sa id . (Tourism i n top gear, A i r passengers to be d ropped at hote ls , Saurabh S inha , HT.D, 26.04.05 , C24)

Creat i ng software so lut ions for the travel i ndustry is expected to a grow ing bus iness for the foreseea b le future , especi a l ly in As ia , because a i r travel is booming in the region .

"Th i s segment g rew by 1 00 % l a st yea r, a n d is esti mated to grow by at least 70·80 % th is yea r, " says M r Doshi , CEO o f I n ter-G loba l Technologies. The rush t o create cost-effective on l i ne sol ut ions a nd services for

I Docllmcntation I fpc/utc I 2005 -06

commerc ia l a i rl i ne users gathered momentum after 9/1 1 , as a i rl i nes a round the world, but particu larly i n the U n ited States, went i nto a ta i l sp in and sta rted looki ng for ways to cut costs to keep themselves profitable.

" I t has been made ma ndatory for a l l I nternat iona l A i r Tra nsport Associat ion members to i ssue e lectron ic t ickets by 2007 . A lot of a i rLi nes a round the world have adopted e·t icketi ng with gusto, because e-tickets cut down the cost of process i ng a i rl i ne t ickets dramat ica l ly, from $ 1 2 per passenge r to about $ 1 , says M r Dosh i . This h a s resu lted i n a lot of the work of creating software for e-ticketi ng, revenue management a n d other sundry bits o f the commerc ia l a i rl i nes ' software requ i rements gett ing off- shored. (Software sol utions for trave l f louri sh , AA. D, 28.05 .05 , C24)

Shop with your credit cards, and you wou ld actua l ly be ea rn ing a t icket to f ly. Or you wou ld be a l lowed extra baggage the next t ime you fly with more and more a i rl i nes tyi ng up with ba nks for co-branded credit cards. A i r Sahara , Jet and A i r Decca n have a l ready sta rted the scheme, where a c red i t ca rd user i s entit led to poi nts based on thei r spend , which can be redeemed l ater. Others l i ke Emi rates , Sri La n ka n A i rl i nes and Spice Jet a re a l so expected to fol low su i t . (Flyi ng retu rns for ca rd-ca rry ing a i r trave lers , Nee lasri Ba rma n , FE .C , 0 1 .07 .05 , C24)

The i r vi sit cou ld not have been more ti mely than now- when a g roup of stri ki ng domestic p i lots have made a point on the i r i nd ispensab i l i ty. At tra i n i ng school chiefs from Queens land have f lown in to suggest how the country's g rowing number of a i rl i nes can bridge the i r pi lot shortage of 500- 1 ,000 a yea r. The f lyi ng schools are ta l king to Jet A i rways, Ki ngfisher, Air Deccan , Spicejet and I nd iGo among others during thei r four-day tour of Bangalore, Mumbai and Delh i . Thei r proposals range from pi lot sponsorship contracts from a i rl i nes for fl ight tra i n ing in Austra l i a , to sendi ng in Austra l i an i nstructor for short periods; even partneri ng with I nd ian f lyi ng schools a nd lend i ng Austra l i an i nstructors to coach or fly p lanes. (Queens land aviation tra i n i ng tea m offers solut ions for p i lots shortage, BL .B, 1 6 .02.06, C24)

The potenti a l ly fatal condit ion, deep vei n thrombosis (DVT) , a l so dubbed ' Economy Class Syndrome, can be caused by poor qua l i ty a i r and i nsuffic ient oxygen i n passenger a i rc r.aft, accord i n g to the latest study by sc ienti sts. So far it was bel i eved that s itt ing cra mped for eight hours or longer i ncreased the r isk of a fata l blood c lot fourfo ld . But a research from the World Health Orga n i sation , publ i shed i n the La ncet, shows that s itti ng crammed in economy class for long hours cannot a lone exp la i n why air passengers a re at higher r isk of potenti a l ly deadly blood c lots. This was found after studying people sitti ng on a seat on the ground for eight hours and those who spent the same number of hou rs on a n a i rcraft. The resea rchers found chemica l s ind icating c lotti ng i n 7 volunteers were higher during the eight hours o n a fl ight than i n the c i nema. I t suggested that low a i r pressure and oxygen l evel s on a f l ight might p lay a ro l e. ( Poor a i r i n p la nes can cause deadly c lots , Vijay Dutt , H I D, 1 1 .03.06, C24)

C30 Tourism Industry · Hote ls

I nd ia w i l l need 1 .5 l a k h hotel rooms to cater t o the tourist flow from abroad i n t h e next fou r yea rs . Earn i ngs from th i s sector a re a l so expected to r ise by 35-45% every yea r. Accord i n g to I nd i a n Hotel s Company managi ng di rector Raymond Bickson , 10- 1 5 mi l l ion is the min imum number of tourists that wi l l a rrive i n I ndia in the next five yea rs. A mini mum investment of Rs 30,000 core is needed from the private sector to establ ish 1 ,50 ,000 hotel rooms i n the next four yea rs. The country cu rrently, has 97,000 hotel rooms i n the a pproved Sector. ( I nd ia w i l l need 1 .5 l a kh hotel rooms i n 4 yea rs, FE .C, 08.04.05 , C30)

Bu i lders and developers a ppea r to be d riv ing the second wave if hote l deve lopment in Banga lore attracted by the boom in the hospita l ity sector, un l i ke the past when i ndustry barons were the prime in it iators. Ana lysts say the market is witnessi ng deve lopers trying up with estab l ished hotel brands for management/marketing arrangements after fi rming up the blueprint for thei r foray. At least two-th i rds (about 2 ,500 rooms) of the new inventory being planned for the city in the next two-four years a re promoted by bui lders , whi le hotel compan ies l i ke Oberoi (East I nd ia Hotel s), Taj , Grand Ashok (Bha rat Hotel s). Leela etc. a re powering the rest. More than 4,000 rooms a re proposed to be i nfused i nto the ma rket duri n g th is spe l l . Banga lore presently has a bout 1 ,600- 1 , 700 five-sta r rooms and experiences an esti mated def ic it of some 2 ,000 rooms. The ma rket has been growing at the rate of 1 5 -20% for the past f ive yea rs , and is expected to susta i n this pace in the mid­term. Therefore, room i nfusion may soften room rea l isat ions but not i mpact dema nd. (Bu i lders d rive the l atest sta r hotel push i n B' l ore, G i ri sh Rao, EIC, 20.04.05 , C30)

;/ 005 -0 6 I DOCWHCllta i ion Update I Bed & Breakfast (B&B) accommodat ion i s a concept l ong a ssociated with the Br i t ish . But with De lh i on i ts way to sett i ng up B&B services, tou r ists w i l l soon get chea p a n d conven ient a ccommodat ion . The Un ion Tour i sm M in i stry i s sett ing up a task force to f ind out where th is service can be offered . It i ntends to lay down parameters l i ke local ity, services offered and standards of hygiene and safety in consultation with the i ndustry. Once the ru les a re i n p l ace , De l h i w i l l be the f i rst c ity where a p proved B&Bs wou ld be e i ther sta rred or graded accord ing to that checkl ist. The idea i s to provide easy, safe and hygienic accommodation a t economic rates to the stead i ly i ncreas i ng n u m ber of foreign tou r i sts to the Ca p i ta l . S i n ce the n ames of B&B s establ i shments m a y b e put u p on tour i st webs ites a nd tour i sm off i ces , the government p l a n s to put strict rules i n p lace to ensure qua l ity. I f a ny establ i shment is found to deviate from expected standards , its name cou ld be struck off the ava i l ab le accommodation l i st . ( Bed & b reakfa st joi nts to check i n , Saura bh S i nha , HT. D, 26 .04.05, C30)

The hotel i ndustry is fac i ng a manpower crunch especi a l ly at the entry and jun ior man agement levels. More than half of the students, who pass out from catering i nstitutes, a re not i nterested i n getting i nto the hospital ity industry. Accord i ng to a Federation of Hote ls and Restau ra nts Associat ion of I nd i a (FHRA I ) su rvey i n 200 1 , a bout 1 0 ,000 cateri ng graduates come i nto the job m arket. I ndustry sou rces sa i d that though there i s no offic i a l numbers ava i l a bl e, these n u m bers wou ld have now gone up to a bout 1 5 , 000. These students a re opti ng for jobs on cru i se l i ners, a i r l i nes, which offer attractive remu nerat ion . Both these i n dustries have the added i ncent ives of gl a mour a nd trave l . Lately, cal l centres and bus iness process outsourc ing centres have a l so become a n opt ion . Accordi ng to i nformation ava i l ab le on the N et, a n ass istant housekeep ing m anager w i th two to three yea rs experience on the Cunard l i nes m a ke s a bout $ 1 ,900 (Rs 82 ,65 0) a month . A n ass istant purser front desk reception i st for t h e same l iner, with some experience, w i l l get a bout $ 1 ,650 (Rs 7 1 ,775) . Recently, I nd i a n A i r l i nes was h i ri ng cab i n crew and the m i n i mu m sa l a ry offered was Rs 22 ,000, inc lud ing the f ly ing a l lowance and other benefits such as gratuity and provident fund. (Attrit ion rate h its hotel i ndustry at e ntry, jun ior leve ls , N i n a Varghese, B L. B, 1 0 .05.05, C30)

Her itage tour ism is ga i n i ng i m portance in promot i ng I nd i a as a tou r i st desti nat ion . R id i ng th i s wave is the numbe r of heri tage hote ls , which have grown threefold s ince 1 99 1 ( in the c l ass if ied and b ra nd category) . Accord i ng to I nd i a n Her i tage Hote l s Associat ion ( I H HA), wh i l e there were 5 1 her itage hote l s i n 1 99 1 , the n umber was 1 54 in 2004.

Accord ing to I H HA, there a re many more heritage hote ls in I nd ia which a re not registered but run i ndependently a s heri tage propert ies by owners.

A mong the hotel s cha i n s , i t is I TC Welcomgroup l ea di ng the pack w i th 3 5 heritage hotel s u nder the WelcomHeritage banner, fol lowed by H i storic Resort Hote l s (HRH) wh ich has 12 p ropert ies. In the recent past , Neemran a Hote l s too has emerged as a very successfu l her i tage hotel c h a i n w i th 1 1 hote l s in i ts portfol io .

Of the 1 54 her itage hote l s, a l arge number of heritage propert ies (c lose to 1 00 heritage hote ls) a re spread across the pri ncely states of Rajasthan , Gujarat and a l l of North I nd ia . There a re very few heritage hote ls from the southern and eastern parts of I nd i a . (Heritage hote ls rea dy to make a statement, Meena N ichan i , ET.C, 23.05.05, C30)

Oversupply of ma l l s has led , the developers seeki ng new ways to d i fferent iate the i r ma l l s. The shoppi ng ma l l craze wh ich had propel led m a l l renta ls across the country to i ncred i bly h igh l eve l s seems t o h ave a bated. A decl i ne i n demand for shopping ma l l s has d riven developers i n I nd i a to explore other l ucrative opt ion s. The new deve lopments a re based on factors such as the s i ze of ma l l s ( m i l l ion sq ft a bove ma l ls) to spec i a l ty mal ls such as Gold Souk, weddi ng mal l , seconds outlet mal l etc to destination mal ls ( i .e . mal ls cum amusement centre a mong others) and ma l l hote l s is the l atest form of d i fferentiat ion factor to have h it the I nd i an reta i l i ndustry.

I n Saket , New Delh i , th ree rea l tors a re l ook ing forward to develop ma l l hote l s on 5 1 a cres set a s ide for commercia l development. The Rs 350 crore 'Select City Wal k' project being developed by 'Select I nfrastructure' w i l l be des igned on the l i nes of N ew York 's T i me Square a nd w i l l house a posh shopp ing m a l l , bus i ness centre, mult iplex and a 1 OO-room hote l .

I Documenta tion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Near that comes the DLF Reta i l Deve lopers p l an that a re p l ann i ng two projects ca l led South Court and The Cou rtyard that w i l l have hote ls with 60 and 1 00 rooms each.

V ipu l l nfrastructure i s a lso drawing out p lans to deve lop a 6 ,00 ,000 sq ft reta i l and service complex on the Del h i -Gurgaon highway. The complex wi l l a l so have a 200-room hote l .

The prime advantage of deve lop i ng a ma l l hotel i s that i t creates a synergetic m ix of components i n terms of lease rates , occupa ncy l eve ls , a nd c l ient prof i le.

The Omaxe group is a l so p l ann i ng five sta r hote ls i n their wedd ing ma l l complex at Amri tsa r a nd Pati a l a , " I t ma kes busi ness sense to have a five sta r hotel a ttached to our wedd ing ma l l s as hotel s w i l l bolster sa leabi l i ty of commerc i a l a nd reta i l space , a dd to the footfa l l s a n d become the a nchor. " says Kun a l Ba nerjee, v ice president marketi ng Omaxe.

The Ga laxy Towers in G u rgaon i s com i ng u p with bout ique five sta r hote l , w i th ground f loor a nd fi rst f loor devoted to s hopping a rcade which houses designer showrooms.

Car lson Hote l i s coming up with a 1 22 - room hotel in Sigma Gra n d M a l l a nd Towers, an upcoming shoppi ng complex in Banga lore. This kind of a rra ngement suits both hote l iers and developers. Hote l iers can delegate their worry about a pprova l s on developers and can ava i l ready space. Above a l l , they can enjoy a cost benefit of up to 25%. (Ma l l -hote l s , N amrata Koh l i , TOI . D, 1 7 .09.05, C30)

After ba n n i ng jean s for g i r ls in Anna U n ivers ity a nd demandi n.g a publ i c a pology from actor Khushboo on i nte rviews on premarita l sex, mora l po l i c i ng scoped a nother ta rget. Two of Chenna i 's Pa rk Hotel staff were arrested after two Tami l even i ngers publ ished photographs of g ir ls partyi ng in the hotel . The Chenna i Pol i ce Commissioner withdrew the hote l 's ba r l i cence. The cha rges inc luded vio lat ing l i cence norms a nd "obscene acts". The hotel fi led a writ petit ion in the Madras High Court seeking to quash the order of the Commissioner. The court granted the stay with respect of the 2 1 0 guests stayi ng at the hote l , sayi ng they should be a l l owed to stay unt i l October 1 . City Pol ice Commissioner, R Nataraj sa id : " For a ny congregation a hotel should have a ' pub l ic resort l i cence. ' Park Hotel d i d not have such a l i cence a n d it had a l so not kept to the t i m i ngs ( by violat i ng the 1 1 p .m. l i mi t) . And , accord i ng to condit ions , the hotel has to serve l i quor on ly i n one p lace (the bar) , but i t has done so in severa l p laces ( ins ide the hotel) . A l l t hese a re viol at ions . " (Hotel faces 'mora l i ty' ban , I E . D, 30.09 .05 , C30)

The Town Ha l l , where the Munic ipa l Corporation of Delhi i s currently housed, may be converted i nto a five-star heritage hotel if a p roposal made by the Taj group to the MCD i s accepted . The mun ic ipa l corporat ion wi l l move i nto the 28-storey M C D Civi c Centre, work on which h a s a l ready begu n , i n 2008. Arch itect Arun Verma , who attended the presentation , th i nks a her itage hotel i s a "great idea " . But 0 P Ja i n , Convenor I NTAC H , Del h i , does not thi n k commerc ia l i sing the ent ire bu i l d i ng i s a good idea. "probably a part of i t (the Town Ha l l ) fac ing Chandni Chowk can be used for economic activity . . . but the northern par t of the bui ld ing shou ld remain untouched . . . " he sa id . (Town Ha l l may turn heritage hote l , I E, De lh i , 02. 1 0.05 , C30)

Top govern ment sources sa id the new pol icy wou ld a l l ow c i ty five·sta r hote ls to serve l iquor round·the·clock at one of the i r restau ra nts . At p resent , they can serve l iquor o n ly t i l l l a m ; ba rs -c u m - restau ra nts face a midn ight deadl ine.

Sou rces sa id the proposed rel axat ion comes at a hefty p rice: the new l i cence fee for hote l s wi l l cost 50 % more than the p revious l i cence, which was va l i d for on ly 1 2 hours.

F inance M in i ster A K Wa l i a sa i d , "The pol i cy has been approved by the Ch ief M i n i ster (D iksh it) after briefed her a bout the deta i l s of the pol icy. N ow it w i l l come up for a pprova l from the cou nci l of min i sters. The Delh i government i s a lso l i kely to a l l ow estab l i shments to serve l iquor to 18-year-olds. At present, Del h i fol l ows the Punjab Exc i se Act, 1 9 1 4 wh ich set 21 as the cut-off age. (L iquor may f low 24x7 i n five sta r hotel s soo n , Shubaj i t Roy, I E. D, 05 . 1 0 .05 , C30)

Luxury hotel cha i n s have found a new address in Gurgaon. After the runaway success of the Trident H i l ton , the Oberoi G roup i s pu l l i ng out a l l stops to bu i l d a super- l uxury hotel The Oberoi - with 1 75 rooms right

2 0 0 5 -- 0 6 I Documen tation Updute I next to i t . The p roperty, wh ich i s st i l l i n the des ign stage , i s j u st one of severa l new hote ls com i ng u p i n Gurgaon.

P l ans for at least s ix other hote l s a re bei ng f ina l i sed , even a s others a re on the anvi l . W i th Gurgaon havi ng become the M N C and ca l l centre capita l of the country, there i s an acute demand·supp ly m ismatch . And with an A l i st of Fortune 500 compan ies sett i ng up offices in the townsh ip, the demand for good accommodation c lose to workplace is i mperative. This is fuel l i ng the supply boom.

Vat i ka Hospita l ity group has ta ken the lead by bri ngi ng i n Sta rwood's West i n as its partner to rol l out a 305· room hotel on a strategica l ly p laced plot on the bust l i ng Mehra u l i ·Gu rgaon Road . Th i s p roperty should be ready by Ju ly 2008. S imi la rly, Carlson Hospital ity, which owns the smal l boutique hotel Park P laza in Gurgaon, i s prepar ing to br i ng a 400·room Regent , i nc lus ive of 90 service a pa rtments, reportedly in conjunct ion with Ambience I sl and . The property i s be ing deve loped ins ide the Ambience I s l and complex on the freeway and i s expected to open by Apri l 2008. (R i tzy hotel cha i n s make bee l i ne or brand Gurgaon , HT.D, 05 . 1 0.05 , C30)

I n a move to g ive fi l l i p to the hote l i ndust ry, the De lh i Deve lopment Authority (DDA) is a l l set to a l low huge com merc i a l s pace i ns ide new hotels for ope n i ng reta i l service shops and off ices . The agenda paper of the DDA meeti ng scheduled has proposed a major change in the Master P l an for Del h i (MPD) 2001 a l l owing 20 % of the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) for such use. Th is norm, however, w i l l be a pp l icable for new hotels s i tes on ly.

The proposed development control norms for hote ls states, addit iona l 5 % ground coverage sha l l be a l l owed for prov id ing atri u m . I n case, the permiss ible addit iona l ground coverage for atr iu m is ut i l i sed , 25 % of the u t i l i sed g round coverage s h a l l be counted towards FAR. ( D DA set to a l l ow 20% of FAR for shops in new hotels , Rajesh Kumar, T P. D, 1 7 . 1 0 .05 , C30)

Pune is fast emerg ing as the next hotspot for the hotel i ndustry. Accord i ng to recent stud ies , the i ncrease i n average room rates (ARRs) and RevPAR (revenue per ava i l able room) i n the c ity have outpaced the growth i n other c i t i es . Wh i l e ARRs across c i t i es i n c reased by 19 % t o R s 5 ,326 (Rs 4 ,458), Pune recorded a 44 % i ncrease i n ARR at Rs 5 ,222 (Rs 3 ,626), fol l owed by Bangalore wh ich saw a 36 % i ncrease at Rs 1 1 ,289 (Rs 8 ,32 5), a study done by C R I S l nfac , a whol ly·owned subs id ia ry of Cr is i l Ltd . As for RevPAR , Bangalore lead with a RevPAR of Rs 8,85 1 fol lowed by Hyderabad and Pune (both a round Rs 4,500). The demand for rooms in Pune , it adds , is d riven by bus i ness t raff ic , part icu la r ly the IT a nd ITES sectors. Accord i ng to i ndustry players, a number of i nternat ional brands such as the Marr iott, Ramada, and I nterconti nenta l a re p lann ing to enter the c ity. Among the brands that have f i rmed u p p lans to set up propert ies i n Pune a re The Leela , Hyatt , and Rad i sson . (Hotel cha i n s queue up to move i nto Pune, Tun i a C heria n George, BL .C , 05 . 1 1 .05 , C30)

It i s only the second week of November, the begi nn i ng of the busy season , but hotel s in Del h i , Banga lore, and Mumbai a re a l ready report ing fu l l occupancy on most days of the week. Major hotels in t hese c it ies have no room for guests without advance booki ng.

Some hote ls have a l ready revised the rates by 20·25 %. But when contacted, a n offic i a l i n a Mumbai hotel that has quoted h i gher rates sa id that the bas ic tar i ff has not been h i ked , the ear l i e r d i scount has been d iscont i nued. Whi le the hotel i ndustry i s not compl a i n i ng, an i ndustry watcher sa id that with the n umber of rooms u n l i ke ly to i ncrease i mmed ia te ly, the i ndustry is be ing forced to turn away a l ot of bus i ness , wh ich cou ld , i n the long term , prove negative. I nd iscriminate tariff h ikes could a lso u lt imately backfire on the i ndustry, he added. (Hotels goi ng fu l l even before season warms u p, Tun i a Cher ian George, BL .B , 1 2 . 1 1 .0 5 , C30)

Most hote l s in the country a re seei ng at least 1 5·20% i nc rease i n on l i ne booki ngs as compared to the previous yea r. The growth is evident in the metros. I n tertconti nenta l The G ra nd vice·pres i dent a nd genera l manager He iner Werdel i ng a dds , "There a re more v i si to rs from Eu rope, U K a n d N orth Amer ica , a nd from Hong Kong a nd Si ngapore i n Asia . They normal ly book on l ine for the weekends through the globa l d istr ibution system (GOS). These a re customers who a re not very pr ice sens i t ive but a re more concerned a bout the brand of the hotel and the qua l i ty of service. On l i ne booking, a lthough s l ightly more expensive, addresses a l l the concerns they have. About 1 5% of our tota l booki ngs wou l d be from on l i ne modu les by the next yea r. " (Hotel i ndustry logs 1 5% higher on l i ne booki ngs, Rouhan Sharma, FE.C, 2 7 . 1 2 .05 , C30)

I Documentation Update 1 2005 -0 6

Taking a leaf out of the book of countries l i ke Malaysia , Germany, Brita i n and others, the Tourism Department in I nd i a is popu lari s i ng the concept of home-stays. Whi le a round 1 50 apartments from Delh i have enro l l ed with the touri sm department for the purpose of prov id ing home-stays, Mumba ikers have enro l led a rou nd 1 00 apartments t i l l now. The states where the idea i s gai n i ng acceptance are Karnataka , Goa and Kera la . The state of S i kk im has a l so i ntroduced the concept in some of its v i l lages. (Now foreigners can fee l at home in Ind ia , Rouhan Sharma, FE .B , 05 .03.06, C30)

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of I nd ia (TRAI) has decided to freeze the cable televis ion rates as preva lent on March 1 , 2006, for hote ls and resta u rants . TRA I said that th i s has .been done to protect the i nterests of commerc i a l consumers. I ndustry sources sa id that the rates charged by broadcasters from commerc i a l enterprises are a lmost three t imes the household rates. A coup le o f Associat ions of Hotels a n d Restaurants f i l ed a batch of petit ions aga i nst lead i ng broadcasters i n the Te lecom D i sputes Sett lement a nd Appel l ate Tribunal (TDSAT).

The d ispute bas ica l ly perta ined to the fact whether the hotel s a nd restaurants can be equated with domestic consumers for the prov i s ion of cab l e TV servi ce a n d there were a l so other connected a n d consequent ia l i ssues u nder adjud i cat ion . (TRAI freezes cable rates for hote l s , restaurants, BL .B, 08.03 .06, C30)

Compan ies Leela Group

World Ban k private equ ity arm I FC ( Internat ional F inance Corporation) is bankrol l i ng hospita l i ty major Leela ventu re's new five-star de l uxe hotel p roject in Chenna i with long·term loan of $40 m i l l i on . The 260·room property i s being proposed at a n i nvestment of Rs 280 -300 crore. The Lee l a project w i l l be among the few touri sm i nfrastructure ventu res i n the I nd i an private sector where the World Bank is tak ing an exposure. ( I FC bankrol l s Leela ' s Chenna i 5 sta r project, G i ri sh Rao, EI B, 0 1 .04.05 , C30)

The Lee l a Pa laces a nd Resorts, one of I nd i a 's leading hotel groups in the l uxury sector, announced i ts p lans to bu i l d th ree new hote ls i n Uda i pu r, Chennai and Hyderabad.

The grou p's Vi ce-Cha i rm a n , Vive k N a i r, sa id a new pa l ace hotel at Lake P i chcho la in U d a i p u r was u nder construct ion . The hotel is expected to be completed for the 2007 winter season with about 68 guest rooms and roya l su ites. The pa lace hotel i s l i kely to cost Rs. 65 crores w i th a n a rray of restaura nts, lounges and Spa a nd banquet fac i l it ies.

In Chenna i , the group has a cqu i red a property at Adyar beach and proposes to bu i ld a 1 5·storey hotel with 360 guest rooms and su ites. I n Hyderabad, the Lee la group has identified a prime location i n Banjara h i l l s to bu i ld a hotel with 300 rooms at a projected cost of Rs. 3 1 0 crores. The hotel i s l i ke ly to be commissioned by 2008. The group i s a l so looki ng at the possi bi l ity of a cqu i ri ng a beach resort at Beka l tour ism zone i n North Kera l a a n d i s hopefu l of baggi n g a hotel s i te i n Del h i , to be re leased by the government for the 201 0 CommonWealth games. (Leela Pa laces p lans 3 new hote ls , TH .D, 2 1 .05.05, C 30)

Hospita l i ty and garment i ndustry major Leela Group is plann i ng to pump in a round Rs 500 c rore to Kera l a across various fields l i ke I T i nfrastructure, hotel s a nd a pparel manufacturi ng. The group reckons Kochi a s one of the emergi ng dest inations for ITES particu l arly busi ness process outsourc ing. I t has ea rmarked a s izeable portion of fu nds for developi ng IT i nfrastructure i n Kochi and Thiruva na nthapuram. The other major a rea of i nvestment w i l l be the hotel it took over recently at Kova lam. The company i s p lann ing to renovate the bu i ld i ng a t a cost of Rs 1 70 crore. I t i s a l s o l ook i ng at the poss i b i l i ty of setti ng u p a bus i ness hotel i n Koch i a nd a nother a t Kumarakom. (Leel a Group p lans l a rge i nvestments i n Kera l a , I E. B, 1 6 . 1 1 .05 , C30/L50)

Taj Group of Hotels

Taj Hote l s Resorts a nd Pa laces has marked its entry i nto Southeast Asia by s ign ing a management contract with Rebak I s l a nd Mari n a Berhad to operate and manage the Rebak Mari n a Resort, a 1 06· room prem i u m resort on t h e i s l and of Langkawi i n Ma lays ia . Thi s i s pa rt of Taj 's global strategy t o establ i sh its presence i n key gateway cities and leisure desti nations. This deal comes c lose on the heels of the Taj s ign ing a development and manage ment contract to operate a resort property in Dubai l ast month. (Taj Hote l s in pact to operate resort i n Ma l ays i a , BL .B, 06 .05.05, C30)

.2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentatio1l Update I Tata Coffee i s p l a n n i ng to foray i nto tour ism by leas i ng out its bunga lows located at i ts headquarters a nd estates at Coorg i n Karnataka . The company i s seek ing approva l from i ts shareholders to commence the business of tourism, at the ensu ing a n nua l general meeting of the company on August 4. (Tata Coffee to foray i nto touri sm, Kai lash Rajwadkar, EtC, 26.07 .05, C30)

The Taj Group of Hotels and Apol lo Group of Hos pita l s a re looki ng to make h uge i nvestments in F i j i , sa id Mr Joseph Si ngh, chai rman , Fij i I s l ands Trade and I nvestment Burea u . Apo l lo was l ooki ng to i nvest 75 mi l l ion Fi j i do l l a rs in a hosp i ta l in west Fi j i and had a l ready held ta lks with off ic i a l s from Fij i . The I TC Group is a l s o reported t o b e keen t o start f ive-star hote l s i n F i j i . (TaL l TC, Apol lo m ay i nvest i n F ij i , AA . D, 1 3 . 1 0 .05 , C30)

After US, the Taj Group of Hotel s is check ing i nto Austra l i a . The country's l a rgest hospita l i ty cha i n has bid for icon ic W Sydney Hotel s located i n Wool loomooloo. Owned by the Hong Kong-based Hari le la group, the 1 04-room hote l is cu rrently m a naged by Starwood Hote l s and Resorts_ I t is expected that the hote l , wh ich overlooks the Sydney harbour, wou ld fetch a pr ice of $35 mi l l ion . The Hari le la group had acqu ired the boutique hotel in 1 999. Jones Lang La Sa l le hotels a re the advisor for the dea l . I f Taj c l inches the dea l , i t wou ld be a blow to Sta rwood , a s i t was i t s f i rst W hote l outs ide N orth A mer ica . Taj 's move i s a pa rt of i ts strategy to sprea d busi nesses g lobal ly. (Taj Group b ids for Austra l i a n hote l , Reeba Zachari ah , TOI . D, 1 7 . 1 0 .05 , C30)

A d i st ingu ish ing feature of these lodges is that they wi l l not i nterfere with the exi st ing ecologica l habitat of the w i l d l ife pa rks. Touri sts w i l l have a choice of tented tree-houses or cottages. Two l odges a re ready wh i l e the other three a re being developed . Each of the lodges wi l l have a d i st i nct ive and apposite a rch i tectura l style , reflect i ng the character o f the region a n d the habitat i n which these are l ocated.

An I nd i an head ranger has been a ppoi nted to guard and control act iv it ies a round these centres. The ranger w i l l be forma l ly t ra i ned at CC Afr ica 's Ra nger Tra i n i ng School at the P h i nda p rivate game reserve to ga i n expertise, w h i le a n a rch i tect wi l l a l so work with C C Africa 's expert.

CC Africa is an Afr ica n ecotour ism organ isat ion provid i ng hoi iday experiences to the d iscern ing trave l ler.

Regard i ng the ir foray i nto ecotouri s m i n I nd i a , Steve F itzgera ld , CEO, CC Afri ca , says, "Wi l d l ife i n I nd i a i s h i gh ly under-rated . " The f ive target s pots chosen, he fee ls , a re far too t iger-centr ic but he i s optimist ic that the broader experience wi l l be wonderfu l .

We understood w e would need a local partner t o run the operat ions , because i t i s cu ltura l ly too d ifficu lt and needs loca l expertise. The t ie- u p with Taj i s logi ca l . I t i s a great bra n d , has good geogra ph i c spread in the subconti nent . "

There i s a need to i nvolve commun i ties i n t he tour ism processes because popu lat ion pressures wi l l strangle the wi ld l ife areas un less there i s a change in operating models , fears Fitzgerald . (On t iger tra i l , FE.B, 23 . 10 .05 , C30)

A joi nt venture between the Taj Group of Hote ls and Conservation Corporation Africa (CC Africa) is proposed . F ive l odges i n the d eep heart of the forest w i l l have guests rest i ng i n f ive- sta r l uxury a nd havi ng c lose encounters with the wi ld. The lodges are located on the borders of the famous t iger reserves - Corbett T iger Reserve ( Utta rancha l ) , Bandhargarh T iger Reserve, Panna Tiger Reserve a n d Pench T iger Reserve (Madhya Pradesh). By mid October 2006, the lodges wi l l be thrown open to guests .

The Taj group's associate i n its Koval am beach foray M uthoot Pappachan group has decided to i nvest Rs 45 crore more i n two hotel projects. The Rs 2000·Crore turnover groups , w i th core competence i n f i na nc ia l services , had recently parked a bout Rs 1 05 crore on hosp ita l i ty ventures. The two hotel expans ions , s lated for the next f isca l a re centred in Th i ruva n a nthapuram. In Koch i , its Rs 40-crore e lectron ic software park i n spec ia l economic zone, i s due for open ing next month.

This wou ld be i n add it ion to a new hotel block with 1 50 ,000 sq ft bu i l t -up space. The convention centre and the new block a re schedu led to be complete in 20 months.

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 � 0 6

M uthoot F l ight K itchen that went under way i n 2003 caters to A i r l nd i a , Qatar A i rways , S i l k A i r a n d I nd i an A i r l i nes. Trans i t a i r passengers make the bu l k o f the group's c i ty bus i ness hote l . (Taj 's Kova l am partner to spread Rs 45 crore more on 2 hotel s , FE .C , 02.02 .06 , C30)

Taj Hote l s Resorts and Pa l a ces a nd The Sh i l l a Hote ls & Resorts , one of South Korea 's prest ig ious hote l compa n ies , have entered i n to a strategic market ing a l l i ance to develop cross-promotiona l opportun it ies for both compan ies to leverage each other's strengths. The Shi l la is aff i l iated to the Samsung G roup and has two hote ls , name ly, The Sh i l l a Seou l a n d The Sh i l l a Jeju . At i ts i nceptio n , The Sh i l l a -Taj Hote ls partnersh i p w i l l provide guests with a tota l of 1 9 hotel s offeri ng comparab le serv ice a n d qua l i ty. A lso , under the a l l ia nce, Taj Hote ls and Sh i l l a wi l l develop rec iprocal and jo int market ing act ivit ies that i nc l ude jo int pa rtic i pat ion i n trade shows, sa les events, cu l i na ry promotions and n iche market i ng p rogrammes. The compan ies wi l l a l so a ss ist each other in exchangi ng sa les l eads and conducti ng roadshows across I nd i a and South Korea . (Taj Hote ls forges a l l i a nce with Sh i l l a of Korea , T H . B, 07 .03 . 06, C30)

Other Hotels

The room sta rved hospita l i ty sector i n Bangalore wi l l receive a shot i n the a r m with 4 new budget hote l s for the busi ness trave l ler. ABS Hote ls w i l l be contr ibut ing 640 executive rooms pr iced between Rs 1 ,500·2500, a cross Banga lore under the bra nd n a me ' M i c rote l l nns & Su ites ' . The brand w i l l see i ts presence i n T ier I I c i t ies l i ke Belgaum, Davangere, Hubl i , Dharwad, Mysore, Hassan , Koch i , Co imbatore and Vishaka patnam i n the South to start with and at R ish ikesh , Ludh i ana , Amritsar, Chand igarh and Del h i subsequently.

ABS wi l l be givi ng out f ranch i ses only to hote l s that w i l l be newly constructed accord i ng to M icrote l design specif i cat ions The franch i sees w i l l rece ive a comprehens ive support package from design to tra in i ng to ma rket i ng a nd manage ment . ( B udget hote l s a c ross 50 l ocat ions by 20 1 0 , Sangeetha Chengappa , I E . B, 05 .04.05, C30)

P rest ige Estates P rojects , a property deve lopment company, a n nou nced a t ie- u p with hosp i ta l i ty m ajor H i l ton I nternationa l for developi ng a l uxury hotel in Bangalore.

The hotel , to be promoted by P rest ige at a cost of Rs 200 crore, w i l l be managed by H i lton . Th is is the second i nternational brand to associate with a domestic player for a hotel project in Banga lore , after Marriot announced i ts i ntention to pa rtner a M u mbai i nvestor i n manag ing the property i n the c i ty. (P rest ige to deve lop l uxury hotel for H i l ton i n Bangalore , BL .B, 28.04.05 , C301 K34)

The Comptro l ler a nd Aud i tor Genera l (CAG) has s lammed the d i si nvestment department for se l l i ng the two hote ls of A i r· l nd ia subs id i a ry Hotel Corporation of I nd ia-Juhu Centau r and Ai rport Centau r - on the basis of s i ngle b ids without the benefit of competi t ion .

In i t s report s u bm itted to Pa rl i a ment , the CAG stated that i n ne ither of the two sa l e tra nsa ct ions was i t evi dent that efforts were made t o ba lance the need a n d u rgency of sel l i n g the propert ies a nd obta i n ing the best poss i bl e price. The report sa i d the va l uat ion of the properties and f ixat ion of reserve pri ce was not consistent with the pract ice fol lowed by the m i n i stry in other cases. Relaxat ions a l l owed to the b idder a n d interventions by the M in i stry to faci l itate the sale, ind icated i nadequate efforts to mitigate the r isk of transaction in a l im i ted competit ion scenario, it sa id . (Centau r hotel s were not sold for best pr ice, says CAG report; Sole b ids marked both dea l s, FE .B, 07 .05 .05 , C30)

M - Fa r Hote l s Private L i mi ted , subsid i a ry of the Oman · based Ga lfar that acqu i red ITDC 's Kova l am Ashok Beach Resort. three yea rs ago for Rs. 43.7 crores, a s part of the d is i nvestment process, i s c lose to d isposing of the sprawl ing beach property. A leading hotel group i n the country own ing hotel properties i n Mumbai and Goa , and keen on sett ing u p hotel i n Bekal and fund ing the proposed a i rport at Kannur, i s i n the race for tak ing over the Kova l a m property, sources sa id . The second h ighest bidder for the property, when i t was put on the block three years a go , is a l so lea rnt to be eye ing the property a second t ime rou nd . I ndustry sources sa id the dec i s ion to se l l off the property was taken by the grout fol l ow ing the tuss le w i th the State Government over the Ha lcyon Cast le and the host i l e a tt i tude of the panc hayat to deve lopment works . ( M · Fa r Hote l s to sel l off i ts property i n Kova l am , S. An i l Radhakr ishnan, T H . D, 09.05.05, C30)

2 a 0 5 - a 6 I Documentat ion Update I La l i t Sur i ·promoted G rand group of hote l s announced p lans to i nvest a round Rs 1 ,400 crore to more than doub le the num be r of hotel propert ies under the grand u mbre l l a brand over the next 3 ·5 yea rs to r ide the domestic tourism boom. In addit ion, the group wh ich currently manages a cha in of 5·star hotels wi l l foray i nto the domestic budget hotel segment besides acqu i ri ng propert ies i n UK and US. The group has a l ready short l i sted Kera l a , Ahmedabad , Amritsar, Hyderbad , Banga lore, Ja i pu r a nd Chen n a i as the sites for sett i ng u p new 5 ·sta r hote ls . (Grand hote ls t o pump i n R s 1 ,400 cr, Byas Anand , TOL D, 2 1 .05 .05, C30)

Fou r Seasons Hote ls I nc" the world 's l a rgest manager of l uxury hote ls , w i l l stop operat ing the money·l os ing P ierre i n New York after i ts negot iat ions to revi se the l ea se fa i led. Taj Hote l s Resorts and Pa l aces wi l l take over Pierre's management. Four Seasons wanted better contract terms from P ierre owner 795 F ifth Avenue Corp. after the hotel had a loss of $4.2 mi l l ion l ast yea r. Four Seasons i s sel l i ng hote ls and exi t ing leases to focus on its management busi ness. (Taj Hote l s to manage Fowr Season's P ierre, FE.B, 1 1 .06.05 , C30)

The d isput ing part ies in the Sea rock Hotel case reached a sett lement in the Bombay High Court with Del h i · based C laridges group buyi ng off t h e rema in i ng 3 0 % stake and establ i sh ing tota l ownersh i p. The C la ridges group had a l ready bought 70 % stake i n Sea rock. Today, it entered i nto a sett lement with Skydeck Propert ies to buy the rema in i ng stake for Rs 1 32 crore. Searock i s s ituated at Bandra Bandstand in south Mumba i . The cour t goaded the d i sput i ng pa rt ies to sett le the d i spute. Accord i n g to the court 's compromise for m u l a , Skydeck w a s to determ ine t h e hote l 's 'enterpr ise va l u e ' . C l a r idges cou l d t h e n b u y off Skydeck at that va l uat ion or se l l off its 70% stake. Both part ies agreed. Skyrock was val ued at Rs 450 crore, a nd C l a ri dges agreed to pay Rs 1 32 crore to Skydeck to buy it off. (Sea rock spat over, C ia r idges buys 1 00%, I E . D, 1 4.09.05 , C30)

G lobe·trotti ng I nd ians can now own a hotel room in downtown London on a 999·yea r l ease . Not only wi l l this del iver 52 n ights a yea r of free stay, the deal prom ises a return on i nvestment by a l lowi ng the hotel to let the room out for the rema in i ng days. Th is unusua l i nvestment p l a n is the baby of Johnny Sande lson . CEO of Guestl nvest , i n town to promote the sa le of hote l s to i nvestors. The f i rst hotel to i nt roduce the model was Guesthouse West, i n Notti ng H i l l . Next in l i ne i s Nest, a 1 70·room l uxury hotel i n Padd ington . wh ich w i l l open in ear ly 2007 . Rooms a re up for grab. w i th pr ices rangi ng from 1 75 ,000 pounds (a round Rs 1 .4 crore) to 270.000 pounds (Rs 2 .2 crore). With 1 1 m i l l ion tou rists each yea r and hotel room occupancy reaching 79 % by August 2005 , i t's c lear that London's hotel m arket i s i n a n acceleration mode. Sandel son i s a lso p lann ing to br ing th i s concept to I nd i a . ( Now. buy a hotel room i n London for Rs 1 .4 crore, I E. B. 1 8. 1 1 .05 , C30)

CGH Earth , which operates hote ls in Kera l a and Lakshwadeep, has cha l ked out an expans ion p lan that w i l l ta ke the group outs ide t h e State a n d even see i t g o globa l .

The fam i ly·owned group w i l l open i ts f i rst property outside the State i n Gokarna i n northern Karnataka next month . The project, spread over 58 acres , w i l l i n the fi rst phase. offer 30 de l uxe v i l l a s pr iced at $300 per n ight per v i l l a . The property, ca l led 'Swaswar' (Sanskrit for I n ner Vibrat ions), has been posit ioned as a yoga retreat by the sea . Bes i des , i t has s igned a jo int venture agreement w i th the Karnataka Government for a project i n Hampi . The Karnataka Government wou l d provide l a nd a s its equ ity i n the 30·room project, with CGH bri ngi ng in Rs 1 2· 1 5 crore.

Mr Domin ic sa id the group had a lso acqu i red a heritage bui l di ng at Kara i kud i i n Tami l Nadu , and the property would be launched by the winter of 2006. The group has also acqu ired 200 acres a long the coast in Rameswaram d i st r i ct a n d i s awa i t i ng env i ronmenta l c l ea ra nce for a project that w i l l come u p a l ongs ide the proposed M a ri ne Nat iona l Park . Under i ts overseas i n i t iat ive, the company has taken on l ease a heritage bu i ld ing in a vi l l age nea r Stuttga rt i n Germany, which wi l l serve a s i ts marketi ng a r m for Euro pe. A new company, CGH I nternationa l , has been f loated to operate its overseas ventures. (CGH Earth p lans expans ion , Tun ia Cheria n George, B L . B, 1 9 . 1 1 .0 5 , C30)

Viceroy Hote l s Ltd has proposed to set up two, star category hote l s with an overa l l i nvestment of Rs 620 crore i n the next three yea rs . The Chen n a i property, est i mated to cost Rs. 460 crore, wi l l have 350 room· capac i ty bes ides 200 execut ive apartments attached to the hote l . Fu rther, the US-based JW M arr iott has expressed i ts w i l l i ngness to manage the property. The proposed Banga lore property i s estimated to cost Rs . 1 60 crore a nd the board has a l so authori sed the managi ng d i rector to explore the possib i l i ty of franch i see! management contract with Mar riott I nternat iona l I nc , USA. And it wi l l have a 200· room capac i ty. (Viceroy Hote l s p l ans to i nvest Rs. 620cr i n 2 new projects, FE .B, 23 . 1 1 .05 , C30)

I Documen t a t ion [ Tpda[e I ,? 0 0 5 -06

Hi l ton I nternationa l , a leading hotel cha i n of the U.K. based H i lton group, has entered i nto a n agreement with Empee Hote ls to manage and operate the latter's l uxury hotel to be establ ished i n Che n na i . Accord i ng to M . P. Purushothaman , Cha i rman , Empee Group, the 253-room property to be christened 'H i lton Chenna i ' , w i l l be l ocated i n t he Gu indy I ndus tr ia l Estate ( Ekkattuthanga l) . The outlay on the project was estimated at Rs. 1 84 crore, to be f inanced with a n equity compbnent of Rs. 55 crore and debt of Rs. 1 2 9 crore. (H i lton to manage Empee Hotel s ' new venture , T H.D, 06.0 1 .05 , C30)

Prestige Estates P rojects has a nnounced its expans ion p l ans i n its newly d i vers ifi ed a rea of hospit a l i ty busi ness. The company, which had completed 1 20 developments cover ing 1 0 m i l l ion sq ft s ince i ts foray i nto the business in 85-86, announced l ast yea r its foray i nto hotel busi ness with a t ie-up w i th H i l ton I nternat ional to deve lop a 300-room property in Bangalore. Mr I rfan Razack, Managing D irector, sa id that Prestige p lans to promote five hotels and serviced a partments i n the next two years. One of them i s a jo int venture with the Taj Group to bui l d a property about three km near the proposed Banga lore I nternat ional Ai rport at Devenaha l l i . Prestige w i l l have a n equ ity stake i n t h e a i rport trans i t hotel w i t h Taj run n i ng a n d manag ing the property. In i t i a l ly it would have 1 00 rooms a nd other fac i l it ies with an option to expand as the demand grows . (Prestige Estates to expand biz i n hospita l i ty sector, B L . B, 2 1 . 0 1 .06, C30)

Rel iance I ndustr ies Ltd ( R I L) , wh ich has won the b id for 7 . 5 hectare of l a nd at Bandra Kurla Complex for a record Rs 1 , 1 04 crore for the deve lopment of a convention centre, proposes to make i ts foray i nto the hotel s business.

R I L has worked out a plan for the construct i on of a hotel havi ng u pto 250' rooms, which wi l l accompany the proposed convention centre. R I L has p lanned the construction of a world·c lass convention centre with seati ng capacity of 2 , 000. I nd ustry sources, however, sa id R I L wi l l explore options of a 3-sta r, 4-sta r or 5-star hotel wh ich would enta i l i nvestments ranging a nywhere between Rs 35,000 per room and Rs one l a kh per room . (Re l i ance I n d eyes foray i nto hotel busi ness , Sanj ay Jog & Mona Mehta , FE . B, 24.01 .06, C30)

ITC Hotels , i t a ppears, may cont inue with the Sheraton brand for another year before it revisits the a rrangement. The Sheraton brand , which is owned by Starwood Hote l s a n d Resorts, has been ITC Hote ls ' partner i n I nd i a for 29 yea rs . Present ly, on ly 10 of l TC's 66 odd hote l s i n 50 locat ions i n I nd i a a re co-branded as Sheraton properties under a marketi ng and d istr ibution a l l i ance. Si nce the commerc ia l relat ionship was coming to a n end th is year, severa l !ead i ng hotel cha i ns i nc lud ing Regent a n d Shagr i - I a were ta lk ing with I nd i a 's second l argest hospita l ity cha in to step i nto Sheraton's p lace. ( l TC, Sheraton tie -up to stay for now Arrangement May Be Revi s i ted i n a Year's T ime, G i ri s h Rao, ET. B, 2 1 .02.06, C30)

Hotel management compa ny Sarovar p l ans to open 50 Hometel budget bus i ness hotels pan · 1 nd ia over the next five years. The fi rst one, Radha Homete l , was thrown open in Whitefie ld , Bangalore. Typica l ly, the hote l s, wh i ch w i l l promi se a neat and c lean a m bience, w i l l c a l l for a n i nvestment of a bout Rs 1 0- 1 1 crore each exc lud i ng the land cost. Sarovar w i l l a l so turn i nto an i nvestor soon with p lans to put in Rs 200 crore towards own i ng some of these hotel s . Sarova r has a l so ra i sed $8 m i l l i o n pr iva te equ i ty from two American VCs ­New Bassma and N ew Nernon to support its future i nvestments. The Bangalore property, owned by Chenna i based Fai r mont H otel , offers 1 02 rooms. (Sarova r p l ans 50 Hometel biz hote l s i n 5 years, ET. B, 26.02.06 , C30)

U n l i ke Banga l ore and other metros , where modern s pecia l i ty hospita l s a re g iv ing a fi l l i p to health tour ism, i nvestors i n Kera l a a re p itch i ng for ayurveda , Kera l a 's forte, for both treatment and we l l ness to attract more touri sts. Dr N . Madhu , one of the three promoters of Chera i Beach Resorts i n Koch i sai d that with its bas ic expert ise i n ayurveda , Kera l a shou ld be a ble to garner 25 % of the overa l l share in the wel l ness and medica l tourism busi ness. He sa id that though ayurveda had suffered a setback due to some u nscrupulous operators, the Kera la Govern ment's move to i ssue accred itation to pract it ioners wou ld rei nforce its cred ib i l i ty_ (Chera i Beach Resorts p l ans to focus on hea lth tour ism, B L.C , 22.03.05, C30)

C31 Resorts

Wi lderness Resorts Pvt Ltd, a start ·up eco·tour ism company, has annou nced an i ni t ia l i nvestment of Rs 45 crore to l a unch a resort cha i n across country. Wi lderness Resorts has a l ready identif ied four properties i n Kab in i nea r N agarhole, Band i pu r a nd Bhadra i n Ka rnataka . I t p lans to set u p 5 0 resorts across the country

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I i n five years through the development of green f ield projects and acqu i sit ions. Wi Iderness has been promoted jo int ly by Mr Ramesh , Mr Murthy and Mr H . B. Ja i ra j , Cha i rman of BRB Group, a local hospita l i ty company. (Wi l derness Resorts to set u p eco·tour ism cha i n , Bl .C , 22 . 1 2 .05 , C 3 1 )

Country C l u b I nd i a (CC l l) , a tour i sm resort c l u b cha i n , has expanded its operations t o Sr i lanka by tak ing over a h i l l s ide resort near Kandy. CCl l w i l l spend about Rs 2 b i l l i on ($44.4mi l l ion) on its development. The Rs 1 b i l l ion resort group s igned a memorandum of u nderstand i ng (MoU) with a Sr i Lankan tour ism group to acqu i re the 40000 sq feet property just 15 km from Kandy. I t recently bought tour ism properties l i ke "Bush· Betta" , near the Band ipur Tiger Reserve, Coconut Grove near Bangalore and Country C l ub De Goa . (Country C l ub buys h i l l s ide resort i n Srilanka , Har ish C Menon, ET. B, 05.0 1 .06, C3 1 )

A website wh ich rates accord i ng to mer it the ten best resorts of 1 7 States. The rat i ngs a re based o n the recommendat ions of veteran travel lers , who speak from fi rst·hand experience of havi ng spent qua l i ty t i me there with the i r fami l ies. www. i nd i a resortssurvey.com ( IReS) i s a 50,000 p lus group of travel l ers, who share thei r experiences on l i ne. "Th i s i s the fi rst of its k ind venture i n the country. I nd i a Resorts Survey has an on l i ne rati ng mechan i sm that a l l ows actua l trave l lers to eva luate the resorts a n d le isure hote l s i n I nd i a . These are regu l a rly reviewed by PWC. We have l i st i ngs of more than 1 , 500 ho l iday dest i nat ions s i tuated with i n 350 kms from pr ime c it ies a nd which charge anywhere from Rs.72 to Rs. 32,000 for a day's stay, " Har i N ayar, CEO and Co·Founder of leisure and L ifesty le I nformation Service. (Website l i sts top ten 'hop sk i p ' resorts, Am i t U padhye, I E. B, 1 3 . 0 1 .06, C 3 1 )

e32 Travel Agents

Air· l nd i a , has annou nced that travel agents' commiss ions on i nternat ional t ickets wi l l be reduced from 7 % to 5 %, effect i ve M ay 1 . M ost other European a n d South ·East As i an ca rr iers a re a l so to fo l low su i t . Travel a gents a re joi n i ng ran ks, with the two major trade a ssoc i at ions the Travel Agents Assoc i at ion of I nd i a (TAAI ) and the Travel Agents Federat ion of I nd ia (TAFI) - an nounci ng a boycott of A ir· l nd i a . Ear l ier l ast year, Briti sh A i rways and lufthansa had tr ied u nsuccessfu l ly to cut the travel agents commiss ions.

Commission cuts, a worldwide phenomenon: A i rl ines are capp ing I nternational A i r Travel Agents' commissions to reduce d i str i bution costs. For l a rge corporate c l ients, travel agents a l ready operate on a f ixed service fee, based on t ic kets i ssued rather than on percentage of pub l i shed fa re . With the a dvent of the I n ternet for mak ing booki ngs, and the options of e lectron ic t icketi ng, a i rl i nes, at l ast , have an effecti ve travel i ntermediary i n 11

Val ue chai n for tradit ional air travel d i str ibution: Mega a i r l i nes are u nique in extend ing their d istribution cha i n through i maginat ive use of technology. The GDS (Globa l D i str ibut ion Systems) - such a s Sabre, Amadeus, Ga l l i leo, and WorldSpan - a re technology p latforms based on a ma inframe rea l t i me computer, with a VPN (Vi rtua l Pr ivate N etwork) that connects travel agents w i th the reservation systems of d i fferent a i rl i nes. Now, with the I nternet, they have a n a lternat ive medi u m to d i str ibute the i r a i r product.

The new kids on the b lock - the On l i ne travel agency: The success of these OTAs i ntroduced a i r l i nes to the potent ia l of the I nternet for sel l i ng a ir t ickets. They s impl if ied the ir fares, and began to attract consumers to the ir porta l s . As the a i r l i ne porta l s scored over OTAs in terms of tra n sparency of price, better ava i l ab i l ity of f l ights, etc , the i r share of the OTA market grew to 60 %.

Wake ·u p ca l l for tra d i t i on a l a i r l i nes from lCCs : Trad i t iona l a i r l i nes a re a t l ast focuss i ng o n reduc i ng the d i str ibut ion costs, wh ich are second only to sa laries. The d istribution costs a re contro l lable, i f and on ly if, the tradit ional a i r l i nes attempt to change thei r business model . Thi s is easier said than done, as can be seen from the boycott by travel agents of a i r l i nes wh ich reduce thei r commiss ions.

Profitabi l i ty of travel agents: The i ndustry average of travel agent prof i ta bi l ity, PBT / Revenue i s 1 ·2 %. The globa l , mult i · locat ion travel agents may not pass on the ent i re lATA commiss ions to t he i r corporate c l i ents; t hey a l so earn com m i ss ions on other va l ue·added servi ces such as sale of fore i gn exchange, packaged tours, and hotel booki ngs . Yet such global conglomerates have l ow operati ng margi ns because of the h igh overhead costs on sa l a ries, admin i strat ion, commun i cat ions, etc.

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

The smal l travel operator has a much lower cost base, yet i s forced to part with most of the lATA commission to meet the expectat ions of the a i r trave l l ers . And now trave l lers a re sa id to check the l owest fa re on the I nternet, only to buy from their neighbourhood agent.

What future technology holds i n t ravel d i str ibut ion: I n 1 999, a t the he ight of the I nternet frenzy, Forrester forecasted that the on l i ne reta i l sa les in the US wi l l reach $ 100 b i l l ion in 2002. Despite the I nternet bust i n 2000, the forecast came true, i n 2003, when t h e tota l on l i ne sa les i n t he US touched $ 1 20 b i l l i on . I t i s a question of t i me before the US trends become a global one.

The a i r l ines wi l l s imultaneously bui ld technologies of sharing FFP (Frequent Flyers' Programmes), and common a i r l i ne Web s i tes with e-t icket i ng which connects them d i rectly with the customer. The a i rl i n e i ndustry in As ia is soon dest i ned to catch up with North A mer ica in sa l es f rom o n l i ne channe l s as wel l as e · t i cketi ng , a s pred icted by i ndustry ana lysts. Today, few travel agents possess the technologica l capab i l ity o r t he financ ia l powers to take on the combined might of the a i r l i nes . The smal l operators, who cater to the n i che market, may survive the ons laught of technology. However, the la rge trave l agents w i l l have to transform themselves us i ng the same I nternet technology to offer B2C web-based i nterfaces for thei r corporate c l ients, offer dyna mic tou r packaging for le isure travel ler to outsmart the OTAs. The offl i ne travel agent neither 'owns' the customer nor the technology cha n ne l s to access the customer.

As a i r l i nes a n d the i r agents s l ug i t out over the a mount of commiss ion , i t w i l l be i nteresti n g to see who emerges v ictorious in the f i rst round of battle, as Air I nd i a perceivably has a lower "Customer Pu l l " , bei ng a weaker bra nd than Br it ish A i rways, and Lufthansa; even these a i rl ines with stronger brands have to rely upon the vita l "Agent Push" to se l l a i r t i ckets in I nd i a . (What is the fut u re of the t ravel a gent? Pankaj N a rayan Pand i t , B L.C, 08.04.05, C32)

A i r Deccan has h i t i ts f i rst a i r pocket with the travel agents t ak i ng a deci s ion to keep in a beya nce the co­branded cred i t c a rd offe r w i th I C I C I t i l l the i ssue of commiss ion to the a ge nts is resolved . The bone of content ion between A i r Deccan and the travel agents is the 5 % transact ion fee, wh ich the a i rl i ne levies on passengers over and a bove the bas ic fare whenever a t icket is booked through the agents. Passengers who book the i r t ickets d i rectly through the I nternet a re exempted from paying the transact ion fee.

Though the t ra nsaction fee i s given to the travel agents i n the form of commiss ion , agents say the fee should be i nc luded in the bas ic fare and not shown separa tely in the t icket. The t ravel agents c l a im that by showi ng the tran saction fee separately from the basic fare i n the t icket, the a i rl i ne i s i n fact tryi ng to lure the passengers away from the t ravel a gents . Travel a gents a l so fea r that if t hey a ccept the c red i t c a rd offer, i t wi l l set a precedent a nd they may have to accept s im i l a r offers from other a i rl i nes .

I nterest i ngly, the yet-to -be l a u nched K i ngf i sher A i r has a n nounced that i t w i l l p rovide t ravel a gents 5 % commiss ion for se l l i n g its t ickets and the commi ss ion w i l l be i nc luded i n to the basic fare. (Travel agents put Air Deccan ' s c red i t ca rd offer on hol d , K. G i ri p rakash , B L.C , 1 1 .04 .05 , C32)

Trave l Corpora t i on of I n d i a (TC I ) has a nnounced TCI Travel N et the 24x7 t ravel centre . I t is a i med a t enhanc i ng the t ravel lers experiences by offer ing them a range of services th rough a s i ngle seamless channel . By ca l l i ng TCI Travel Net, customers get travel ass istance to meet a l l the i r requ i rements; from domestic and i nternationa l a i r t ickets, customised hol idays, hotel reservat ions, car h i re , Eurora i l passes, Cosmos tours & cru ises, to just a bout a nythi ng that has to do with t ravel . TCI Travel Net ensures home del ivery of t ickets a nd a l l travel documents. I t a l so offers trave l lers the flex ib i l ity of pay ing by cheque, cred i t card, bank transfers or demand d rafts . (Trave l l ers can ca l l TCI 24x7 for ass istance, AA. D, 1 9 .05 .05 , C32)

E-P LACES BOO M I NG E-T ICKET I N G BUSI N ESS ( Industry estimates)

Yea r e·travel e -a i r t i ckets

2 004-05 976 800

200 5 ·06 1 ,600 1 ,400*

2 006-07 1 ,800 1 ,600*

;] 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I Accord i ng to sources, e-travel bus i ness , where i n consumers book hotel reservat ions on l i ne , i s expected to jump over 90% to Rs 1 ,800 crare by the next f i nanci a l yea r, from Rs 976 c rore i n 2004-05 . Book ing of a i r t ickets through the I nternet i s a lso est imated to double to R s 1 ,600 crore next yea r from R s 800 c ro re l ast yea r. Among the exist ing low-cost a i rl i nes, i ndustry est imates put A i r Deccan as the leader i n e-t icketi ng with over 60% market share fol l owed by Sp icejet ( 10%), Ki ngf isher (8%) and A i r Sahara (7%), i ndustry sources sa i d . (e-asy book i ngs l ead to net i ncrease in t rave l , Ash i sh S i n ha , FE .D, 07 .09.05 , C32)

The hotel i ndustry and tou r operators s igned an a greement to a b i de by the ru les of the game, honour commitments a n d not undercut each other. The a greement , s igned between the Federat ion of Hote l a nd Restaurant Associat ions of I nd ia a nd I nd i an Assoc iat ion of Tou r Operators ( lATa), ca l l s for written contracts between the two s ides on deta i l s of services to be p rovided to tou r ists, i nc l ud i ng food , rooms, t ra n sport , ta riffs, taxes, payment terms and commiss ions. I t a ims at resolv ing problems a nd na rrowing down a reas of confl i ct of i nterest between tour operators and hotel iers. ( Hotel iers , tour operators s ign pact, TS.D, 09. 10.05, C32/C30)

Lack of un i formity in the fa res charged by the Archaeologica l Department in terms of I nd i an currency and US do l l a rs , is tak i ng a f i nanc ia l tol l on the fore ign tourists vis it i ng the renowned Khaju ra ho temples. As fa r the c h a rges of Archaeology Depa rtment go, for a s i ngle temp le vi s i t , a fore igner has to she l l out $5 wh ich i s equ iva lent to Rs 250. The bone of content ion i s that the conversion rate of a dol l a r i s Rs . 2 1 5 to 220 . Most of the foreign touri sts a pproach the travel agents for v is i t ing the temples. The agents charge the tour ist i n I nd i an currency, that i s R s 250, a n d pay $ 5 for each t i cket at the A rchaeo logy coun ter a t the temple. Thi s way, the agents a re ab le t o save R s 3 0 each t icket. The age nts not sat i sfied with the i r earn i ngs have gone a step beyond . They a re c i rcu lat i ng fake dol la rs a n d thus baggi ng the whole convers ion rate. (Bhopa l t ravel agents dupe fore ign tour ists, T P. D, 1 2 . 1 0 .05, C32)

Swiss t ravel g iant Kuoni a ppears to be remapp ing its I nd i a reta i l strategy to better access the masses. I t i s i n troducing t h e Kuon i -badged products for t h e fi rst t ime i n t h e country s ince i t made a s plash i n t h e market i n 1996 by acqu ir ing SOTC Hol iday Tours . The Kuon i brand w i l l focus on the premi u m t raff ic i n group trave l , F IT (free i nd iv idua l trave l ler) and domest ic busi ness. The SOTC master brand (World Famous Tours, Hol idays of I nd ia , Do I t Yourself) wi l l cont inue to d rive the vol ume end of the travel business, i nc l ud ing the products for corporate t rave l lers. Another customised product for i ndiv idual fam i l ies , Chr istopher Colombus, was phased out some months back to pave way for these new umbrel l a b rands . Kuon i I nd ia has used both S ITA, which it a cq u i red i n 2000 and Tou r C l ub , bought i n 200 1 , a nd SOTC brand n ames i n the past s i n ce these bra n d s ca rried strang loca l a ppea l . However, i t h a s now decided to use t h e Kuon i badge t o c u t th rough the growing c lu tter a t the top where severa l operators a re vyi ng for a l a rger s l i ce of the HN I c rowd .

Accord i ng to travel trade a na lysts , the pocket s izes of I nd i ans i s only gett i ng b igger by the year, which offers an exc i t ing opportun i ty for t rave l compan ies to offer a d iversif ied basket of p roducts to meet every need. A Merri l l Lynch/Capgemin i World Wealth Report has, i n fact, put the country i n the fastest growing H N I category, with 70 ,000 m i l l iona i res i n 2004. A study by the Nat iona l Counc i l of Appl ied Economic Resea rch has sa id that the number of crorepati households had grown to a lmost 20,000 i n 2001 ·02 and w i l l i n crease to more than 50,000 by 2005·06. (Kuoni to tap r ich ie-r ich's ruse for ho l iday trave l , G i r i sh Rao, ETB, 24.01 .06, C32)

I nd i a wi l l see at least three more travel s i tes go onl i ne this yea r, tak ing the tota l n umber of transact ion-based e-trave l s ites to s ix . However, t he goi ng wou ld not be easy for some of these new entrants , M r Deep Ka l ra , Fou nder and C EO, M a ke MyTr ip.com, sa id . I nvestors, who have been i nterested i n the segment, were bound to get more wary of i nvest i ng in a market that was fast crowdi ng, he sa id .

M a keMyTrip, which was ta rgeted at the US-based NR I when i t l a unched i n 2000, entered the I nd i a n market l ast year, and has i n seven months of operat ion notched up a tu rnover of Rs 200 crore. Mr Kal ra has targeted a turnover of Rs 450·Rs 500 crore i n the yea r end ing March 2007. The new p l ayers a re l i ke ly to eat i nto the market share of the offl i ne p layers.

Ear l ier th is month, Rel i a nce Capita l , Norwest Venture Partners , a nd TV 18 i nvested in Yatraon l i ne, a venture i n it ia l ly promoted by M r Dhruv Shri ng i a nd M r Man i sh Amin . M r Shri ngi and M r Ami n were ear l ier managing Ebookers , a n on l i ne t ravel Webs i te , wh ich was bought out by Cendant for $41 0 m i l l ion in 2004.

1 Documenta tion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

About 20 % of the I nd i an travel market wou ld go on l i ne by 201 0 , a s aga inst 2 .5 %, va l ued a t Rs 2 ,500 c rore current ly. I n the US, over 50 % of t ickets are sold on l i ne.

The market's response to M a ke MyTr ip a n d its acceptance of the on l i ne mode have su rpri sed h im . Mr Ka l ra says h i s s i te sel l s between 500 a n d 600 domest ic a i r t ickets a n d a round 1 0 0 i nternat iona l t i ckets , a l l i nbound from the US.

I nteresti ngly, nearly 70 % of the transact ions on the s ite a re by male buyers, and 70-80 % of the buyers a re p rofess iona ls i n the 27 -42 year age g roup. Most of the transact ions a re conducted between 1 0 a m and 5 pm, suggest ing that travel reservat i ons a re fi n a l i sed dur i ng off i ce hours! Hotel bookings a re a n i mportant busi ness segment, with MakeMytri p booki ng a bout 50 room n ights each day. Currently, it has the i nventory of a round 400 hote ls on l ine and hopes to ra i se th is to 500·600 hotel s i n the coming year.

Going forward , the site would look at new strategies i nclud ing enab l i ng B2B2C busi ness i n the smal ler cit ies. The s ite was currently work ing with trave l agents to go on l i ne in ' B' and 'C' c i t ies such as Ludh iana , Amritsar, N a s h i k , a nd Kolhapure, he sa id . (e·travel sites to mu l t i p ly, but equ i ty f i nance may d ry up , Tun i a Cher i an George, BL .C , 28.01 .06 , C32)

The boom in the travel space conti n ues to attract i nvestors. Bennett, Coleman & Co (BCCL) has a cq u i red a 1 3% stake i n the Travel Ai r G roup, a lead ing south ·based trave l services company. Travel A i r Group, which rol led out its operations from Bangalore i n 1 977, has consistently remained Karnataka's l ead ing travel agent. The group has a turnover of over Rs 200 c rore a nd is growing at 20% a n n u a l ly. ( BCCL takes 1 3% stake i n Travel A i r, ET.B, 1 6 . 02 .06 , C32)

After havi ng quit the aviation busi ness, the Sahara I nd i a g roup has a nnounced the l aunch of I nd ia's " largest" travel a n d touri sm company - Sahara G loba l . The new U$1 0 b i l l i on conglomerate" w i l l have 665 off ices across 165 towns and cit ies both withi n the country and abroad . The company wi l l focus on i nbound tourism (trave l lers v is i t ing I nd ia) , trave l overseas, domest ic tour ism w ith i n the country, med ica l tour ism, trave l for conferences and exh ib i ti ons, N R I travel services and a travel porta l backed by a g iant sate l l i te network that w i l l fac i l i tate fl ight a n d hotel booki ngs a mong other th i ngs. The Sahara I nd i a group had been p lann i ng the l aunch of the company for a bout 1 5 months now and operat ions w i l l commence by the end of the month. (Sahara sta rts trave l f i rm, AA.D, 1 0 .03 .06 , C32)

C41 Labour Pol icy and Legis l at ion

After the b ruta l rape and murder of a ca l l centre employee by a tax i dr iver, t ravel agenc ies i n the c i ty h ave come under the pol i ce scanner. The ca l l centres, too, have i mposed certai n ru les and regu l at ions for these companies to follow.

A study taken u p by traff i c eng ineer ing expert M N . Sreehar i , cha i rman of Traff i c Eng i neers a n d Safety Tra iners (TEST) · has est imated that more than 20,000 vehi cles on contract with these compan ies make over 20 ,000 tr i ps each day ferryi ng employees from the i r homes to workpl a ce a nd v ice versa . The cab d rivers have been given strict i nstruct ions that the f i rst employee they pick for work a nd the l a st one to be d ropped at home shou ld be a male. If the route assigned to the cab does not have a ny male employee to p ick t ip, i t i s the duty of the driver to come back t o the company, pick u p a security guard , who w i l l accompany the female employee to the i r desti nat ions. Meanwhi le , the ident i ty cards provided by the travel agency should a lways be furn i shed by the cab driver when demanded by the employee or by the pol i ce.

S i m i l a rly, the travel a ge nc ies have a l so become very strict on whom they a ppoi nt . The cand idates have to produce a po l ice verification certificate a long with drivi ng l i cence.

The te lephone n um bers of a l l d rivers have been given to the emp loyees. I f a substi tute d river takes over, then the travel agent w i l l i nform the company. which wi l l i n tu rn i nform the employee. Safety measures l i ke sti ckers on veh ic les with n a me of the ca l l centre and phone n um bers to hel p the pub l i c report a ny d river f lout ing traff ic ru les, a re bei ng fol l owed . Travel agencies want the B PO compan ies to i n sta l l w i reless rad i os a n d G l oba l Pos i t ion i n g System (GSM) gadgets i n the veh i cles for he ightened safety of the i r emp loyees . (Travel agencies adopt safety norms for ca l l centres, I E. B, 1 7 . 0 1 .06, C4 1 )

2 a 0 5 - a 6 I Documentation Update I

• D - TOUR I SM PROMOT ION AN D TYPES OF TOURI SM .

000 Tourism Volumes and Patterns (Ind ia)

With more people breaking away from convent ional trave l l i ng, offbeat options a re here to stay. "The change i s due t o med i a coverage of unusua l p l aces, a n d adventure T V chan ne ls where people see rea l act ion . Treks, camping and raft i ng expedit ions a re getti ng bigger than ever before," says Vaibhav Ka l a , Fou nder·D i rector of Del h i ·based Aquaterra Adventures . If adventu re tour i sm exci tes the outdoor· bound , eco·tour i sm has i t s share of takers too. Eco·tou rism i s a l l about not l eav ing one's foot pri nts beh i nd , wh i le unrave l l i ng nature 's mystery. But eco·tour ism i s much more than just s ightseei ng. M i ngl i ng with the loca ls and creat ing a bond i s part of the experience. Travel lers lea rn about new cu l tures a nd l ifestyles, t hus break ing the myth ica l ru ra l · urban d ivi de.

Eco·retreats and camps range from cozy cottages i n the middle of p i ne forests to fu l ly equ ipped Swiss·style tents at d izzyi ng he ights . And those who run these propert ies want to offer much more than 'a hote l and room' . These community·based retreats have somethi ng for every k i nd of trave l ler - fami l ies, professiona ls , busi nesspersons, backpackers, students and corporates. Run ·of·the·m i l i locaies a re genera l l y avoided, and re lat ively less charted p laces a re explored . (The new·age Marco Polo, Swetha Kannan , BL.C, 06.05.05, 000)

I nd i an hol iday make rs stay longer and shop to thei r hearts content, and sp ice up the economy. I n fact, Ber l i n Tour ism Marketi ng which got less than 10 ,000 le isure v is itors from the country l ast year i s engagi ng the B i rd group to market the p lace. S im i l a rly, S i ngapore Tourism Board is not on ly l aunch ing I nd ia ·specific campaigns but has even designed school trave l programmes, which combines i nformation a nd enterta i n ment.

J ust a bout every tou r ism boa rd , be it Duba i , M a l ays i a , Switzerl a nd or Austra l ia has stradd led together to fasci nate the desi· pa l a te s i nce there is noth ing l i ke an Ind ian hol iday maker un leashed. The a rchetypa l le isure travel ler loves good food , comfortable accommodation (usua l ly three to five sta r) . i s not very excited about roughing it out and most importantly l i ke to shop, notwithstanding l i bera l i sation which has made al l internationa l products ava i l able i n the country. The l ast cha racterist ic i s common to j ust about a l l I nd i ans i r respective of whether he i s on a hol iday or trave l l i ng on work. (Global tourism lu res I nd i ans; S i ngapore, Duba i & Germany Design Packages for Des is , G i r ish Rao, ET.C, 1 6 .05.05, 000)

An i ncreasi ng number of I nd ians a re now search ing the globe for exot ic desti nat ions, for that rare experience and possi bly for the added snob va lue. Rush i ng off i n to the Amazon jungles or Africa 's hea rt of darkness i s st i l l not pa r t of t h e average exoti c hol idayer's t o u r i t i nerary b u t he i s a l ready knock i ng on t h e fri nges a n d surely gett i ng there .

" I n the last few years, the number of I nd i ans seeki ng exot ic hol idayi ng dest i nat ions has been stead i ly r is i ng. What were just a few thousands five years ago i s qu i te a substant ia l now' sa id Roh i t Hanga l , d i rector of I nd i a I nternat iona l Travel Mart . ' Ea rl ier, usua l ly i t was the th i rd ·t ime travel ler who chose exotic dest inat ions, s i nce it i nvolved more money a nd more of the u nknown; someone who has trave l led is comfortable with try ing out someth ing new. But that has changed now, " sa id G ir i ja Chandra n , a Bangalore·based travel operator.

I n addit ion, the young IT crOWd, with more d isposable i ncome and which travels frequently on job ass ignments, prefers such dest i nat ions . There a re a lso the caut ious , "though the n umber of those choosi ng only exotic desti nations itself has gone u p, there a re p lenty of other tourists who i nclude one dest ination to the i r i t inera ry, l i ke a d d i ng G reece to a n I ta l ia n t r i p or hopping a cross to New Zea l a nd on a t r i p to Aust ra l i a . ' sa id Pratap Das, a travel consu ltant . And then there i s the mi nuscule segment wh ich wants to do just one exot ic a ct iv ity preferably i n a n exot ic locat ion . "River cru ises on Russ i an rivers, d ivi ng and zorbi ng i n New Zea l and , scuba d ivi ng in the Pacif i c · these a re some of the activit ies being chosen . ' (Normal i s bori ng: more takers for exotic tou r ism, Anita Rao Kashi , TOI . B, 0 1 .08.05, 000)

I DOCllmentul ioll Update 1 2 0 05 0 6 - - - - - - --"-- - 1

Foreign Tourist Arrive's, 1 995-2006 I

i I

foreign tourist arrivals during the calendar year 2005 numbered 39, 1 5, 324, a 1 3.2% lnetease over the 2004 arrivals that numbered 54,57.477. Foreign exchange earnings dul1ng fhe year amoul'\te<:i to US$ 5,730.86 million. up 20.2% over the 2004 earnings of US$ 4. 769.00 million. In rupee terms the earnings during 2005.amount RS.25, 1 72.28 crore. Q 1 6.5% il'tcrease over the 2004 earnings ot Rs2l ,603.00 erore.

2 .12

I 2.29 2.37

I i 2.65 2 54 2.73

. . 2.38

I _ . �. Arrivals In Million Nos.

I - - - - . _ . - -I 1 995 1 99 6 1 997 1 998 ' 999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

r Source; Ministry of Tourism PTI Grophlcs L

_-'-- TForeignlo-ur ist a rr iva ls , l 995·2'0()6,\llB, 1 r.01 .1)6-;-01)0; -

! I I I I I I I , I

Foreign tour ist inf low i nto I nd i a registered a growth of 1 3 .2% i n 2005 , from 34, 57 ,477 i n 2004 to 39, 1 5 ,324 i n 2005. Accord i ng to i ndustry sources, the growth and deve lopment of I nd i an economy have contri buted substanti a l ly to the growth of tourism in the country. The growth of tour ism a l so had favoura bl e i m pact on the country's foreign exchange earnings which registered a growth of 16 .5% in 2005. Earn ings from forex amounted to Rs 25 , 1 72.28 crore i n 2005 compa red to Rs 2 1 ,603 crore i n 2004 is currently a mong the fastest growing tour ist dest i nat ions i n the world . The annua l rate of growth of tour ism in I nd ia i s pegged at 1 3.2% compa red to 5% growth i n globa l tou r ism. With tou rism touch i ng new heights, I nd ian hote ls a re geari ng u p to enchash the opportun ity. Despite the average room rate (ARR) goi ng u p, the overa l l occupancy rate (OR) was sign ificantly h igher at 80· 85% in 2005 in l uxury hotels across the country. (Foreign tourist i nflow u p, Somasroy Chakraborty, FE .C , 26 .0l .06, 000)

The high-payi ng American touri st has toppled the charter·flying tour ists from UK over the l ast one yea r. Th i s t rend i s expected to gather steam ove r the next one yea r, t hanks to the l aunch o f d i rect non ·stop f l i ghts between the two countries fol low ing the open s ky pol icy s igned last year. With nat ional carriers I nd i an A irl i nes a n d A i r I nd i a s lated to fly d i rectly to US dest i nat ions over the next 1 2 to 1 5 months, the to·a n d·fro t raff ic between the countries i s expected to grow by a round 20% over the next one yea r, cu rrently va lued at around $1 b i l l ion in revenues.

Of the 3 .9 m i l l ion foreign tour ists who a rrived on I nd ian shores in 2005, the Un i ted States not only offered the biggest numbers -around 5 1akh but more i m portant ly th is l ot were the h ighest spend i ng ones.

"One h igh ·end Ameri can tour ist is equa l to th ree Br i t i sh tou r ist i n terms of tota l spend in I n d i a , " noted off ic ia ls in M i nistry of Tou rism. One of the pr imary reasons for this is that an Ameri ca n tourist on an average stays a nywhere between 1 5 and 1 8 days i n the country. I n compar ison, the popu l a r U K tour i st i s genera l ly here for seven to e ight n ights. To attract greater n umbers, accord i ngly, the I nc red ib le I n d i a cam pa ign to market B rand I n d i a as a tour ism dest i nat ion is bei ng re·worked with more focus on the A mer ican market . Severa l campa igns on pr int , te l ev is ion and I nternet med ia a re l i ned up for 2006 in the US market. ( U S tour ists head t o I nd i a , Sud ipto Dey, ET. B, 03 .02.06, 000)

The tour i sm i ndustry is expected to grow by 1 5 % th is yea r tha n ks to the fr i nge benefit tax cut . A l so, the i ncrease i n a l location for tou rism from Rs. 786 crore to Rs 830 crore i s expected to enable Ind ian dest i nations to be marketed better. However, the tour ism i ndustry wou ld have been happier i f i t received sops in the form

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I of u n iform tax structure on hotel rooms as wel l a s a better taxation on aviat ion turbine fue l . The i ndustry i s part icular ly p leased with the decis ion to i ncrease FOl l imit i n aviat ion from 40 to 49 %. (Tourism sector seen witnessing 1 5% growth post-FBT cut, HT.O, 02.03.06, 000)

001 Domesti c Tour ism

The government has decided to pay more attention on promoting do:nestic tourism rather than focus ing only on i nternat iona l touri sts. Speak ing at a n i nteractive meet o rgan ised by P H D Chamber of Commerce and I ndustry (PHDCCI) , Tour ism Secretary A K Mishra sa id that the focus of the country's tour ism pol i cies had a lways been on attract ing el i te tourists from abroad . This was reflected i n a poor ratio o f domestic tourists to foreign touri sts. The rate needs to be changed i n favour of domestic tou ri sts to meet tou r ism ta rgets, the secreta ry sa id . P i lgr image tour ism is one a rea which Tourism M in i ster Ren u ka Choudhary is attempting to promote to boost tou r ism. (Domesti c tou r ism to be promoted , FE .B, 07 .04.05, 001 )

I nd i a n trave l lers a re w i l l i ng to explore dest i nat ions w i th in the country a n d a re p repared to f ly domestic carr iers on i nternat ional routes if given a good deal than the foreign counterparts, says JouneyMart.com . In a survey conducted a mong 1 , 1 50 people , compris ing both males and females i n the age groups between 1 8-24, 25-55 a n d 56 a n d a bove, it was found that I n d i a i s the hottest a n d preferred desti nat ion for trave l le rs thi s summer. As many as 83% p l a n vacation i n I nd i a than a broad , the survey h igh l ighted .

Accord i ng to the survey, attractive a i rfa re, packages a n d dea l s conti nue to be the pr ime i nf l uencers wh i le dec id ing a hol iday desti nat ion . 43 % of the respondents were i nf l uenced by a ttract ive dea l s , wh i l e 30% through word of mouth . Travel expense/budget i nf luenced 1 6% of the respondents whi le promotions by tou r ism boards have a l so made a n i mpact on the overa l l choice of the desti nat ion . I t is i n teresti ng to n ote that I nd ian travel lers are w i l l i ng to experiment with flying on popular domestic a i rl ines for overseas destinations. Majority of the respondents were aware of the open sky pol icy. In fact, the tsunami d isaster has not deterred people from going to the beaches, with 61 % of the respondents sayi ng tsunami has had no impact on travel to beaches, though 32% have agreed that tsunami has made them reconsider travel to beaches this summer.

The travel po l l a l so revea led that 37% of the respondents a re look i ng for a n a dventurous getaways, wh i l e 23% a re i nterested i n w i l d l ife safar i . The concept of cru i se vacation seems to be growing i n popu l a ri ty with 6% of the respondents going on a cru ise th i s summer. Goi ng by the i ncreas i ng electron ic payment system , most o f the trave l lers a re w i l l i ng to pay by cards . The su rvey shows tha t c red it/debit cards h ave rep l aced cash as a more favourable mode for f inancia l tra nsactions .

Among the trave l lers, travel agents rema in to be the most popular choice for mak ing travel reservations, with 65% res pondents booki ng the i r t ickets through a t rave l agent. ( I nd i a n ready to explore l oc a l tour i st desti nat ions, R Ravichandra n , FE .O, 14.05.05, 00 1 )

The b ig myth a bout Benga l i s and G ujarat is bei ng the top trave l l ers i n the country i s b lown . The i r n umbers a ren ' t i n signif icant, but Benga l i s and Gujaratis together accounted for just a bout 5.4 m i l l i on of a tota l of 33 m i l l ion domestic tour ists in 2002. That m ight seem l i ke a lot , but Karnataka a l one had 6. 1 m i l l ion tourists, mak ing Kannad igas , by fa r, the most trave l led people in the country. Tou ri sts from Tami l Nadu made up the next b iggest group with 3.7 m i l l ion . M a ha rashtrians and Benga l i s were next in l i ne with 2 .9 m i l l ion tour ists a pi ece whi l e the G ujarat is were just beh i nd them at 2 .8 m i l l ion .

That's the sna pshot of domestic tour ism in Ind ia from a fi rst of i ts k ind survey condu cted by the Nat iona l Counc i l of Appl ied Economic Research (NCAER) for the tour ism min istry.

With over 800,000 respondents , i t i s amongst the b iggest su rveys i n tou r i sm a n d i s i ntended to give the m i n i stry i ns ights that cou ld be usefu l in formu lati ng po l icy. (Surprise! Kannad igas travel most, Banga l ore, Mysore in Top 1 0 non ·re l igious spots, Sam i ra n Cha krawertt i , TOI . B, 06. 1 2.05 , 001 )

010 Tou rism Promotion

See ing Ch ina fast emergi ng as a relatively open society and a major p layer i n the globa l economy with their citizens enjoying a measure of freedom to move and the moola h to spend as never before, I nd ia i s exp lori ng

I Docllmentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

poss ib i l i t ies of woo i ng tour ists from its g iant neighbour with the wor ld 's l a rgest pop u lat ion . The n u mber of tour ists from Ch ina to I nd i a i n 2003 was 34,907. There a re c lear s igns of Ch i nese tourists' i nterest in I nd ia and the tour ism m i n istry has i n it i ated a process to reopen a representative offi ce i n Ch ina to further i ncrease the tour ist a rr iva l s to I nd i a . (Wooi ng the b rave, new Ch i nese tour ists , TS. D, 29.05 . 05 , 0 1 0)

To p romote the tour ism sector beyond the t ra d it iona l tour ist seasons, the Confederat ion of I nd i an I ndustry (C I I) has 'mooted the idea of promot ing 'monsoon tour ism".

The monsoon season for a l most states, barr ing a few exceptions , has t rad it iona l ly been the off·season for i nbound and domest i c tour ism. Monsoon, though vita l for the economy, has so far been a wet blanket for the tourism industry, dropp ing hotel / resort occupancies by nearly 50% and sharply reduc ing revenues for travel and tou r operators servic i ng the domest ic segment. Therefore, there is a need to promote monsoon tour ism. Suggesti ng strategies for promot ing monsoon tour ism, the C I I paper has recommended that i t wou l d be i mperat ive to i dent i fy states t hat wou l d be so ld as monsoon tou r i sm dest i nat ions . It cou l d be based on tou rist attractions , beauty of the l andscapes, equab i l ity of the c l imate , ab i l ity of the i nfrastructure to hand le monsoon and the hospitab i l ity of the loca l populace. (C I I f loats 'monsoon tour ism' to beat off season b lues, FE .B , 04.07 .05 , 0 1 0)

Many tourism boards are try ing to l u re tour ists from smal ler and t ier " cit ies. I n fact , these boards a re doi ng roadshows and educat ing the pub l ic a long with the travel and tour i ndustry in these cit ies. On the i r radar a re p laces l i ke Lucknow, Bhopa l , Hyderabad, P une, Ahmedabad , Chandiga rh, Ludh iana , Amritsar, Koch i , Pune, Nas ik, Ja ipur, Coimbatore, Guwahat i , I ndore and Jammu. There has been a great demand from these p l aces to v i s i t South East As ia .The yea r 2004 c losed w i th a f igure of 5 .8 m i l l io n out ·bound t rave l l ers with the deve lop ing c it ies (B·c it ies) contri but ing near ly 38%. Th is yea r the f igu res a re expected to touch 7 . 5 m i l l ion and i ndustry sources expect the contr i but ion of B·c i t ies to su rge by at l east 1 5 to 20% with the growth in these cit ies from anywhere between 25 to 30% per annum. (Tour ism boards eye t ier I I c it ies for growth , Raja Awasth i , ET. B, 1 7 .07 .05 , 0 1 0)

I nformation on tour ism options i n the Capita l wi l l now be ava i lable at Delh i Tour ism's mult i l i ngua l , interactive website. To attract touri sts from Japan, Europe as wel l as parts of Africa and Lat i n America , the Delh i Tou rism website w i l l go multi l i ngua l from 15 November. The new i nteractive website w i l l have tourist related i nformation i n fou r l anguages , French , Japa nese , German and Span i s h , i n add it ion to Engl i sh . (Tour ism web s i te to go mult i l i ngua l , Abh ijeet Anand , TS.D, 20. 1 0.05, 0 10)

Targeting secondary c i t ies i n I nd ia and encourag ing lead ing fi l mmakers to shoot in S inga pore i s the twi n a i m of the S ingapore Tour ism Board i n i ts effort t o i ncrease traff ic from I nd ia t o S ingapore. Among the i ncentives they offer i s u pto 50 % of the cost of f i l m i ng. They have a fund of $ 1 0 mi l l ion to be spent over th ree yea rs . (Co imbatore, Surat h igh on S i ngapore tour ism l i st , AA. D, 26. 10 .05, 0 10)

An unprecedented surge in travel sector notwithstan d i ng , a l l service p roviders to th i s booming sector, be they a i rl ines, hotel s or travel agents, however, w i l l need to put much more effort in d ifferentiat ing thei r bra nds. The word of caution for the sector comes from t he TNS I nd ian Travel Dossier 2005 released. Accord ing to the study that t racks the i m pa ct of the u n p recedented s urge i n t ravel demands i n recent years, North I n d i a leads the way, with a significantly h igher travel i ncidence. Whi le domest ic business and le isure travel accounted for 1 1 % each of the travel i ncidence. overseas travel was 3% each for business and domest i c trave l . (Travel sector u rged to 'focus on d i fferent ia t i ng brands, FE .C , 1 5 . 1 2 .05 , 0 10)

The world 's l a rgest travel and tour ism fa i r · ITB Berl i n · gets underway with over 1 0, 000 companies from 1 83 countries pa rtic ipat ing i n the event. I n its 40th ed ition th is year, the ITB organ i sers say the fa i r w i l l be b igger than before , hav i ng evo lved from a s imp le exh i b i t ion to a modern competence centre for the trave l a nd tourism i ndustry.

Those putting up sta l ls at the four·day event i nclude Kingfisher A i rl i nes, Jet Airways and the tourism departments of Kera l a , Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan ,' Utta ranchal and Goa , Taj Hotel s, the Oberoi G roup, Leela Pa l aces and Resorts a nd The Grand Group woul d be part ic ipat ing i n the fa i r with the hope of garnering i nternat iona l t i e· u ps. (Wor ld tour ism fa i r opens today, T H . B, 08.03.06 , 0 1 0)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documcntation Update I 011 Festiva l s · I nd ia (Tour ism Promot ion)

He ld i n Janua ry every yea r, the J a i p u r Her i tage I n ternat iona l Fest iva l i s not just a bout the a rts , c u l tu re, her itage and conservat ion , but a l so a bout development.

Al l a ct iv i t ies of the foundat ion a re , in fact, dr iven by the convict ion that Rajasthan's heri tage is the State's greatest economic asset a n d must be leveraged even a s i t i s preserved , he says. So, even a s i t seeks to increase i nterest in Rajasthan 's cu l ture , c raft a n d heritage , the festival must a l so have a d i rect and posit ive i m pact on the State's economy.

I ni t iative gets street-sma rt: The Ja ipur Vi rasat Foundat ion has star ted a series of ongo i ng i n i t iatives to craft a heritage·based model of soc ia l a n d economic development. One such progra mme is an ' i ntegrated street revita l i sat ion project' . A pi lot project of th i s venture is to be l aunched i n a few days a nd i nvolves renovat ing an ent i re street w i th in the 'o ld c i ty' of J a i pu r.

The project inc ludes restor ing fa<;:ades of key bu i ld i ngs on the street and i mprov ing phys ica l i nfrastructu re i n t h e street. T h e project , wh ich h a s t h e a ct ive parti c i pat ion o f t h e street's resi dents, a lso seeks t o i ncrease pride in ownershi p of properties and br ing in tangible economic benefits to people l iv ing there. The foundation hopes the p i lot venture , when completed , wi l l encoura ge other commun it ies to l aunch s i mi l a r i n it i at ives. ( Heritage festi va l a i ms to dr ive development, Sankar Radhakr ishn a n , BL .C , 05 .09.05, 0 1 1 )

020 Package Tours

I nd i a i s not just about the Taj . Stung by the myst ique of I nd i an weavers, foreigners a re a l l out to explore the country's text i l e trad i tions i n remote a reas of Bhuj (Guja rat), Sanganer (Rajasthan), N u a patna (Ori ssa) and Pochampa i l i (Andhra P radesh).

'Texti l e c i rcu its ' have become one of the un ique sel l i ng proposit ions for those tour operators who offer thei r customers someth i ng beyond t h e famous Golden Tri angle of Del h i -Agra -Ja ipur. A N ew Zea l and-based tour operator sel l i ng South I nd i a n text i l e tour package for a pp roximately $4,600, has na med i t "S i l k and Sp ice . Domest ic operators a re a lso offering choices. One of the famous circu its i n the east is Bhubaneshwar·Nuapatna­Barpa l i ·Sonepu r· Bo lang i r. The package p romises to make you fam i l i a r with I kat (t ie and dye) and tasa r s i l k weavi ng. Another popul a r sector offered by domestic tour operators is Mumba i ·Bhuj·Jamnagar·Ahmedabad­Udaipur·Jai pu r·Agra -De lh i ·Mumba i . The rates a re around $2,000 for 16 days a nd 15 n ights. (Tourists snoop at our warp & weft, Rajeev Jayaswa l , ET.C , 1 5 .08.05 , 020)

I magine a group of Americans on horsebacks r id ing through remote vi l lages in Rajasthan , braving the scorch i ng desert hea t . N ow i magine them stopp ing at vi l l a ges, d i str ibut ing l i vestock , educat i ng the v i l l a gers about A I D S a nd par t i c ipat i ng in med i ca l c a m ps . Th i s motley g roup , m a i n ly from N ew York is , by the way, on a hol iday. Except that it combines exotic travel with a l ibera l dose of ph i l a nthropy. Welcome to a new concept of t rave l that 's f i ri ng the i magi nat ion of Ameri cans who a re now comi ng to I n d i a to get the exper ience of a l ifeti me. And the man beh ind th is concept is a 35-year-old New Yoker, ha lf- I nd ian , half ·French, Alexander Souri and it is his organ isat ion , Re l ief R iders I nternat ional (RR I ) , that's maki ng th is possib le. The nearly two·week l ong ri de, cost i ng $5 ,400 each , i s organ i sed a l ong w i th the I nd i a n Red Cross a n d has been co-created by Mahesh Anora , d i rector, Nationa l Disaster Management, I nd ian Red Cross. (Happy hol iday: Giving a id a s they travel , Meenaksh i Ku mar, TOL D, 1 1 .09.05, 020)

The next t ime you decide to go on a hol iday beware of the 'two n ights/three days package' offered by travel agents. There is every possi bi l i ty that you w i l l get cheated by a day. The catch i nva r iably l ies i n the fi ne pr int : the embarkation and d isembarkation t imings. This means the schedu le is fixed i n such a way that one minute of service costs you a day.

.

One such case came up before the Nat iona l Consumer D isputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) a bout a couple taken on a tr ip from Banga lore to S ingapore and then on a cru ise to Ma laysia and back. They had been promised a 2 n i ghts 3 days S i nga pore · M a l ays ia cru ise by the t rave l a gency. On the i r retu r n , they f i led a pet it ion i n the d istr ict consumer forum sayi ng the cru i se tr i p was of two n ights and only 1 % days. They sa id they had been misled by the sched u le. The consumer forum upheld th is v iew and ordered the tou r operator to pay Rs 50,000 compensat ion . (Beware the 2 n ights/3 days trap, Kumkum Chadha , HT.D, 23.02.06, 020)

I [)o(,ll711cntul ion Update I _'? 0 0 5 - 0 6

020a Adventure Tou rism

One day after NASA brought the shutt l e D i scovery back from low Earth orbit , a pr ivate company p l ans to a nnounce a more audacious venture , a tourist tr i p a round the Moon. Space Adventures, a company based i n V i rg i n i a h a s a l ready sent two tou ri sts i nto orb i t , o n 1 0th Aug 0 5 , i t was set t o u nvei l a n agreement w i th Russi a n space off i c i a l s to send two passengers o n a voyage l ast i ng 1 0 to 21 d ays, depend i ng part ly o n i ts it i nerary and whether i t i ncl udes the I nternationa l Space Station . A roundtrip t icket wi l l cost $ 1 00 m i l l ion . The space·fa r ing tourists w i l l trave l with a Russi a n p i l ot . ( Now, a $ 1 00m Tour a round the Moon , John Schwartz, TOI . M , 1 1 .08.05, D20a)

Adventure tour ism i n I nd i a could emerge a s one of the b iggest foreign exchange earner for the country i n the next 10 yea rs th rough effective management a n d pol i cy i n it i a t ives by d i fferent state governments. Revenue genera ted by the sector is expected to reach $20 b i l l i on by 20 1 0 . I n d i a reg i stered a growth of over 20% l a st yea r and is cu rre nt ly va l ued at over Rs. 400 c rore. The growth f igu re is expected to double th i s yea r a s tour ism i n the country grew at 1 5 . 3% with addit iona l foreign exchange earn ings u p b y 22% to $5.03 b i l l ion in 2004·05 from $4. 1 2 b i l l ion i n 2003-04. These a re the f ind ings of a recent ana lysi s to a ssess the potenti a l of the country t o become a pr ime dest inat ion i n attract i ng foreign tourists with a n adventurous bent of m i n d .

D ifferen t locations i n t h e country wh ich provide such avenues for adventure tour ism recorded close t o 1 .25 l akh of domestic hol idayers with H imachal Pradesh be ing t he preferred dest inat ion, who enjoyed the thri l l s of raft ing, trekking, para -gl i d i ng etc .

There i s a n est imated 1 0 ,000 a dventure tour operators i n I nd ia who have spec i a l ized i n provid i ng adventure tour packages to the domestic and the foreign tou rists . And adventu re tour operators a re n ow ma rketi ng Moun t Ka i la s h , a p i lgr image dest i nat ion i n a b ig way. The a na lys is has u nder l i ned the i m portance of the sector, a s adventure tourism is a major d raw for i nternational tourist as nearly 40% of them come to I nd ia for a dventure a n d soft a dventure ho l idays. (Adventure tou ri s m w i l l be b iggest forex earner, FE .C, 29.08. 0 5 , D20a)

020b Recreation and Theme Parks

More hotel s across the U n i ted States a re s pend i ng up to $75 m i l l i on each to bu i l d huge enc losed water parks, hopi ng to l u re fam i l ies sometimes from just a few k i lometers away. More fam i l i es a re checking i n , despite paying somet imes double o r even tr ip le t h e cost o f other hotel s . A decade ago, there were on ly s ix such i ndoor hotel parks - primari ly in the Wiscons in Del l s, a resort community outside Madison, Wiscons in . Today, some 60 hote l s offer i ndoor water pa rks a n d 98 more a re e ither p l a nned or under construct ion i n var ious states, a ccord i ng t o US Rea l ty Consultants, a hospital ity i ndustry resea rch f i rm based i n Col umbus, Ohio.

V is i tors to most hotel s with water parks w i l l pay $80 to $400 per n ight per room, depend ing on the s ize of the park and the hote l 's locat ion . Yet many fam i l ies a re w i l l i ng to pay extra , because most room rates i nc lude water park admiss ion for four to s ix guests tor the f irst and l a st days ot the i r stay. (The Latest I n Hotel Pools : Water Pa rks, Jenn i fer A I sever, AA. D, 1 4.05 .05 , D20b)

The Borivl i pol ice have registered a case of negl igence aga i n st Vi nayak Kash id , an offici a l of Water Kingdom, after an e ight yea r-o ld boy d rowned in a wave pool in the a musement park . Sen ior po l ice i nspector Suresh Martathe said, "We conducted an i nspection of the premises fol l ow ing the i nc ident . I t is the management's respons ib i l i ty to ensure that you ngsters do not venture i nto the pool on thei r own. Water Ki ngdom off ic i a l s fa i led t o d o this . They d o not have suff ic ient number o f l i fe guards. (Amusement park offic ia l booked for boy's death , TOI . M , 08.06 .05 , D20b)

:; 0 0 5 - 0 6 I DOCWl1Cll iuti011 Upc/ate I D20c Convention Tou rism

Interview with Barbara Hanlon, Managing director, India International Expo XXI (P) L td, (a subsidiary of Expomedia Group PIc, London).

Q. What i s the exh ibi t ion market l i ke i n I nd ia? Where does I nd i a stan d v is-a·v is the wor ld?

A . I nd i a n exh ib i t ion i ndustry i s h igh ly u norgan i sed and i s cur rent ly a t a nascent stage. I t resembles what C h i n a or Russ ia were over 12 yea rs ago. At present I nd i a has exh i bi t ion centres in on ly five c i ties, w ith a tota l i ndoor space of about 200. 000 sq m . I ron ica l ly, most of the ven ues a re outdated and not u p to global standards . Moreover, every yea r there a re only about 200 exh ibit ions organ ised a l l over I nd i a . Ch ina , with a l most the same population as I n d i a , holds more tha n 2 , 500 exh ib i t ions with the tota l exh ibi t ion space reach ing more than 2.5 m i l l ion sq m . Germany, has 2.7 m i l l ion sq exh ib it ion space and organ ises 300 fai rs; a lmost two·th i rd of them a re renowned i nternationa l exh i bit ions.

Q. What a re the cha l lenges and opportun i ties in th is segment for I nd ia?

A . Most of the exhi bit ions he ld i n I nd ia a re organ ised by various governmental bodies, ITPO, i ndustry associations or trade· specific bodies. There a re only a handful of private organ isers. I n the a bsence of a ny lead i ng i n ternat iona l organ i sers , t he I nd i a n market is depr ived of i nternationa l shows and exhibit ions.

Q. How does I nd ia ga i n from exhibit ions? Wi l l it ma ke a signif icant d ifference for I nd ia?

A . The exh ibit ion industry i s very important for a ny country as successfu l exh ibit ions d i rectly or i nd i rectly benefit the country's economy and boost its global i mage. It w i l l d i rectly boost I nd i a 's tourism and hospital ity sector. Foreign and l oca l exh ibi tors and v isitors spend money for boardi ng , lodgi ng, tra nsport, and entertai nment which d i rectly benefits the c ity where the event is being held . Al l these commercia l activities have a d i rect i mpact on country's economy. Further more, exh ibit ions a lso generate employment.

( ' Exh ibit ion i ndustry w i l l boost tour ism ' , A mrita Chauhan Sanya l , ET.B, 1 6.07 .05 , D20c)

Security l i nes and fl ight delays top the l i st as the events that most negat ively affect t rave l . And the majority of business travel lers do not want cel l phone use a l lowed i n-fl ight. As for travel managers, they say expectations from top management a re cost savings and global isation of the travel program me.

These a re a mong the f ind ings of the Car Wagon l i t Travel (CWT) global busi ness trave l survey commissioned to gauge attitudes a n d percept ions of bus i ness travel lers and corporate trawl managers about the current and futu re state of busi ness trave l .

I t randomly sampled opin ions of 2 , 1 00 bus iness travel lers a n d 650 t ravel managers i n 1 2 countries. Results from the Asia Pacific point toward a general ly positive out look for the travel sector in this region in 2006, with I nd ian trave l lers bei ng the most optim ist ic .

In I nd i a , Austra l ia and Japan , f l ight de lays affect 6 1 % of bus i ness trave l lers frequent ly or occas iona l ly. Ch inese bus iness trave l l ers, however, are the most l i ke ly to be frequently or occasiona l ly affected by a i rport security l i nes as compared to other trave l lers in th i s region . In As ia Pacif i c , Japanese t ravel lers a re most comfortable with mak ing t he i r t ravel booki ngs on l i ne w i th 7 5% of t hem booki ng more than 40% of the i r business travel on l i ne. A majority of Austra l i a n t ravel lers ( 55%) a l so book the i r busi ness t rave l on l i ne wh i le the i r counterparts in Ch ina and I nd i a does so less often (23% and 1 7% respective ly)

When trave l l i ng, As ia Pacif ic bus i ness trave l lers a re most l i ke ly to be i r r i tated by other passengers . Wh i le both the Austra l i a ns and Ja panese a re most annoyed by c ry ing babies, the Ch i nese d i sl i ke other trave l lers not checking· i n over·s ized l uggage, and I nd i an trave l lers do not appreciate bei ng d i stu rbed by neighbouring

I Docllmental i011 Update I 2 0 0 S - 0 6

passengers. I nd ian travel lers i ndicated that they a re least i nc l i ned to travel to Afr ica. (Businessmen opt imist ic on t ra ve l growth in 2006 , I E. C , 26 .01 .06, D20c)

For most I nd i a n bus i ness t rave l l ers , it means high stress leve ls , than ks to the poor t rave l i nfrastructure i n t h e country. A recent su rvey puts I nd i a n s on top o f t h e wor l d , l itera l ly for be ing t h e most stressed out business trave l lers. A survey carried out by Gra nt Thornton a mong more than 7 ,000 owners of med ium·sized bus i nesses from 30 countr ies dur ing fou rth quarter of l a st year, states bus iness travel i s most stressful for I nd i an execut ives. A round 41 % of the respondents c l a i med it to be very or extremely stressfu l . But t hese bus i ness owners suggest that bus i ness t ravel i s v i ta l for the success of the i r e nterpr ise. P h i l i pp i nes had 22% respondents fee l i ng stress due to business trave l . Botswana and Ch i na fol lowed I nd ia and the Ph i l i pi nes with 21 % and 20% respondents c la im ing stress respect ive ly. ( I nd ian b iz trave l l e rs most stressed : Survey, Ba i ju Ka lesh & T inesh Bhas in , TOI . D, 2 1 .02.06, D20c)

With corporate cu lture attract i ng more and more peop le. it is i tself u ndergoi ng some changes. One evident change is the boardroom shifti ng from the metropol i s to "greener pastures". An i ncreas ing number of I nd ian business houses a nd mult inat ional corporations are conducting the i r conferences, meetings and team bui ld ing exercises far from the madding crowd of the metropol is i n a qu iet and serene ambience. (The green boardroom, Yudhaj i t Shankar Das , TS.D, 23 .02.06, D20c)

D20d Heritage Tour ism

The Supreme Court i ssued a notice to the Archaeolog ica l Survey of I nd i a on a pet i t ion seeki ng protection of wor ld her itage s i tes a nd monuments i nc l ud i ng the Tomb of G ha l i b, the renowned poet of medi eval per iod s ituated with in the N i za muddin 's com plex i n the capita l .

The app l icat ion fi l ed by noted envi ronmental ist lawyer N .C.Mehta came for hear ing before a be-compr is ing Just ice S . N .Va ri ava , J ust ice A . R . Lakshm a n a n a nd Just i ce H .S. Kapad i a seek i ng d i rect ion for remov ing encroachment from the monument situated at the Hazrat N izamuddin complex .

I n the a pp l i cat ion , the pet i t ioner has a lso sought repa i r and restorat ion of the cu rved ·marb le screen that was surround ing Ami r Khusro's shri ne. The pet i tioner has a l so sought constitut ion of a n expert committee commission compr is ing i ndependent expert in the field of a rt and culture to v is it the world heritage s i te and protected monuments i n Del h i and submit an i ndepe ndent report with measures to be u ndertaken for the i r safety, preservat ion and protect ion . ( Her itage s i tes: N ot ice t o AS I , I E . B, 06.04.05, D20d)

With a i r pol l ut ion a round the Taj s lowly com i ng down to acceptab le l imits , the Agra admin i strat ion is tak ing steps to restore the seren i ty of the atmosphere a round th is monument by control l i ng no ise po l lut ion . Th i s wou l d a l so b e app l i ca ble to rel igious p l aces i nc lud ing mosques a n d temples.

Cont i nu i ng its effort to check pol l ut ion control a round the Taj, the UP Pol l ut ion Contro l Board ( U P PCB) has ta rgeted the l oud-spea kers i n sta l l ed at the var ious temples a n d mosques of Taj Gan j as major sou rces of noise pol lut ion in the v ic in ity of the Taj Maha l .

I n a l etter i ssued t o the Agra d i str ict magist rate a n d correspond ing pol i ce stat ions of the town , the U PPCB has demanded the loudha i lers functi on i ng a round the Taj Maha l to be i m med iate ly scra pped dow n , not d i scri minat ing between commerci a l i nsta l lat ions a nd the loudspeake rs i nsta l led on rel ig ious bu i l d i ngs l i ke temples, mosques etc.

I nc idental ly, be i ng a World Heritage monu ment, the Taj Maha l enjoys the specia l status of being protected from noise pol l ut ion with the maximum no ise a l lowed at the mai n dome of the monument restricted at j ust 45dB (deci bel s). The monument has a l ready been cr ipp led by a number of cu l tura l programmes organ i sed beh i nd the Taj Maha l i nc lud i ng the "Ya n n i S how" i n 1 997 a n d Zee Anta kshar i i n the yea r 2000. The a rea a round the Taj i s deemed to be a 's i l e nce zone ' w i th the no ise l im its a t 50dB in the day and 40dB duri ng n ights but i n rea l i ty the noise levels i n and a round the monument far exceed the norms specified i n the Noise Pol lut ion ( Regu lat ion and Control) (Amendment) Ru les, 2002 by more than 20·30d B. (After a i r check, ' clean' Taj project to muff le noi se, Vijay Upadhyay, TP.D, 27.04.05, D20d)

::; 0 0 5 - 0 6 I DO(,U111Clll(l t ion Update I The r ich cul tura l heritage of Gurgaon w i l l soon be l a id ba re for v isitors, than ks to a n a mbit ious p lan to boost tourism in th is NCR city. The Gurgaon chapter of I nd ian National Trust for Art and Cultura l Heritage ( I NTACH), which has l i sted 50 such h i storical monuments, has p lans to promote two of these as tourist dest inations. I n its draft p l a n 202 1 , t h e N C R P l ann i ng Board (NCRPB) h a s a l so emphasi sed on t h e conservation of t h e N C R heritage. The monuments exist as ind ividual structures. (Save heritage, woo tourists, P l a n t o save 5 0 Gurgaon s i tes, S K Ahuj a , HT. D, 0 1 . 05 .05 , D20d)

The ASI has come in for severe cr it ici sm from the Pa r l iamentary Stand ing Committee for i ts lethargy in not writ ing reports of the excavat ions i t has undertaken and thereby wast i ng pub l i c funds.

"The l a bour a n d money gone i nto the excavat ions u nder t a ken by ASI for the k nowledge to c rysta l l i ze for generations and the efforts to make excavat ions more understandable , becomes more fruitful on ly when the f ind i ngs a re documented, " the report of the committee on Transport, Tou rism and Culture sa id .

The previous panel , too, had poi nted out th is l apse and insp ite of i t , the M in i st ry of Culture has done noth ing to document the excavat ions .

The ASI 's excuse, the report says, is that i t doesn ' t have enough profess iona ls and staff to do the work . In th is context, it questions the wisdom of the M in i stry in " load ing the ASI with more missions when i ts not ab le to comp lete its ear l i e r a ss igned work" The com m ittee has a l so cha rged the M i n i st ry w i th " l ack ing in far sighted ness and a confused th ink ing" on conservation of the country's r ich cultura l and a rchaeological heritage.

The remark comes i n the wake of ASI 's p lans of first l aunching two national missions - one for antiqu ities a nd other for bu i l d i ng heritage - a n d l ater merg i ng them. (ASI gets rap for sk i pp i ng reports , wast i ng fu nds , Aasha Khosa , I E. D, 02 .05.05, D20d)

U NESCO has stated that Delhi has the potentia l of jo in i ng the famed l i st of wor ld heritage cit ies l i ke Bath or Edi nburgh . The honour has e luded the Ca pita l for long. Even neighbouri ng Nepa l has three heritage c it ies: Kathmandu , Bhaktapur and La l i tpu r. The world over, there a re 200 her itage cit ies with Europe a n d N orth Amer ica dominat i ng the l i st . Experts feel the government now has to make out a strong case for Del h i , h ighl ight i ng the c ity's u n ique facts t o U NESCO. The earl iest could be next yea r, as on ly one nomination a yea r can be sent. The heritage status w i l l come a s a b ig boost to tou rism. Conservation ists, too, want the country to seize th is opportun i ty. With 3000 years of recorded h istory, Del h i i s e m i nently q u a l if ied for the honour. (City vies for heritage tag, Saurabh S inha , HT, Del h i , 04.05.05 , S20 / D20d)

The Bra h m a n Temple at Pushkar has been decl a red a protected monument of nat iona l i m porta n ce . The temple , sa id to be the on ly exi st i ng one dedicated to Lord Bra h m a , was constructed i n 1 4th century and thousa nds of d evotees and tou r ists throng i t every yea r. (Centre gives tem ple tag of p rotected , AA. D, 09.05.05, D20d)

The government wi l l develop the h istoric Da,ndi March route in Gujarat i nto a heritage corridor, Tourism Min ister Renuka Chowdhury sa id . Wayside a menities and other tourism fac i l it ies w i l l be created a long the route which Mahatma Gandh i took during his sa l t satyagraha as part of the freedom struggle. She said the corridor woul d b e t h e part o f the "freedom c i rcu it" being developed across t h e country t o make t h e people aware of the l ife and work of our freedom fighters. (Dand i route to be heritage corridor, T P. D, 1 3 .05 ,05 , D20d)

After d rawing up recommendations for the Centra l and state governments on preservation of tr iba l heritage , the I nd ian N at ional Trust for Art and Cu ltural Heritage has worked out a roadmap to create u rban awareness a bout the ' nat iona l t reasures ' a n d the need to p rotect them. To start w i th , I NTACH w i l l organ i se a t ri b a l cultura l festival i n Delh i ear ly next year. The objective of t h e fest iva l i s t o educate t h e ma instream a bout the ind igenous knowledge of the tr ibals .

Besides, I N TACH p l ans to set u p heritage monitors to prevent further destruct ion of tr i ba l a reas , endorse tr i ba l s as 'nat ion a l t reasures' , devise speci a l i ncent ives a n d other benef its , and address the concepts of Triba l Trusteesh ip and I ntel lectua l P roperty Rights.

As a fou r·day conference on preservat ion of tr iba l heritage came to a c lose, the recommendations i nc luded documentation of triba l tradi ti ons, oral l i terature, customs and rich i ntangible heritage, sensitiz ing bureaucrats,

I Documen iui iOll Updaic I � 0 0 5 - 0 6

sociologi sts, med ia and others dea l i ng d i rectly with tr iba l s, cond ucting workshops and semina rs , prepa ring a sma l l modu le for tra i n i ng offic ia ls posted in tr i bal a reas and fac i l i tat i ng tr ibal representation in the nationa l ma instrea m. ( I ntach roadmap to preserve tr iba l heritage, Pra rthna Gah i l ote, I E . D, 1 9 .05.05, D20d)

Mahatma Gand h i 's Phoen ix Sett lement, the b i rthp lace of the non-violent movement or satyagraha , may be recommended for nomination as a World Heritage site, the South African government has sa id . The settlement could be i nc l uded in a l ist of potent ia l s ites to be submitted to U N ESCO, spokesperson for the South African depa rtment of env i ronmenta l affa i rs a nd tou r ism said. The ca l l fo r the h i stor ic site to be recogn ised a s a World Heri tage S ite has been made by lead i ng members of the I nd i an -or ig i n commun i ty. ( B i rthp lace of 'satyagra ha ' may become World Heritage site, TOI . D, 24.05 .05, D20d)

React ing strongly to the frequent concerns ra i sed by envi ronmenta l i sts over the req u i rement of a hea lthy wate r leve l i n Ya muna to p reserve the Taj Maha l 's foundat ion the Archaeologica l Su rvey of I nd i a (AS I ) has termed these concerns "un necessa ry".

Attri buti ng the spread of such "hoaxes' to an overzea lous section of the med ia , Mr D Daya lan , Superi ntendi ng Archaeologi st , ASI sa id there was no need for concern over the structura l i ntegrity of the Taj as the monument was perfectly safe from a l l natura l ca lamit ies. The ASI off ic ia l sa i d concerns over the d ryi ng up of the water­f i l l ed fou ndat ions of the 'Taj due to the sh ift ing of the r ive r Ya muna were a l so baseless as "most of the foundation of the Taj i s p laced on sol id ground and not on a water-borne raft of ebony. He sa id that the Taj and a l l other monuments nea r the r iver in Agra have one common feature - a "ri ng format ion" i n the foundation fac i ng the r iver to d i sperse the force of the river water d u ri ng f loods. (AS I s la ms u nwa rra nted 'expert' op in ions on Taj structure, Vi jay Upadhyay, T H . D, 07.09.05, D20d)

D i rector-Genera l of the Archaeologica l Survey of I nd ia (ASI) Babu Raj iv sa id that a Heritage Sites Commission wou ld be set up by the Centre to ensure conservat ion of h i stor ica l monuments in the country. Replyi ng to questions, he said the proposed commission would concentrate on unprotected monuments. I t wou ld advise the Centre on measures to be taken for ident i f icat ion , protection and ma nagement of the mon uments. It wou ld a l so rev iew the l ega l fra mework for the conservat ion of monu ments a nd suggest appropr i ate a mendments. The statute for the proposed Commission was being prepared and would be ready by December. I t wou ld have to be p l aced before Pa rl i a ment and , subsequent ly, i t m ight have to go th rough the Stand ing Committee.

Many monuments were fac i ng threats because of haphaza rd growth , unp l anned u rban isat ion , demol it ion , renovation, negative impact of p i lgrim tourism and other forms of tourism, poor mai ntenance and development projects such as i rrigat ion schemes.

He suggested that the Central a nd the State Governments as we l l as the local bod ies act in u n i son for the effective i mp lementat ion of the conservat ion schemes with people's part ic i pat ion a nd i nvolvement . There was a l so a need to accelerate the efforts for capacity·bu i l d i ng i n a rchaeology which had evolved i nto a new sci ence. (Heri tage S i tes Commi ssion to be set up soon , T H . D, 1 2 .09.05, D20d)

From I nd i a and the Diasporas they a re joi n i ng hands with the world's I ran ian Zoroastr ians to protest aga i nst the destruction of the most potent symbol of thei r common heritage. The Seeva nd dam neari ng completion i n South I ra n wi l l submerge the o ld ' i m per i a l route' of t he Achaemen id empi re , one of t he two Zoroastri a n dynast ies of Pe rs i a . The greater a ngu i sh i s that i t cou ld a l so jeopa rd i se Pasargadae, t h e cap i ta l bu i l t by Cyrus the G reat, sweeping away h i s fabled tomb there.

A campa ign through cyberspace ca l l i ng for signatu res to a pet i t ion addressed to "the peop le of the world and the Un ited Nat ions" (http ://www.petitionon l i ne.com/Pasargad). l n it iated by the ' I nternational Committee to Save the Archaeologica l Sites of Pasargad ' , it states rather dramatica l ly, "We, the undersigned, regretfu l ly have to i nform a l l the i nhabi ta nts of our planet earth that one of the greatest pa rts of the h i storica l heritage of (the) human race i s on the verge of permanent ext i nction . " I t a ppea l s agai nst the d rowni ng of a "r ich a nd complex site that , si nce i ts i ncept ion , has been considered by a l l writers of ant iqu i ty as one of the wonders of the a nc ient wor ld ' ' , and compa res th i s to the destruct ion of Ba m iyan Buddhas by the Ta l i ba n . (Da m threatens Pa rsi heritage s ite, Bach i Ka rka ria , TOI . D, 1 4.09.05, D20d)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I This 1 ,600-year-old c i ty of Kashmir ach ieved a mi lestone, when its f i rst heritage map compi led by the Centre for Heritage and Environment Kashmir (CHEK) was launched by Chief M in ister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. The five-vo lume cu l tura l resource mapp ing, completed i n col l aborat ion with I nd i a n Nat iona l Tru st for A rt a n d Cultura l Heritage ( I NTACH), g ives Sri nagar t h e d i st i nct ion of bei ng the second c ity i n I nd i a after Delh i with a documented map on her itage structures. The mapping work was done by a group of four young a rch itects who d id the job in a short span . The organ i sat ion has identif ied 825 heritage marve l s i n the c i ty. ( Her ita ge map of Sr inaga r launched , Shujaat Bukha r i , T H . B, 2 1 .09.05, D20d)

The Archaeologica l Survey of I nd i a (AS I ) is p l ann i ng a heritage map for the country, logging in unprotected monuments a nd a nt iquit ies to curb traffick i ng a nd ensure they a re not neg lected. The Rs 90-crore project , Nat iona l M ission o n Monuments a nd Ant iqu it ies, p roposes a locat ion a l a n a lysis that would i nc lude not only the protected monuments but thousands of others which according to the project document a re "unprotected or i n utter state of neglect ' . As of now on ly 3659 bu i l t her i tage s i tes a re protected by t he ASI a bout 3 ,500 a re conserved by the states.

Each site wi l l be documented with drawi ngs, photographs, satel l i te i magery and aer ia I photography to place the cu ltura l heritage in a chronologica l order according to a standard i sed procedure of mappi ng. The data wi l l be compi led from both pub l ished and unpub l ished l i terature.

The ASI had, earl ier, got a pproval from the Planning Commission for setti ng up two projects-one on monuments a n d a nother on ant iqu it ies at a h igher out lay of Rs 400 c rore. For the mapp i ng though the outlay has been sca led down to Rs 90 c rore. Bes ides mapp i ng monuments, the project w i l l d raw up a n i nventory of the possessions with state museums, heritage i n ma lkhanas of panchayats. Confiscated by the Customs, i ncome tax, CB I or pol ice stat ions, a n d those housed in pr ivate museums a n d col lect ions. A database generated out of such an i nven tory expected to provide "the most effective tool in prevent i ng i l l ega l trade i n ant iq u it ies". (AS I to d raw up monument map, Rs 90-cro re project a ims at curbing i l legal t raff icking, Amitav Ranjan , I E. D, 20. 1 0 .05 , D20d)

(FE .B, 1 8. 1 1 .05 , D20d / Z80)

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The Archaeologica l Survey of I nd ia (AS I ) has carried out several excavations at i mportant sites th is yea r with s ign i f icant resu l ts such as d i scovery of p re -Hara ppan rem a i n s at Utta r P radesh , a ccord i ng to an A S I spokesma n . Speak ing a t Hamsala deevi , where R iver Kr ishna j o i n s t h e Bay o f Benga l , 4 5 km from here, h e sa id i n Ba ror i n Rajasthan , remains of pre-Hara ppan and Hara ppan cu ltures h a d been unearthed. (ASI f inds p re -Hara ppan s ites in Rajasthan , VT. B, 1 9 . 1 1 .05 , D20d)

D20e P i lgrimage Tourism

The Utta rancha l Government 's move to open the Badri nath sh r ine for "darshan" t h roughout the yea r has evoked stiff oppOSition from rel igious leaders a nd priests. Reacting sharply to the move, Swami Swaroopanand Sara swat i , Sankaracharya of Jyoti r Peeth and Dwa ri ka -Sharda Peeth sa id that the very i dea of keeping the Badr inath shr ine open th roughout the yea r was aga i n st the H i nd u rel i gious bel i ef and i f the Government forced such a dec is ion i t w i l l b ri ng u nto ld m isery to the ent i re nat ion . Swami B rahmanand Saraswati of Har idwar felt that the Government's attempts to commercia l ize the sacred shri nes and a l so put restr ict ions on them in the name of scientif ic management was deplorable and wou ld spark off an agitation by the H indus in the enti re country_ He hoped the State Government wou ld refrai n from p lay ing with rel ig ious bel i efs a n d

I Documenta t ion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

'grabbi ng' management of tem ples i n the n a me of reforms. (Seers not for keepi ng Badr inath open a l l year, T H . D, 1 7 .05 .05 , D20e)

The crush a n d chaos in the Jagan nath temple a t Puri may be rout ine for the fa i thfu l but it has put off Un ion M in ister for Tour ism, Ms Renuka Choudhary. Fresh from a v is i t to the 1 2th century shr ine the m ini ster t icked off its management and suggested that i t shou ld fol low the Vaishno Devi and T i ru pati pattern for i mprovement.

Assert ing that Or issa was poised for a big leap i n the f ie ld of tour i sm, the m i n i ster who v is i ted wel l ·known s i tes l i ke Konark P ip l i and Raghurajpur duri ng her three day tour, sa id she wanted the state to be the biggest tourist dest i nat ion .

The M i ni ster had a word of advice for the Or issa government which, she sa id , should d raw u p a tour ism sub· p lan to ensure that every department of the government chi p ped i n with funds for the a l l - round development of tour ist s ites. She sa id there was no dearth of money for tour ism deve lopment , but the state government should u se the funds effective ly. Orissa w i l l jo i n 10 other states of the country which have been i nc l uded i n the Centre's p l an for l aunch i ng a "freedom tourist c i rcu it" i n August to high l ight p laces con nected with the I nd i an freedom struggle. (Crowded Puri temple puts Renuka off, Ashutosh M ishra , T P. D, 03.06.05 , D20e)

I nd ians a re known to be a rel igious l ot and the l ow·cost a i rl i nes a re a ct i ng as a catalyst to the i ncrease i n non· resident I nd ians opting for pi lgrimage tourism. Apart from domestic tourists, tour operators a re now embarking more on non· resident I nd ians to boost their revenues .

SOTC sen i or v i ce-p res ident , Freder ick D ivecha poi nts out , "the entry of more l ow-cost ca rr iers and the Tourism Min istry's I ncredi ble I ndia campa ign has helped i n the growth of pi lgrimage tourism. ' Popular pi lgrimage packages favoured by N R ls i nc lude Char Dham (Yamnotr i , Gangotr i , Badrinath a nd Kedarnath) Vaishnodevi , Amritsar, T i rupati and Shi rd i , wh i le Ajmer i s a l so emerging a lmost as popu l a r as T i rupat i . Comment ing on the growth in p i lgrim age tour ism, Cox & Ki ngs executive di rector Arup Sen adds, "Pi lgr image tou rism is growi ng at a rate of 20% annua l ly i n the organ i sed sector. " Fore ign tourists from Japan a nd Sri Lan ka a re maki ng a bee l i ne for the Buddh ist ci rc le , part icu l a rly Bodh Gaya . Sr i Lankan A i r l i nes even operates a d i rect f l ight twice a week between Colombo and Bodh Gaya from October to February. (P i lgrimage tour ism turns big business, Rouhan Sharma & Neelasri Barman , FE.D, 16 .09.05, D20e)

M in i ster of State, Renuka Chowdh u ry c l a imed that she had successfu l ly persuaded Da l a i Lama to promote the Buddhist c i rcuit in the country. Further, to ensure tourist arriva l s to these sites , the touri sm min ist ry was a l so in the process of work ing out MoUs with state-owned a i r l i nes l i ke Air I nd i a for i ntroduci ng spec ia l pi lgrim packages specifical ly targeted at Buddh i st sites, Chowdhury sai d . About 1 6 states , i nc lud ing Uttar Pradesh, Andhra P radesh and H i macha l P radesh have been ident if ied by the tou r ism m i n i st ry which can deve lop var ious Buddh ist s i tes. (Da la i Lama, I nd ia 's new tou r ism ambassador, Pummy Kau l , FE .D, 28. 1 0 .05 , D20e)

020f Hea lth / Med ica l Tour ism

The Government hopes to encourage the buddi ng medical tourism sector, sel l ing foreigners the idea of trave l l i ng to I nd ia for low·cost, but world-c lass healthcare.

Accord i ng to a Confederat ion of I nd i an I ndustry-McKinsey study, med ica l touri sm can contri bute between Rs . 5 , 000 crores a n d Rs 1 0, 000 c ro res of add i t iona l revenue for u pm arket tert i a ry hos pi ta l s by 20 1 2 . Global ly, med i ca l tourism is sa id to b e a Rs. 1 76-bi l l ion i ndustry, a nd a na lysi s projects that people from Afro· Asi a n countr ies spend Rs . 880 b i l l ion eve ry yea r on healthcare services from outside thei r countr ies.

I nd i a i s a rel at ive ly new ent rant i n th is f ie ld , and it has to prepare to face the exist ing competit ion from other Asi an countries such as Tha i l and. Mal aysia and Singapore. These countries together now attra ct 10 t imes the medica l tourists that I nd i a does. Hong Kong and South Africa a re emerging as big medical tourism dest inations. Experts sa id the other big advantage of i mp rovi ng medi ca l tou r ism is that it is non·seasona l . ( I nd i a , a new desti nat ion for med i ca l tour ism, Vidyashree Amaresh, T H . B, 1 9.04.05, D20f)

The government p l ans to i ssue 1 2-month vi sas to attract foreign patients to come to I nd ia for medica l care. Last yea r, 1 . 1 8 m i l l ion people came to I nd i a for medica l treatment, at one-tenth the US cost. N ursi ng costs

2 a 0 5 - a 6 I Documentation Update I i n a n u rs i ng home i n the US average $38,000 per yea r, a n d even home ca re costs $ 1 2 ,000 per yea r. The number of aged Americans a bove 65 w i l l dou ble from 36 mi l l ion today to 7 1 .5 m i l l ion by 2030, and may be one-tenth of them w i l l need long-term nurs i ng . H osp i ta l s a re very expens ive to set up a n d expand . But creat ing a series of old persons' homes with nursi ng fac i l it ies i s relat ively low-tech , can be done at a scorchi ng pace and yield p lenty of jobs. This is where Ind ia should go. There wi l l natu ra l ly be resistance in rich countries to send i ng their aged to I nd i a . I t wi l l take t ime and patience to create a c l i mate where th i s d i sa ppears. G lobal i nsura nce compan ies shou ld , in consultation with the government, create a system for certify ing old people's homes as world c lass. FDI should be permitted in the sector up to 1 00%. The government should offer v isas for not just 1 2 months but 1 2 yea rs for long-ter m a i l ments l i ke A lzhe i mer's . ( N u rs i n g a s b ig bus i ness, Medical Tourism With A Difference, ET.B, 0 1 .08.05 , D20f)

The widespread bel i ef that 'green med ic i ne' is safe and more dependable than synthet i c d rugs that carry s ide effects has led to a spurt i n the demand of med ic i na l p lants.

This renewed i n terest in the p la nt-der ived d rugs has l ed to an over-exp lo i tat ion a nd v i r tua l dec imat ion of severa l va l ua bl e p l ant species. I n adequate efforts with rega rd to col lect ion , process ing a n d marketi ng of medic ina l p lants have jeopardised the income generation activities of a l a rge number of rura l people, especi a l ly t r iba l s . Accord i ng to offic i a l est i mates, Or issa forest coverage was 3 7 . 3 % of the tota l 1 ,5 5 , 707 sq kms forest cover in I nd i a . However, yea r 2000 sate l l i te survey showed on ly 24 % of forest cover a s the forests were depl et i ng at a rate of 0 .93 %. As the forests a re the domic i l e of var ious spec ies of med ic i n a l herbs, efforts a re bei ng taken to i ntroduce t he concept of 'socia l forestry' . (Demand for herba l medic ine eati ng away green cover, T P D, 09.09.05, D20flE0 1 b)

With medical tou r ism fast atta i n i ng industry status i n major c i t ies l i ke Bangalore i n response to a concerted effort i nvolvi ng lead ing hospita ls , travel a gents, tou r operators a nd hotel compan ies, the Un ion Govern ment has sta rted efforts to esta bl i sh a nat ional l evel regu latory body to ensure i nternat iona l standard in med ica l faci l i ties ava i lab le to patients com i ng from a broad. A h igh- l evel meeti ng of Hea l th and Tour ism m in i sters of d iffe ren t states, he ld i n N ew De l h i , dec ided on such a regu l atory body a s v ita l i n v iew of the i ncreas i ng tendency among certa i n hospita ls a nd travel agents to charge exorbitant rate for surgeries and other modes of treatment on fore igners. (Nat iona l body to c heck medica l tour ism, I E.C , 26.01 .06, D20f)

D20g Rura l Tou rism

The Un ion Government is focussi ng on rura l tourism to provide a new experience to foreign as wel l as domestic tourists, Mr Ami tabh Kant , Jo int Secreta ry, U n ion M i n i stry of Tour ism, has sa id . As part of th i s i n i t i ative, I nd i a Tou ri s m is i m plement i ng a project in 55 selected v i l l ages across t he country to se l l the i r her i tage, cu l tu re a n d a rt forms . These v i l l ages wou ld be provided with Rs 50 l akh each under U N DP a ss istance to i m prove i nfrastructure l i ke bu i l d i ng open-a i r theatres, i nterpretat ion centres, shop outlets etc.

Besides, an addit iona l a mount of Rs 20 l akh wou ld be provided for develop ing l ogi stic fac i l i ti es and sta rti ng commun i ty part ic i pat ion centres through self·he lp groups, he added.

The Government i ntends to provide 25 m i l l ion jobs from tour ism by 2007 with the imp lementat ion of these p rojects , he sa i d . (55 v i l l ages selected to promote rura l tourism , V sanjeev Kumar, T H . B , 29.08.05, D20g)

Rura l I nd i a has much to offer beyond agricu lture. It has a great potent ia l ity for d ifferent growing segments of tourism l i ke eco tourism, adventure tourism, health tourism, farm tourism, endogenous tourism, nature tourism, cultura l touri sm, rel igious tourism and the l i ke. Worldwide rura l tourism which offers these n iche segments is a growing concept . Wh i le tou r ism i n general is grow ing at a n a nnua l rate of 4%, natu re travel is i ncreas i ng a nnua l rate of between 1 0% and 30%, says the Wor ld Resources I n st i tute.

The World Tour ism Organ i sat ion est imated the al l nature·related forms of tourism accounted for about 20% of tota l i nternat iona l travel a n d nature tou r ism, i n part icu l a r, generates 7% of globa l t rave l expend i tu re . Experts l i ke F i l l i on found that 40-60% of such tour ists a re nature tour i sts and 20- 40% are w i ld l ife - re l a ted tour ists.

The i ssue is of rural tour ism on a susta i nable basis. D ifferent facets of nature a l l u re tou rists. I t is , therefore,

1 l)oCll 1llcll tal ioll Update 12005 -06 a dv isab le that natu re i s ma i n ta i ned i n its t rue form. But there a re i nstances of de l i berate exp lo i tat ion of nature for mint i ng money.

I n I nd ia the ent ire package of rura l tourism i s sti l l a t a n i nfant stage. Adequate efforts have not been made so far to effectively market th i s concept abroad . Rura l a reas i n Rajasthan a nd Kera l a a re attract i ng tourists on the ir own Utta r Pradesh a nd B ihar have sta rted attract ing tour ists on the ir own .

D i fferent stud i es a re done on i den ti fy i ng a reas of rura l tou r i sm. The U N DP sponsored project i s be ing i m plemented i n d ifferent parts of the country through the part ic ipation of Central a nd state governments and N GOs. A recent study joi nt ly undertaken by the Federat ion of I nd i a n Cham bers of Commerce and I ndustry (F ICC I ) , Raja stha n government and the c red i t rat i ng agency C ri s i l has d iv ided the state i ntD e ight tou r ist c i rcu i ts . These c i rcuits a re: Ja i pur·Tonk·Madhopur c i rcu it , Shekhawati c i rcu i t , Mewar c i rcu it , Hadot i c i rcu it dessert c i rcu i t , Ajmer Pushkar·Merta - Nagpur c i rcu it , Mount Abu c i rcu i t and Vagad c i rcu i t .

The study has a lso identified four eco-ru ra l c i rcuits each i n southern , south-eastern, north-eastern and western regions. (Sustai na bl e rura l tou r ism can generate long-term benefits for v i l la gers, Ashok 0 Sharma, 1 9 .09.05, D20g)

D20h Golf Tour ism

P lay ing golf h a s v i rtu a l ly become de rigueur for senior off icers i n t h e a rmed forces. And t o fac i l i tate "Sen ior officer· l i ke qua l ity" , the a rmed forces have establ i shed golf courses at many d i fferent locations in the country. But the Comptro l l e r a n d Aud i tor Genera l has n ow frowned on th i s pract ice to use defence l a nd for golf courses. Moreover, i t has cr i t ic ised the fact that a rmed forces have been credit i ng the revenue earned from these courses to non · p u b l i c funds" . The IAF, for i nstance, has six go l f courses at N ew Delh i , Banga lore, Baroda , A l lahabad, Nagpur and H i ndon. The CAG selected golf courses at Banga lore and Baroda for a deta i led aud i t scruti ny. (Aud i t report s l ams defence golf courses, TOL D, 09.05.05 , D20h)

The National Capita l Region (NCR) promises to be the next big hot spot of this multi ·b i l l ion dol l a r golf bus iness worldwide. N C R today boasts of f ive world ·c l ass golf courses: Del h i Golf C l u b (GC) in De l h i , C lass i c Golf Resort, DLF GC, Golden G reens GC - a l l i n G u rgaon, and Jaypee G reens GC in G reater No ida . A l l these courses have i nvolved i nvestments of a t l east Rs 1 00 crore each. (NCR tees off to a new h igh i n golf tour ism, N aveneet Anand, TO I . D, 29.05.05, D20h)

Pri ced at Rs 3 crore , a lmost 90% of the 300 l uxu ry f lats in Magno l i as have been so ld out . And th is, when the DLF group's project is sti l l on pa per. Buyers were more i nterested in the fact that the proposed complex shares its boundary wa l l with a n exuberant golf course. Magnol ias , which i s second i n the series of the h igh· end l uxu ry homes, i s p receded by the Ara l i as , overlooking the golf course. The Ara l i as , l i ke Magnol ias , was a speci a l "by i nvitat ion on ly" project l aunched by the DLF i n l a te 2002. (Buyers tee off to DLF p roject for golf course, Paya l Saxena , TOI . D, 03. 1 0 .05 , D20h)

D20i Eco Tour ism

Tak ing note o f the confl i ct between nat ional pa rks a nd loca l people, H i machal Pradesh has come out with a model to encourage part ic ipatory management to promote eco·tourism.

The f i rst move i s to curta i l government spend i ng and encourage l oca l s to take part in the promot ion of eco­tour i sm. Second, to convert the l i on safa r i at Renuka a n d the G reat H i ma l ayan Nat iona l Park at Kufri by hand ing over management to i ndependent societies.

The famous touri st desti nat ion of Khajj i a r in Chamba d istrict, Man ikaran and Banja r va l l eys in Ku l l u and the Chanse l sk i s lopes in the Roh ru a rea of Sh imla d i str ict a re a l so bei ng converted i nto societ ies .

Sources in the state government said that th is had been done fol lowing the lessons learnt from the experience i n the 'Va l ley of Flowers' i n Cha mol i d i st r i ct i n Uttarancha l . The va l l ey, once descri bed as one of the most beaut ifu l in the world , is today choked with weeds.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I Experts say the ta l l grass growi ng here led to f lowers becoming exti nct. Thanks to a ban on the entry of loca l s i nto the va l l ey after i t was decla red a nat i ona l pa rk. Ear l ier, loca l s had free access w i th the i r catt le , which used to graze there and prevent the pro l iferation of weeds. H i macha l govern ment has therefore decided to i nvo l ve loca l s i n the deve lopment of key tour ist dest inat ions to make these self ·susta i nabl e. Govern ment sources say these societies could promote eco·touri sm. The state is home to three zoos, 29 wi ld l ife sanctua ries and th ree H ima layan nat ional parks. The government decided to locate the forest department i nfrastructure i n p laces of touri st i nterest at these societies' d i sposa l . The societies charge entry fees and other levies from tour ists.

The pi ctu resque nature park a t M a n a l i has a l so been converted i nto a soci ety. The results have been encouraging. Locals have been instrumental in bringi ng more touri sts to trekking routes that a re being regu lated by them on an experimental basis in the Manikaran and Banjar va l leys, popular touri st desti nations. Encouraged by the respon se, the government has decided to i nvolve people i n regu l at ion of ground water resources and mon itori ng of qual ity of d ri nk ing water. (Loca ls a re back i n pa rks, hel ping eco·tourism, Charanj it Ahuja , FE.C, 26 . 1 2 .05, D20i)

D20j Cu l tu re Tour ism

The Un ion Cab i net approved a proposal to rat ify the UN ESCO Convent ion for safegua rd i ng o f i ntangi b le cu l tura l heritage. I t a l so agreed to contri bute to the "Fund for the Safeguard i ng of the I nta ngi b le Cu l tura l Heritage" a t least every two yea rs.

Mr Ja i pa l Reddy, M i nster for I nformat ion and Broadcast i ng, sa i d , " Fo r the pu rpose of th i s Convent ion , i nternat iona l assistance cou ld be obtai ned to safegua rd those forms of i ntangi ble cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguard ing." (Cabi net nod for UNESCO proposal on cu l tura l , heritage, BL. B, 06.07.05, D20j)

Hold ing a cu ltura l event on a heritage site withi n the city has become a matter of monumental expense. The Archaeologica l Su rvey of I nd ia (ASI) cha rges the organ isers anyth ing between Rs 25 ,000·Rs 50 ,000 da i ly for such a n event , whereas the fee is as low as Rs 10 ,000 ·Rs 25 ,000 i n other c i t ies .

Even the refu ndable security·fee i s a steep Rs 50 ,000 per day here , wh i le i n other p laces, organ isers wou ld need to deposit Rs 30,000 da i ly. What's more, the ru les that were formulated some ti me back, sti pu late that no permission wou ld be granted for a fu nction where admission fee is cha rged or t ickets sold .

The govern ment has i dentif ied eight p laces where cu l tura l events "of h igh standa rds, preferably c l assica l music , dance a nd drama" may be permitted by the ASI Ara b ki Sara i and outer l awns of I sa Khan's Tomb i n Hu mayun's Tomb : open a reas a t Qutab M i n a r comp lex , Q u a Ra i P i thora , Red Fort (a rea of Ram L i l a a nd i n side); Roshanara Garden and Ta l ab Maha l . (AS I ' s monumenta l rates for cu ltura l events, Saura bh S inha , TOI . D, 04.09.05 , D20j)

New Forms

I n December l a st yea r a c i ty·based tour operator orga ni sed a package for a group of 26 Austra l i ans , who spent 22 days in South I nd i a tast i ng and learn i ng the cu i si nes here. So i mpressed was the group that i t has promi sed to come back thi s yea r for more.

The i t i nerary was s imp le : each day, the group trave l led to a new p l a ce a n d learnt of f ive loca l d i shes. I n Mysore, they were taught Mysore Pak wh i l e i n Coorg i t was pa ndi cu rry a n d kadambuttu ; i n Kera l a i t was Ma laba r and Syrian Christ ian food, whi le i n Tami l Nadu it was Chetti nad and other cuisi nes. " I t was a l ittle l i ke turn ing tourism on its head. I n between cooki ng and sampl i ng , the tour ists got to see the local attract ions , the tour operator sa id .

Though sti l l i n i t s i nfancy i n I nd i a , the potent ia l for food tourism is enormous and i s extremely popu lar i n the UK, Eu rope USA and Ch ina . In I re land exc lusive cateri ng houses take in candidates and tourists for two·three weeks of cu l i nary tra i n i ng.

I Documenta tion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

The cou ntry i s seei ng a host of spec i a l i ty tours related to food Wine tours a re current ly done i n a few v ine yards i n Karnataka and Maharashtra , wh i le pub-hopping, though s l ightly on the wane now, i s sti l l a done th ing.

At the other extreme is the organ i c farm experience started by a few fa rmers i n Maharashtra , where tour ists can stay on farms for two·four weeks and work with farmers. The accommodation is rustic; food is basic and work, back· break i ng. (What's cook i ng? I t's food tour ism, An ita Rao Kash i , TOI . B , 1 6 .04.05)

For those fasci nated by the macabre and catastrophic , the ha i r·ra is ing a nd gut wrench ing episodes of h istory, t here's an ent ire industry of tour operators wait ing to take you to graveyards , and battlefie lds, to the darkest torture chambers and even on the track of seri a l k i l l ers . They ca l l it Dark Tour ism.

Cur ious v is itors Even before the debr is cou l d be c leared from G round Zero, a v iew ing p latform had to be e rected for the hundreds of cur ious v is i tors who trooped in , some even pos i ng for cameras. The su bway route that once ended under the World Trade Centre now breaks i nto the c ity's surface.

The book Dark Tourism: The Attract ion of Death and Disaster co·authored by John Lennon and Mal colm Foley, d iscusses th i s 20th cent u ry phenomenon. The two authors bel i eve i t a l l sta rted wi th the s i nk i ng of the T i tan ic . Other tragedies were too old to obsess over or se l l successfu l ly.

I n Da l las , Texas, you can actua l ly take a Cad i l l ac ride with the accompanyi ng soundtrack of cheering crowds. I t ends with the sound of a gunshot that Kennedy i n a l l l i ke l i hood never heard. Jack·the · R i p per-wa l ks a re hugely popu l a r i n London. Not so h igh on the l i st i s the i nfamous nuclear reactor a t Chernobyl ; despite the r isk of exposu re to rad i at ion .

You cou l d v is i t t he gas chambers in Auschwitz. Or you cou ld v is i t the Robben I s l a nd - l ies 1 2 km off the South African coast - where Nelson Madela spent 27 yea rs of h i s l ife.

As i a 's l i st Although some experts l i ke Lennon and Foley bel ieve dark tourism i s a predominantly western trend promoted by crafty market i ng sk i l l s, As ia has its own l i st. There's the chi l l i ng sight of thousands of sku l l s at the Ki l l i ng Fields of Tuo l Sleng i n Phnom Penh .

In I nd ia , nearly 1 0,000 people visit the Ja l l i anwala Bagh each day, says Ba l raj Singh, Tou rist offi cer a t Amritsar. The Cel l u l a r Ja i l a t Andamans, a nother N at iona l Memoria l , which w i l l be 1 00 years old on M a rch 1 0, 2006, a l so gets its share of curious v is i tors . (Wal k on the da rk s ide, Meera Mohanty, T H . B, 05 .02 .06)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I

• E - TOU R IS M , SOCI ETY AND I M PACTS .

EOO Soc ia l Impact of Tour ism

I s lamist groups i n Zanzibar a re worried b y what they see a s i ncreas i ngly inappropriate behaviour by Western tourists, saying thei r actions offend the I nd ian ocean is lands' conservative Musl im culture. The organ isations are a lso concerned about the spread of bars on the is lands off ma i n land Tanzan ia , whose beaches and coral reefs make it a haven for honeymooners. "Tour ists shou ld not i nd ulge in sex acts o r k iss open ly, this is not someth ing that people can accept," Farid Had i , chairman of the Zanzibar I ma ms' a ssociation (Jumaza), said. (No k iss ing p lease! I E.C , 05 .05 .05 , EOO)

Foreign tou rists getti ng married as per H i ndu ritua ls in Rajasthan i s a common th i ng. But one such couple , who k i ssed each other dur i ng the ceremony, has c reated r i pp les i n the holy Pushkar, w i th l oc a l pr iests lodging a F I R aga inst them. The controversy started after an I srae l i couple got marr ied i n the tradit ional way and sea led the wedding with a kiss. S ince then the priest community has been fuming over th is publ ic d isplay of pass ion at a holy p lace l i ke Pushkar.

Terming it a c lear violation of rel igious sentiments and norms, Sri Ti rth Guru Purohit Sangh Trust has lodged a compla in t with the pol ice agai nst the couple. Though kiss i ng a mong tour ists is a common scene at publ ic p laces i n Pushka r, th is i s the f i rst i nstance when a pol ice case has been l odged aga inst a ny fore igner for hurt ing rel ig ious sent iments. What enraged the p riests the most was the fact that the I srael i duo star ted embrac ing a nd k iss ing each other whi le the Ved ic hymns were bei ng chanted. The coup le c l a imed that they were encouraged by loca l s to go for a kiss d u ring the weddi ng ceremony. They a l so sa id that they respect the sanct ity of the holy place but if kissi ng was aga i nst the rel igious sentiments, the priests shou l d have cautioned them beforehand. Pushkar has seen a rapid increase of tourists from I srael i n recent yea rs, who stay here for months . Last yea r, a stri ptease dance by a n I s rae l troupe had snowba l l ed i nto a major controversy that u l t imately led to the remova l of the d istrict col lector, who was p resent a t the show. (No k iss i ng at Pushkar wedd ings, Ranjeet S Jamwa l , TS .O , 1 1 .09 .05 , EOO)

• Smok ing and d ri nk ing, however i nnocent , a re considered as symbols of mora l l ax i ty a mong I nd i ans .

• Huggi ng, embrac i ng a n d k i ss i ng a woman i n pub l i c i s out of quest ion i n society. A l so, women never a pproach a stranger for a casua l conversat ion.

These are just some of the nuggets of wisdom in the admin istration's new mora l ity guide to Pushka r's foreign tourists. Concerned a bout the r is ing i ncidents of 'cu ltura l c lashes' between the pandits of Pushkar and the foreign tourists, the Ajmer admin istration i s tryi ng to broker peace th rough a ru le book for the v is i tors.

The 20-page book, drafted publ i shed and distributed by the admin istrat ion , i nd icates that I nd ians consider smoking and dri n king as symbols of moral l ax ity and consider any publ i c d isp lay of affect ion with women as soc ia l taboo.

The admin istration is hopi ng that a conservative portrayal of the I nd ian culture wou ld deter the touri sts from behavi ng i n a man ner that would i ncense the l oca l pr i ests, who have been at l oggerheads with tour ists , sayi ng that they have been pol l ut ing the holy city. Prithvi Raj Sankh la , SOM of Ajmer, feels that by warn ing the tour i sts , such cu l tura l dashes cou ld be averted . A week ago , a F i nn i sh tou r ist bathed on the ghats in the nude and then wa lked down to her hote l . The priests created a furore a nd fi l ed a case aga i nst her. In 2004, pr iests had l aunched a stir when a group of I srae l i women .. stri pped" on the outski rts of Pushkar du ring a private party_ (Pushka r to have ru le book for tour ists, Sand i pan Sharma , I E.C , 1 9 . 1 1 .05 , EOO)

E01 Env i ronmenta l Impact of Tou rism

Union Tou ri sm Min ister Mrs Renuka Chowdhury sa id i n the Lok Sabha that un less the people's concerns

I Documcntation Updatc 1 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

a ris i ng out of the debi l itating envi ronmental situation i n the Sunderbans, the world 's l a rgest mangrove forests, were adequate ly addressed , i t wou ld be 'very d i ff icu l t " for her to " m arket" the reg ion a s a pri me tour ist locat ion of the cou ntry, "Sunderbans i s causing anxious moments," the M ini ster sa id wh i le respond ing to a supp lementa ry q uest ion on rura l tour ism by Mr Basudev Barman (CP I -M) . She sa id a group of people had a ppealed to MPs drawing the i r attention to envi ronmental degradation taking place i n the ecologica l ly sensitive region . M r Barman wa nted the M i n i ster to take steps to deve lop Suderban s a s pa r t of her ru ra l tou r ism development scheme. (Sunderban s rea l ly worries Renuka , TS.D, 1 0.05.05, E01 )

The hospital ity d ivi sion of the M uthoot Group i s to focus on conservat ion tou rism a nd i s readying a bout ique of s m a l l p rojects with l esser envi ronment i mpact . A part of the group's revenue wi l l be set as ide for conservation projects l i ke protection of a species and a l so support a project of the tri bal people , accord i ng to d iv is ion executive d i rector M George.

About the bout ique of projects, he sa id they wou ld be high-end resorts with not over 20 rooms. The a i m was not rapid expansion , but create a susta i ned destinat ion and take the lead i n this i n it iative. The projects wou ld be i n beach and backwater desti nat ion: The d iv is ion had evolved a strategy to enter agricu ltura l tour ism so that the industry cou l d rega i n its status, he added. (Muthoot's hosp i ta l ity d iv is ion to focu s on conservat ion projects , FE .B, 1 9.05 .05 , E01 )

The Envi ronment M in i stry of the De lh i government has made i t mandatory for a l l five star, fou r·sta r hotels , restau ra nts w i th more than 1 0 0 seats and hosp i ta l s to use degradab le p l ast ic bags . As per a notificat ion issued by the M in i st ry i n th is regard , fi rst t ime violators wi l l be fined Rs 1 0 ,000, the second and subsequent defau l ters w i l l be f ined Rs 20,000. The Sr i ra m I n st i tu te for I n dustri a l Research, counci l for Scient if ic a n d Inst itutiona l Research (CSI R) , Central I nst itute for P last ic Engi neer ing and Technology (CI PEE Chenna i ) have been short l i sted by the M in istry for provid ing the degradab i l i ty certificat ion . The Certifica te of degradabi l i ty is made mandatory for a l l the a bove hotels and restaurants. On an average the monthly consumption of a ny f ive -star hotel ranges between 3 ,000A,000 bags. Whi l e most of them have a l ready moved to degradab le p last ic bags, others a re look ing for agencies wh ich provide the degradable p last ic bags. (Degradable p last ic bags must for hospita ls , star hote ls , Envi ronment M in i st ry to ho ld surprise checks and fine violators, Teena Thacker, I E . D, 30 .08.05 , EOl )

The fou nders of the Rough Gu ides and Lonely P l anet books, troubled that t hey have helped spread a casual att itude towards a ir trave l that cou ld tr igger devastati ng c l imate change, a re un i t i ng to u rge tou rists to f ly less. Mark E l l i ngham the founder of Rough Gu ides, and Tony Wheeler, who created Lonely P lanet after taking the h i pp ie t ra i l across Asi a , want fel l ow trave l lers to "f ly less a n d stay longer" and donate money to carbon offsetting schemes. From next month, warn ings wil l appear in a l l new editions of thei r guides about the i mpact of f lyi ng on globa l warming a longside a l ternative ways of reach ing certai n dest inat ions.

But the founders of the U K's two b iggest travel pub l ishers a re refusi ng to give up flyi ng and admit they a re not pa ragons of envi ronmenta l v i r tue. Both men have a l so p ledged to donate money to the cha rity C l i mate Care to offset the ca rbon em iss ions of thei r 650 staff who f ly a round the world every yea r com pi l i ng a n d updating their t ravel books. I n Rough Guides, the warnings w i l l come u nder the "gett ing there" sections o f a l l new edit ions a nd wi l l emphasize a lternative forms of trave l . Whi l e a i r t ravel is predicted to i ncrease threefo ld i n the next 20 yea rs, E l l i ngham den ied h is company had encouraged the surge in f lyi ng. (Travel guides urge less flyi ng, HID, 05 .03 .06, E0 1 )

Ecologi ca l footpri n t i ng was devised i n t h e 1 990s. A k ind of ecologica l a ccount i ng, footpri nti ng measures human resource consumption and waste level s (both of which a re i ncreasing) aga inst the earth's biocapacity, which i nc ludes the a mount of bio logica l ly productive space ava i l able a nd the capacity of the earth to absorb waste a nd pol l ut ion , and to regenerate.

Ou r "fa i r share" of the globe's resources works out to a round two hectares per person a year, whereas the a verage person in the U n ited Ki ngdom requ i res 5 . 3 hectares each (the equ iva lent of six footba l l p itches).

Craig Si mmons, co·author of Shar ing Nature's I nterest, i nsists that footprint i ng i s cruc ia l because it gives us a snapshot of ou r i mpact a t a g loba l , nat iona l , reg iona l and persona l leve l . U nsurpr is i ngly, M r. S immons recommends cal l i ng t ime on u nnecessa ry a i r trave l : "Dol l a r for dol l a r, chea p f l ights have a huge i mpact. A

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I fl ight to the east coast of America can add anot her two to three hectares on to your persona l footpr int for the yea r. "

Less obvious, but i n creasingly signif icant, i s the amount of electron i c gadgets a n d a pp l i ances we let i nto our l ives each yea r. (How can I calcu late my 'eco footprint'? We a re consum i ng more and dumping more than ever before. A gu ide on how to shr i nk your eco logica l shoe size, Lucy Siegle, T H . B, 06.03.06, E01 )

EOla Envi ronmenta l Laws and Pol i cy

The d raft Nat iona l E nv i ronment Pol i cy ( N EP) released by the U n io n M i n istry of Envi ronment a n d Forest emphasi ses ' po l l uter pays' , 'cost·m in im isat ion' and market·based i ncentives for pol l ut ion contro l , A logica l fol l ow u p should be to vest stewardsh ip of n atural resources with commun it ies that a re d i rectly dependent on the m . N E p, however, fa l l s short here. Th is l acuna i s g l a ri ng because most common resources in I nd i a degenerate i nto open resources, over which l oca l commun it ies have very l i tt le contro l .

People who converted forests i nto agr icu ltura l l and , a nd then i nto res ident ia l or commerc ia l l and , received property t it l es, but t hose who let the forests stand a re now told that these forests belong to a l l peop le, not just to them. Thi s i s grave i nj ust ice. N EP does ta l k of mend i ng matters and givi ng l ega l recogni t ion to forest dwel lers' tradit ional rights. But then, how exactly to recognise tradit ional rights? N EP only has trite suggestions of partnersh ips between commu n it ies a nd forest department offic ia l s, a nd a rguments to u n iversa l i se Jo int Forest Management (JFM).

Of course, J FM does encourage community pa rt i c ipat ion . But i t offers commun it ies no long·term stake i n i mprovi ng forests. Moreover, where i s t h e lega l mech a n i sm that gua ra ntees revenue shar i ng between the forest department a n d commun i t ies? J FM needs to move towards commu n i ty forestry mana gement and recogn ize communit ies as custodians or stewards of forests . The forest department should merely act as a n advisor o r consultant . The N E P recognises that improper prici ng pol i cies for water, e lectricity a nd fue ls have led to water misuse. However, it does not c lea rly a rt icu late the way to rat iona l ize these pol ic ies . It a lso fa i l s to emphas ise tha t pri c i ng is but a subset o f the i ssue of the user rights to water.

A way to a l l ocate water r ights wou ld be to f irm up the system of 'project a l l ocations' used by the government today. P roject a uthorit ies enter i nto long·term contracts with mun ic ipa l corporations and other government agencies for supply of f ixed quantit ies of water. These quantitative a l locations should be converted to lega l ly enforceable proportional a l locations to water user associations. These rights should be t radable. This a pproach is very d i fferent from the emerging pract i ce of privati s ing river waters by l eas ing severa l k i lometres of them to p rivate companies · our method on ly formal i ses existi ng c la i ms.

But what about fami l ies who cannot a fford to pay? The government can either decide on 'free' a l location per person or per fam i ly · then pay for that water from the general tax revenue. Th i s quota is for a l l · the r ich as wel l as the poor. Water consumed above this 'free' quota wi l l have to be paid by each fami ly. As recourse, the authorities can subsid ise on ly the poor a nd make the rich pay for every drop of water they consume. ( I t 's just the bas ic , Pa rth J Shah & H B Soumya , I E.C , 05.06.05, E0 1 a)

Rep lace the W i ld l i fe P rotect ion Act (WPA) 1 972 , the I nd i a n Forest Act ( I FA) 1 927 a n d the Forest (Tr iba l R ights) B i l l 2005 with a n i ntegrated piece of legis lat ion. The Renewable Natural Resource (Conservation) Act, which i ncorporates the good pa rts of a l l the th ree above a n d is futur ist ic i n its v is ion a n d a pp l i cat ion a n d does not suffer e i ther from t h e s iege menta l i ty o f t h e WPA which revel s i n prohi bit ion of a l l sorts or t h e free for a l l mandate of the tr iba l b i l l .

The nat ion needs a l aw that has gone through the r igour o f a good work ing d raft fol l owed by pub l ic hea ri ngs, expert debates a n d act ive d i scussion in Parl i ament , a l l with a pre·agreed t imeframe.

• Focus on the whole and not just the parts. • Focus on trends and not numbers. • Focus on front l i nes and top l i nes. • Focus on loca ls .

(Forests: for a hol i st i c, futur ist ic v i s ion , Manoj Kumar M isra , T H . B, 3 1 .07 .05 , E01a)

I Docwnentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Act ivi sts, env ironment groups and i nd iv idua l s a re protesti ng t he secret ive ways of the U n ion M i n i stry of Envi ronment and Forests (MoEF). The M in i stry has f ina l i sed a draft of the Nat ional Envi ronment Pol icy (N EP) and submitted i t to the Cabi net for approva l , wi thout making the pol icy publ ic , as sti pu lated under the Right to I nformation (RTI) Act of 2004. Over 70 cit izens' groups and i ndiv idua l s have wri tten to the Pri me M in i ster to make it publ ic . The f i rst draft of the NEP was f i l led with contrad ict ions. The revi sed draft should have been shown to us , and nat iona l consu ltat ions held with c it izens , before it was sent to the Cabi net ," sa i d Ash ish Kothari of Ka l pavri ksh. (What a re the babus h id i ng? Anupama Java raman , I E. B, 29.08.05, E0 1a )

For the f i rst t ime, t he a pex court has put i n pl ace a system to eva luate and col lect t he envi ronmental cost of any project i n forest land. Unt i l now, the cost i nc luded just that of trees fel led. But i n a 70 page judgment. the Supreme Court has ordered that projects be charged Net P resent Va l ue (N PV); va lue of benefi ts from a forest i nc lud ing oxygen production, biodiversity, ca rbon absorpt ion and f l ood and d rought contro l . The only projects exempted w i l l be govern ment hospita l s, d i spensa r ies, non commerc ia l government ventures l i ke schools, water tan ks, sewers. The N PV col lected w i l l go to a nati ona l corpus that w i l l be audited by CAG and used for preservi ng forests, not necessa r i ly i n the state where the project i s com i ng up. Th i s i s over a nd a bove the cu rrent system of compensatory afforestation . .

N PV i s a l ready bei ng charged by four states - B ihar, Chatt isga rh , Maharast ra a nd Ha rya na . More than Rs 300 crore has been col lected so fa r and i s ly ing with the courts with no c la ri ty on what to do with the money. The p lea that publ i c sector projects of N H PC or Power-grid be exempted has been tu rned down by a three - member bench headed by Justice Y K Sabharwal who del ivered the judgment after a conti nuous three·day hea ri ng on an omnibus forest ease. (SC defi nes 'green ' cost for projects bu i l t on forest l and , Sonu Ja i n , I E .D, 29.09.05 , E0 1 a)

The f ina l techn ica l report of the Nat ional Biodiversity Strategy and A( ' i on P lan (N BSAP) has sa id that I ndia has lost over half of its forest cover, 40 % of its mangroves, and a signif icant part of its wet lands in the past couple of centuries.

The report "Secur ing I nd ia 's Futu re: The F ina l Techn ica l Report of the Nat iona l B iod iversity Strategy and Action P lan" released was origi na l ly supposed to have been an offic ia l report of the Un ion Envi ronment and Forests M in i stry. I t was made publ i c as a c i t i zen's report si nce the M i n i stry had fa i l ed to act on i t for a lmost two yea rs .

C i t i ng ha bitat destruct ion , hunt ing and over-exploitat ion as the i mmediate causes of b iod iversity loss, the report sa id that beh i nd these factors were an unsusta i nable and i nsensit ive model of 'development, ' brea k­down of trad it iona l management practices and i nstitutions, centra l i sat ion of dec ision-mak ing powers in the government, serious social and economic equ ities, changes in moral and cu ltura l va lues and lack of recogn it ion of the ful l va l ue of b iodiversity i n economic p lann i ng. The scenar io was worsened by globa l i sat ion, it said . I n January 2000, the Min istry fac i l i tated the NBSAP process, start ing with the unusual step of giving its technical coord i nat ion to Ka l pvri shk, worki ng in conjunction with a 1 5-member techn ica l and pol i cy core group. The project wa s fu nded th rough the G l oba l Envi ronment Fac i l i ty ( GEF) by the U n i ted Nat ions Deve lopment Program me. The f ina l report was submitted to the M in i st ry in 2003. U nt i l then , the M i n i stry had i nd icated that i t wou ld be the nat ional p lan .

Stress ing on more decentra l i sed governa nce and admin istration , i t sa id there was a need for a nat ional land and water use p lan besides re-orientat ion of agr icu lture, i ndustry, i nfrastructure and other development sectors. I t highl ighted the need for central i nvolvement of commun ities most dependent on biological resources and expans ion of a reas a nd spec ies u nder conservat ion . (50 % forests lost , says report , T H . D, 05. 1 0 .05 , E0 1 a)

S ix countries i nc lud i ng I nd ia and Ch ina wi l l form an Asia Pacif ic i n it iat ive as a ' para l le l to the Kyoto protocol a n d wi l l meet i n Syd ney next month to d i scuss effective methods to reduce green house gas emiss ions . Ca l l i ng the Kyoto protocol a fa i l u re, Austra l ia 's i ndustry m i n i ster I a n Macfar lane sa id the new As ia Pac if ic forum · i nc l ud i ng Austra l i a , I nd i a , Ch i na , Un i ted States, Japan and South Korea - wi l l be more effective i n reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The grouping, which represent half the world's economy' , wi l l meet for the fi rst partnershi p on clean development and c l i mate d iscussions. (Six countr ies i n bid to form pa ra l le l to Kyoto, FE .B, 3 l . 1 2 .05 , E0 1 a)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentat ion Update I EOlb Envi ronmenta l I ssues

A new wave of i ndustri a l i sat ion threatens to make the people of Or issa envi ron menta l refugees in thei r own l and . The State's a i r, water, w i ld l ife and people 's l ivel i hoods a re bei ng destroyed by the so·ca l l ed i ndustri a l bl itzkrieg, according to environmenta l i sts. S purred by t h e sp i ra l l i ng demand for steel a n d a lumin ium i n the i nternat ional market, several conglomerates have come forward to set up meta l production un its to exploit t he minera l resources of the State. The i ndustri a l i sation boom i s expected to resu lt i n massive envi ronmenta l degradation since the l ocal envi ronment has a l i mited "carrying capacity" to a bsorb and a ss imi l a te effluents and wastes produced d u e to such giga nt ic production fac i l it i es bei ng squeezed with i n a very s hort t i me. (, I ndustri a l i sat ion w i l l harm Orissa's ecology greatly' , Prafu l l a Das, BL.C, 07.06 .05 , E01 b)

EOlc Forests

The efforts of a band of women to conserve and develop mangrove forests a re creat ing a revo lution in the h i nterland of Chettuva . With the support of the Habitat Science Teach ing Community, Department of Socia l Forestry, Gymkhana C lub a n d litt le F lower Col l ege, t h e women p l a nt t he sap l i ngs a round ponds i n the i r houses and re·plant them, after a few months, i n the mangrove forest at Azh imukhom in Kadappuram panchayat, 25 km from Thrissur. Thi s is perhaps the fi rst t ime in the country that a group of vi l lage women is tak i ng an i n terest i n conserv ing m angrove forests. (A women's revo lut ion i s on ; Conservat ion and d eve lopment of manfrove forests, K. Santhosh , TH .C , 1 4. 04.05, E01 c)

The Envi ronment M in i st ry p lans to adopt a "mu lt i ·sta keholder' a pproach to i m prove private part ic i pation to i ncrease forest cover in the country. An i nter·m in i steria l con su l tat ion is requ i red wi th va r ious m in i str ies to i ro n out i ssues l i ke the extent of f i nance that the Govern ment wou l d be w i l l i ng to extend and the revenue share between the Government and private part ies.

Whi le the Min istry i s f inal is ing i t p lans, i t would soon seek feedback from various i ndustries, non·governmental organ isations ( NGOs), resea rchers and other m in i str ies. Whi l e the proposa l is a t a prel i minary stage, i t may enta i l changes in the Forest Conservation Act, depending on the fi na l i sed plans, sa id officia ls . Meanwhi le, the country lost 26,245 sq km of dense forests between 2001 and 2003, though the overa l l forest cover i ncreased by 2 ,795 sq km . As much a s 3 ,90 ,564 sq km of the count ry's geograp h i ca l a rea was u nder dense forest cover, wh i l e open forests covered 2 ,87 ,769 sq k i n , a ccord i ng to the 'State of Forest Report -2003' (SFR· 2003) rel ea sed by the Forest Survey of I nd i a . A tota l of 6 ,78,333 sq km or 20.64 % of a rea i s under forest cover. Asked about the loss i n dense forests, Mr Raja attri buted it to var ious i ndustri a l , deve lopmental a nd min ing projects being undertaken a cross the country. The Government rules sti pu late that those undertak ing such projects have to compensate for the l oss of forests by p lanting trees on double the forest l and used for the purpose. (Ministry to adopt 'mu lt i -stakeholder' approach to i ncrease forest cover; To seek feedback from i ndustry, NGOs, B L . B, 20.07.05, E01 c)

The Centre recent ly a p proved d ivers ion of forest l and u nder Sect ion 2 of the Forest (Conservat ion) Act , 1 980 to certa i n government departments for development activit ies. However, approva l w i l l be granted for two yea rs , end i ng December 3 1 , 2006, a n d w i l l be subj ect to rev iew thereafter. Accord i ngly, rel axat ion of ro les cover act iv it ies such as construct ion of school bu i ld i ngs, d i s pensary and hospita l s , e l ectr ic a n d telecommuni cation l i nes, dr ink ing water, rai nwater harvest ing structures, minor i rrigat ion cana ls , structures of non·convent ional sources of energy, putt ing u p ski l l development and vocat ional t ra i n ing centres, power substations, commun ication posts , pol ice stat ions, outposts, border outposts a nd watch towers i n sensitive a reas.

The Centre, in its guide l i nes, stated that deve lopment and conservation shou ld go hand in hand . Awareness, however, a mong the people i s bound to come from with i n , provided other necessit ies such as food , cloth i ng, educat ion , hea l th , a nd commun icat ion a re sat isf ied. The Centre is com m i tted to exped i te i ts efforts for development activit ies in forest a reas, cover ing the tr iba l people and others l iv ing in the forest.

The Centre is ready to tack le the problems of sens it ive a reas on the socio-economic f ront . It i s set to fac i l i tate spec i a l execut ion of essent ia l deve lopment act ivi t ies . But , the Govern ment wa nts to e n su re a ba l ance between economic a nd development considerations on one hand and eco logica l considerations on the other. I t i s i mperative that for creation of these fac i l i t ies i n forest and its fr i nge a reas , most of the l and

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req u i rement w i l l have to be met from forest l a n d . The general approva l of the Centre i s bound by certa i n condit ions. Forest l and diverted for specif ic deve lopment works should be less than one hecta re i n each case a n d c lea ra n ce from the Centre is subject to the cond i t ion that i t is need based . (Fo rest A ct relaxed for development, Jeevan Ch innappa , T H . B, 28.08.05 , EOl c)

EOld Wi l dl i fe

Stu nned by the fate of t igers a t Sar i ska i n Rajast h a n , Forest offic i a l s a t Band i pur a re on a n a l e rt a nd w i l l strengthen t h e a nti ·poach ing camps t o deal with t h e cri s i s p lagui ng the stri ped beauty which i s totteri ng on the bri n k of ext i nct ion . Strengthe n i ng such camps is now perceived to be an a rea of pr ior ity ever s i nce the country was hit by the t ragedy at Sar iska where poachers w iped away the magnificent creatu res forc ing the P r ime M i n i ster to express concern over the fate of w i ld l ife and the Centra l B u reau of I nvestigat ion (CB I ) stepped i n for i nvestigat ion . There a re 3 1 a nt i · poach ing ca mps i n t h e B a n d ipur N at iona l Pa rk a n d 2 4 i n N agarahole. The authorit ies have sought permiss ion t o create 30 more camps for the forest protection work. However, some non·governmenta l organ i sat ions worki ng on conservat ion i ssue say that strengthen ing the a nt i · poach i ng c a m ps i s a welcome d eve lopment , but the Department of Forests shou l d take care of the personne l posted to such cam ps . The average age of a forest guard is reckoned to be 50 with majority of them sufferi ng from hypertens ion or d i a betes, a nd thus unfit for the rigours of the forest protect ion task . (Forest staff gea r up to prevent a Sar iska in Band ipur, Krishna Kumar, T H .B, 02 .04.05, EO l d)

A l l may not be wel l with the t igers, but there i s good news for a n i ma l lovers from G i r, the on ly natural habitat of the Asiat ic l i on in the world . Accord i ng to a l ion census carried out at Sasan G i r in the Saura shtra region of Gu jarat , the l i on popu lat ion i n the na tiona l park has c l imbed to 359 compa red to 327 i n 2001 . The G i r N at ional Park i s , i n fact, overf lowing a n d the l ions have sp i l led over to adjoin ing a reas. A few years ago, a pr ide of l ions had moved to the coast near Verava l , a town a bout 35 km from Sasan G i r. That was the fi rst t ime the l ion was found to be adapt ing i tself to a coasta l envi ronment. Gujarat i s , however, st i l l not w i l l i ng to rel ocate the l i ons i n a ny other part of the country. W i ld l ife experts have been demand ing that the l ion popu lat ion shou ld be spread out to i mp rove i ts s u rv iva l , in case an ep idemic str i kes G i r. Madhya P radesh has been req uest i ng that some l i ons be moved to i ts forests. (Wi l l Guj a rat 's ' pr ide' h u rt G i r? Gaurav Raghuvan s h i , B L . B, 0 1 .05 .05 , EO l d)

Yea rs before savi ng the t iger became a rag ing nat iona l concern , one man had made it h i s sole miss ion . He devoted h i s ent i re I ife to savi ng I nd i a 's b ig cat , wh ich way back i n the 70s d i d not face the k ind of threat i t faces today. That man i s B i l ly A rj an S i ngh , I nd ia 's origi na l 't iger man ' . He chose to set up home on the edge of the Dudhwa N at iona l Park i n U P so that he cou l d protect the t iger a nd leopards i n the forest. Now a s the 88·year·old looks back, he fee ls he was successfu l despite being a persona non·grat is for the government and the local goons . He c l a ims there a re not more than 20·25 t igers today i n Dudhwa and they survived ch iefly because the Park is the o n ly one boast ing of b io·d iversity.

That a part, there i sn ' t much about the state of t igers i n I nd i a that S ingh feels cheerful about. Even the recent a ppoi ntment of the T ige r Task Force by the Pr ime M i n i ster i s not mus ic to h i s ears. "The wrong person i s head ing it. Sun i t a N arai n ca l is herself a n environmental i st , which I feel i s a m ix of one or a nother. And as such, one i s not givi ng pr ior i ty to the cause. They shou ld have a ppoi n ted someone l i ke U l l a s Karat o r Va l m i k Thapar" h e says. (Wrong person i s head i ng t iger panel : B i l ly Arjan S ingh, Meenakshi Kumar, TOI . M , 1 5.08.05, EO l d)

The tussle between the Tatas and the turtles has taken a new twist with the recent assertion from Tata Steel officia l s that Dhamra Port Company Ltd (Tata Steel · L& T JV) would go a head with the port at Dhamra , Orissa even before the environmental study is over.

The envi ronmenta l a ssessment of the port assumes cr i t ica l i mporta nce a s i t i s l ocated i n the i mmed ia te v ic in ity of t h i s frag i l e zone of O l ive R i d l ey sea turt les a n d a ny such a ct iv i ty poses a t h reat to th i s ra re species.

The envi ronmenta l study for the proposed port, wh i ch is current ly being ca rr ied out by Bombay Natura l H i story Soc i ety ( B N H S) a n d other NGOs , i s not expected t o get over by A p ri l · M ay, 2006. Tata Stee l has stated that the work on the project wou ld commence by January 2006. I n response to a n ema i l q uery Tata

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I Steel offi cia l s stated , Tata Steel and L& T a re not the type of compan ies who would go ahead with a p roject agai nst the i nterest of envi ronment and ecology i n th i s case the hab itat of the turt les.

However, a ccord ing to a n other study ca rried by out Wi ld l i fe I nstitute of I nd i a via sate l l ite, a l l the sample turtles have a tendency to move towards the north of Dham ra . Four turtles were tagged w i th sate l l ite ch ips and their movements were monitored v ia sate l l i te. The report of the Central Empowered Commi ttee, a ppointed by the Supreme Court, had ear l ier suggested the port needs to be re· located as it threatens the existence of O l i ve R i l ey turt les. (Tatas ' tussle with tu rt les t akes new twist , P roposed Por t Company Poses R i sk to Ol ive R id ley Turtles, M anoj i t Saha, FE .D, 29.09.05 , E0 1d)

The Forest Department has decided to engage 1 200 e lepha nts for promot i ng n atu re tour ism i n nat iona l pa rks i n Assam. The Forest M i n i ster, P radvut Bordo lo i , sa id that the Government wou ld o rgan i se e lephant festiva l s to sensit ise people a bout co·ex i st i ng w i th the pachyderms to m i n i mise the growing man-e lephant conf l i ct . The destruction of e lephant habitats has led to th i s conf l i ct . Us ing the e lepha nts for promot i ng tourism would help the i r owners to generate the income requ i red for mainta in ing them. The Forest Department had engaged elephants owned by i ndividuals in the recently held Kaziranga N ationa l Park centenary celebrations and a l so arra nged for thei r health check· up. M r. Bordoloi said that an e lephant vi l l age wou ld be set up by the Depa rtment in col l a boration with tou r operators at Ran i on the outski rts of the c ity. (Elephants to promote natu re tour ism, Sushanta Ta l ukdar, TH .B, 20.02.06, E01 d)

E12 Natural and Common Resources

A Congress M LA is a mong s ix l andowners who have e ncroached on var ious stretches of J u h u beach . The encroachments on the beach, wh ich extends from Juhu Kol iwada in the south to Moragaon near Versova , came to l ight l ast month when suburban deputy res ident col l.ector G M Bodke fi led a n affid av i t i n the H igh Court l i st ing out the powerfu l people and estab l i shments that have grabbed expensive p ieces of Juhu 's rea l estate.

The affidavit was f i led as part of the ongoi ng publ ic i nterest l it igation demanding the implementation of the Juhu beautif icat ion scheme and shows a map i nd icati ng that Congress M LA from Shirpur in d istrict Dhu le , Amr ish Patel 's fam i l y wh ich owns p lot no . 1 7 a t Juhu beach , has enc roached on a section of the beach . Accord i ng to the l i st submitted , a cl uster of five bunga lows owned by Juhu P roperty Pvt Ltd has usu rped a whopp ing 46,000 sq mts on the northern end of the beach. Hotel Horizon has encroached u pon 900 sq mts of the beach. (Cong MLA , hotel among encroachers at Juhu beach; Juhu P roperty Pvt Ltd usurped a whopping 46, 000 sqm , C l a ra Lewis , TOI . M , 02 .05.05 , E 1 2)

Mu lt inat ionals for rural water supply

We may have to pay a pr i ce even 1 0 .05 .05 , E 1 2)

Medha Patkar c rushed a bottle of packaged d ri nk ing water to symbol i ca l ly l aunch the campa ign aga i nst privatisation of water supply. Envi ron menta l ist and soc ia l activist Medha Patkar was to launch the Karnataka leg of the nat ionwide campa ign spearheaded by the Nat iona l A l l i a nce of Peop le 's Movement. Ms. Patkar

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a l l eged that the state governments a re being pressured by mult ir:lat iona l compan ies and the World Bank to privat ise water supply i n one form or the other a nd the i ncreased market ing of bottled water is the evidence of th is . C. Ba lakr ishnan , convenor of the a l l i ance, sa id : "Many of these bott les a re f i l led with contami nated water result i ng in hea lth hazards. The poor a re den ied their right u nder the Constitution to free supply of safe d ri nk ing water. "Ground water is fast getti ng depleted, a nd the lack of state i n it iative and publ ic i nvestments to col l ect and preserve ra i nwater is add ing to an u n precedented water cr is is in many parts of the country." (Campa ign aga i nst pr ivat isat ion of water supply l aunched, T H . B, 25 . 1 0.05, E 1 2)

Many a re toy ing with the i dea of commercia l i s i ng water. The Worl d Bank has been vigorously campa ign i ng s i nce the 1 990s and they have made i nroads i n Andhra P radesh, Orissa, a nd a lso Del h i . Banga lore i s not far beh ind . They have a l ready i dentif ied the soft targets and are s lowly un leash ing the p lan . Hence the protest of c ivi l society organ isations to thwart th is a ttem pt i n Banga lore recent ly is not without reason . Fresh water i s a sca rce resource. O n ly 0 .008 % of the p l a nets ' water i s ava i l a bl e for human consumpt ion . A c i ty o f one mi l l ion uses approximately 625,000 metric tons of water everyday. Pol lution of rivers a nd oceans is i ncreas ing. It is easy to ta ke c lean water a nd regu l a r access for granted in the deve loped nations .

Water pr iva tisat ion exacerbates the ex i st i ng g loba l i neq u a l i ty of a ccess to water. Countr ies that a re now suffer ing severe water short ages a re home to the poorest people on earth . To charge them for a l ready scarce suppl ies is to guarantee growi ng water d isparit ies. Hundreds of thousands of Bol iv ians came i nto the streets to protest when Bechte l , backed by the Wor ld Bank , doubled water rates.

Every art ic le on t he subject of water sta rts with the rem i nder of the popu lat ion exp los i on a n d where i t i s occurr ing. I m plying that "these people" a re responsible for the loomi ng water cr is is . B u t a mere 1 2 % of the world 's popu la tion uses 85 % of i ts water, and these 1 2 % do not l ive in the Th i rd Wor ld .

The pr ivat isat ion of th i s sca rce resource wi l l lead to a two· t ier, those who ca n afford water and those who can not. I t w i l l force m i l l ions to choose between necessi ties such as water and hea l th ca re. In England , h igh wate r rates force people to choose whether or not to wash the i r food, f lush the i r toi lets, or even bathe. Water as a fundamenta l human right is guaranteed i n the UN Universa l Decl a ra tion on H u man Rights . (Privat is ing water i s to h i t the poor where i t hu rts most, Somasekhar V K, VT. 03. 1 2 .05 , E 1 2)

E20 Tour ism and Cr ime

A 47 ·year·old German tou r ist was a l legedly raped by a n a uto· r ickshaw driver and h is accompl ice i n Jodhpur. The two were a rrested a few hours l ater by the city pol i ce. The tour ist , a n employee of Lufthansa Air l ines, was raped on t he outski rts of the c i ty after the two abducted her from the heart of Jodhpur. The victim's screams woke up peop le in a nearby hamlet, who came to the tourist's rescue. By then the accused had fled from the scene. Nea r ly three hours l ater, the a uto d rive r Shankar Lal was i ntercepted by the po l i ce a nd a r rested . (German tour ist raped i n Jodhpur, I E .C, 1 3 .05.05, E20)

Taking serious view of the rape of a Germa n tourist, the Rajasthan H igh Court has d i rected the lower court to complete the hea ri ng with in a mont h . The Court observed that th is case was very serious as it cou ld ta rn ish the i ma ge of the cou ntry and a lso c reate a sense of fea r a mongst fore ign tou r ists . The Cou rt made the pub l is hed reports in newspa pers a s base and i ssued notices to Home Secreta ry of the state, D i rector of Tou ri s m Depa rtment a nd S P of Jodhpur to present the i r a nswers before the Court w i th i n a week . Th i s, perhaps, i s the fi rst of i ts k i nd of P I L i n the h istory of jud ic i a ry where, the H igh Court has d i rectly · issued not ices to the government agencies and d i rect ives for the lower court .

Meanwh i l e the tour ist had shown her grat itude towards .the v i l l age rs of Basn i Veda who came to her rescue a n d Jodhpur pol i ce. (Jodhpur rape case: HC tel l s l ower court to speed up, TOI . D, 1 5 .05 .05 , E20)

A l a rge number of craft empor iums i n the c i ty of Taj a re known to cheat tour ists through credit card frauds. Tak ing ser ious note of the l a rge num ber of i nc idents in which touri sts were cheated i n Agra , U n ion Tour ism M in i ster Renuka Chowdhary has asked the l oca l I nd ia Tour ism office to co·ord i nate with the Agra authorit ies and U P Tourism Department to check credi t ca rd scams that a re giving a bad na me to the country's tou rism industry.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I Tou rist I nformat ion Officer Mr La l ta P rasad sa i d he has recently received a letter from a n American tou rist, who had been defrauded of Rs 28,000 by an Agra jewel lery sho p. The compla int that was f i led by the touri st th rough he r embassy had been forwarded to the Agra offi ce of I nd i a Tour i sm by U n ion Tou r ism M i n i ster Renuka Chowdhary, seeking immediate act ion .

Mr P rasad sa id R achel Ca lderon , a res ident of Los Ange les , U n i ted States , has com p l a i ned that she had a rr ived i n Agra on Novem ber 1 1 l ast yea r and i m mediate ly after a rr iv ing to the c i ty was taken to H a m l i ng Col lect ions, a jewe l le ry shop i n Sada r Baza r a rea of the town by a l oca l tout.

• She purchased jewe l lery worth $ 70 but when she returned to US afte r a few weeks, she found that i n stead of $ 70 , she had been cha rged $ 700 for t he jewe l l e ry fol low ing wh ich she f i led a comp l a i nt with the US embassy.

Mr Prasad sa id such cases of cred i t card frauds with foreign tour ists a re not new i n Agra and each yea r, the I nd ia Tourism office receives several compla i nts from tourists against a se lect few emporiums, whose names recur in the compla ints .

Now, acting u pon th is compla int forwarded recently by the U nion Tourism Min ister, the I nd ia Tourism office has asked the Agra Senior Super i ntendent of Pol i ce Raj iv Kri shna , D i st ri ct Magist rate Sanjay P ra sad & Jo i nt D i rector U P Tour ism, D K Burma n to i nvestigate the role of Agra e m poriums i n cheat ing tourists.

He recommends that the tourists shou ld make cash payments after making purchases from Agra emporiums and if a t a l l c red it ca rds a re used for the purc ha ses, t hey s hou l d i ns i st on the use of an e lectro n i c ca rd verif ication machine i nstead of a manua l process as the e lect ron ic method i s fool ·proof to a l a rge extent. I n manua l method , there a re chances that the charge s l i ps might be a ltered by the empori um owner after the tour ist s igned it . (Credit ca rd sca ms a bound in c ity of Taj , Vijay Upadhyay, T P. D, 1 9.05 .05 , E20)

Worried that r i s i ng cases of rape a n d molestat ion in Del h i may affect the tour ism sector, U n ion Tou ri sm Min ister Renuka Chaudhury ca l led pol i ce Chief K. K. Pau l to express concern and sought remedia l steps. The Pol ice Commiss ioner had a 1 5·mi nute· long meeti ng with the M i n ister du ring which they d iscussed ways to i ncrease safety for women i n the c ity. The meet ing comes a day after a woman was raped at the Safdarjung Hospita l and c lose on t he heels of the molestation of a young woma n who had come with her fa mi ly to have d i nner i n Connaught P l ace. She sa id she had suggested that the tour ist pol ice force be converted i nto a ded icated force a n d offered her M in istry's assistance to "sens it ise ' i t . However the M in i ster sa id the pol i ce a l one cou ld not be expected to curb such cases a n d common people shou l d a l s o be sens i t i sed so that offenders were soc ia l ly ostracised. ( I ncidents harming touri sm, Pau l told , HT.D, 1 6 .09 .05 , E20)

Displayi ng commendable speed, a Ja ipu r sessions court a nd the Rajasthan po l ice have combined to ensure that a local rickshaw pu l ler was handed a court sentence within 36 hours of molest i ng a foreign tou rist. Th is is the fourth t ime that offenders have been brought to just ice speedi ly in Rajasthan . The Vidhayak Puri pol i ce stat ion here · on ly the second i n the country to have ISO 9000 cert i f icat ion · received a com pl a i nt from a tourist that she had been molested by a rickshaw pul ler whi le looki ng for a hote l . Pol ice identified the rickshaw pul ler, Vijay Das, with in two hours and over the next few hours a pproached the court with a charge sheet . On the pol i ce's request, the cou rt began the t ri a l i mmediate ly and heard out some witnesses · i n teresti ngly th ree fore ign touri sts deposed as w i tnesses. The tr ia l resumed a nd the court a nnou nced i ts j udgment by even i ng, hand ing Das a s ix months' j a i l term and a Rs 500 f i ne. The court sa id i t was impe rative to hand out pun ishment qu ickly i n such cases as the country's reputation was at stake. (Ja i l term in two days for teas ing tou rist, Sand ipan Sharma , I E.C, 27 . 1 1 .05 , E20)

E21 Tour ist Pol ice and Secur i ty

Security agencies a t the Taj Maha l were aga i n faced embarrassment when a Korean tour ist group staged a song a n d dance show ins ide the monument. I t was even recorded on a video.

React ing l a te, the Centra l I ndustria l Security Force (CISF), i n·charge of the monuments security, managed to confiscate the video camera of the tourists and the tape was destroyed before a l lowing the tou ri sts to leave the monument premises. This group, being part of a cultural troupe of Korea visit ing the town, was a l lowed to

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enter the monument after a perfunctory security check. The tour ists proceeded towards the centra l tank of the monument a nd assembled on the tank in the form of a choir and began a song and dance sequence on the p latfor m that was bei ng f i l med by one of the tourists from the g roup, sa i d the Deputy Commandant.

Accord ing to Ms S i ngh , the guards i m med iately ca ptu red the camera bei ng u sed by the tou r ists and told them that they had v io lated the rules of the monument that prohib i ted v ideo·shoots from the centra l tank . The tou rists feigned ignorance of the ru les and sa i d that the i r loca l guide had told them i t was ok to shoot t he mus ic v ideo at the monument.

She sa id that after i nterrogati ng the tour ists, i t was ascertai ned that they had i ndeed made a m istake , bei ng m isgu ided by the loca l gu ide and they were a l l owed to complete the ir tour of the monument , though thei r v ideo camera was confiscated t i l l t hey retu rned from the i r tour. The ca mera was l ater handed back to them, though the tape was destroyed. (Tour i sts make mockery of Taj secur i ty, Vi jay U padhyay, TP. D, 1 7 .02.06, E21 )

E22 Tour ism and Drugs

A city court has refused the bai l app l i cation of a n I srae l i nat ional accused of i nternat ional drug traffick ing and money l aunderi ng worth 10 m i l l ion Euros, equ iva l ent to Rs 50 crore.

I nd i an immigration authorit ies apprehended E l isha , wanted in the Netherlands for over two years, in February, pursuant to a l ookout notice run by the I nterpol . Accord i ng to the warrant, E l i sha i s gu i l ty of i nvolvement i n crim ina l drug traffick ing activit ies a nd laundering money from crim i na l origin i n Hol land and New Zea land. (No to ba i l for foreign drug pedd ler, TP.D, 1 2 .03.06 , E22)

E40 Sex-Tour ism

A h i gh -profi l e p rostitut ion racket was unearthed b y the Del h i pol i ce a n d two women , i nc lud i ng a Bol lywood sta r let , a nd an a l l eged p i m p were a rrested . The a l leged p imp was a c lose assoc iate of Del h i 's "f lesh trade ki ng" Kamal j i t S i ngh. Vima l Thapa a nd the two women were held by the pol ice a lter a ra i d on a star hotel i n South Del h i . The i r network was spread over Delh i , Mumba i , Ja ipur, Chandigarh, Uttaranchal a n d other states. (Sex racket busted at a posh hote l , AA . D, 03 . 1 0 .05 , E40)

Thomas Cook i s run n i ng fam i ly tours of Amsterdam's red l ight d i str ict. Thomas Cook c l a ims the tour, offers a fasc inat i ng i ns ight i nto the o ldest p rofession i n the world . But fa mi ly campa igners and MP' condemned the company for offer ing the Wa l k i ng Tou r· Dark Amsterdam. The out i ng i nc ludes a br ief i ng on the haunt by a former p rost i tute a nd a g u i ded tour. I t 's s im p ly not good enough every decent parent a nd fam i l y w i l l be a pp a l l ed that tours of t h i s nature a re bein g offered not on ly to adu l ts but a l so to i m press ionab le ch i l d ren . Thomas Cook c la i ms i t offers the tour i n i t s 2006 S ignatu re Cit ies and Short Breaks brochure specia l i st a rm o f the ma in f i rm i n response to feedback from c l ients. A press rel ease on the two-hour tou r says i t leaves a t 8pm and w i l l take v is itors deep i nto the famous red · l ight d istr ict , accompan ied by a rel i a bl e and trustworthy gu ide. (Travel Co offers fami ly tour of Amsterdam's red · l i ght d i str ict , Beth Ha le , TOI . B, 1 7 . 1 1 .05 , E40)

E41 Prost i tution and Traff ickin g

The agents i nvolved i n f lesh t rade a re transport i ng ba r g i r ls o f Mumba i t o va r ious p l aces of western Utta r Pradesh ( U P). They a re look ing for new faces. Some agents have even fi na l i sed the dea l . After Maharashtra Government's dec i sion to c l ose i ts numerous qan ce bars. many ba r g i r l s have lost thei r jobs. The state has about 1 500 d a nce ba rs emp loy ing more than 1 00.000 women who mostly da nce Bo l l ywood n u m bers . Unemployed , the ba r g i r l s have sta rted mov ing to other I nd i an c i t i es to eke out thei r l i vi ng. Some of them have sh i fted to Meerut . The l oca l agents have the i r network spawned i n s ma l le r c i t ies - Muzaffa rnagar Bijnore Baghpat and Sharanpur. (Western UP: New destination for Maha bar gir ls, Aloke Sharma, TP.D, 07.05.05. E41 )

The jobless women of Mumba i 's dance bars may turn the ir i re towards the U S Consu late s ince Wash i ngton supports the closure of the i nfamous 'dance bars. An offic ia l report released by Secretary of State Condoleezza R ice a pp lauds the Maharashtra Home M i n i ster's order to c lose down dance bars. "Many of these served as

20 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I p rost i tut ion a n d t raff ick i ng out lets ." the state department report sa i d . The US hopes that the c l osure of dance bars may check a new trend of traffickers favour ing th is "more soph ist icated and concea led format for sel l i ng vict ims trafficked for the pu rpose of sexua l exp loitation over more blatant brothel ·based traffick ing" .

The annua l exerc ise of track ing human traffick ing throughout the work does not go i nto soc ia l a nd economic reasons for th is globa l malady but US resea rchers a re wel l i n formed a bout the red l i ght d istricts in fa r away Mumbai .

The report does n ot expl a i n the rea sons for the sh i ft away from brothe l · ba sed t ra ff i ck i ng to h igh ·c lass prost itution . Reports from I nd ia often suggest that economic l i bera l isation and i ncreased busi ness travel a re part ly respons i ble for expensive five-star prost itution .

I nd i a i s a lso a growing dest i nat ion for sex tou rists from Europe, the US and other Western countr ies , the report note stud ies show that majority fema les in the I nd i an commerc ia l sex i ndustry a re cu rrently vict ims of sexual servitude. (Traff ick i ng: I n d i a under US' watchfu l eye, L K Sha rma , D H . B, 05 .06.05, E4 1 )

Warn ing that traff ick ing i n human beings has become an organ ised transnational c rime generat ing profits of more than $ 8- 1 0 b i l l ion a yea r, cha i rperson of the Nat ional Human Rights Commission ( N H RC) Justice A .S. Anand sa id there were enormous gaps i n the I m mora l Traff ic (Prevention) Act that need to be addressed.

Del iveri ng the keynote address at a seminar on Trafficking i n Human Beings, he sa id that i nstead of prosecuti ng the traffickers u nder Sections 3, 4, 5 and 6 of ITPA, most prosecutions take p lace u nder Section 8, v ict im is ing trafficked persons.

Noti ng that efforts to combat traff ick ing have resulted in just ifying repressive measures aga i nst v ict ims of sexua l exploitat ion i n the name of thei r protection , he sa id ant i ·traff ick ing measures must take i nto account the role of tra ff ickers a n d steps to protect the r ights of the sexua l l y explo ited . (Ca l l for cha nges in law on human traff icking, T H . B, 29. 1 0.05 , E41 )

N ow, i f a woman checks i nto a ny hotel i n New Del h i w i thout l uggage, she w i l l b e not iced by the po l ice. Accord i ng to the pol i ce in the New Delh i a rea , the hotel s in the area a re frequented by prostitutes, who check i nto rooms without a ny l uggage. Deputy Commiss ioner of po l ice ( N ew Delh i ) An i ta Roy sa i d that th i s is the on ly way to bust prostitution rackets run n i ng in the a rea . Th is new way to curb prostitution wi l l be app l icable i n a l l hotels , i nc lud i ng the f ive-star hotels in the ci ty. The pol ice have a lso sa id that a l l hotels in New Del h i have been given i nstructions to i nform the pol i ce about women checki ng in without baggage. However, the pol ice i s yet to bust any prostitution racket a n d a l though the hotels a re cooperat i ng with the pol ice, many have f i l ed counter-compla i nts aga i nst the pol i ce. (Cops to check 5-star hotel 'guests ' , Syed Asi m Al i , AA. D, 29. 1 0.05 , E41 )

E42 Chi l d Prostitution / Ch i l d Sex Abuse

I t is the educated , h igh profi l e and hep c it izens of Banga lore who a re the worst ch i ld a busers.

The Ch i l d Wel fa re Committee (CWC) rescues at least 12 ch i l d ren from Banga l ore homes every week from domestic abuse a nd majority of the employers are government officia l s, top offic ia ls in multi -national companies, pr iests a nd even doctors .

Statistics • Dur ing the l ast e ight months, the committee has rece ived 80 cases of ch i l d l a bour, 75 of wh ich were

ch i l d re n emp loyed as domest ic workers. Of th is , 95 % were be low the age of 1 4 yea rs. • Of the 80 cases, 60 were g i r ls a nd 20 were boys. • 1 3 cases of c h i l d ren who were severely a bused have been referred by the committee to the l a bour

court. (Educated e l i te top the ch i l d a buse rs' l i st , Seetha l a khsm i S, TOI . B, 1 1 .07 .05, E42)

1 Documenta tion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6 The Supreme Court cancel led the bai l of Swiss paedophi le couple Wilhelm (62) and Li le Marti (60)- convicted i n M a rch 2003 by a M umba i Sessions Court and asked the M a ha rashtra pol i ce to i ssue a non ·ba i l a bl e warran t aga inst them, and get the Centre's help on extrad i t ing them. The court was hea ring a spec ia l petit ion moved by Maharashtra fol lowi ng reports in "Express' on Apri l 2 and 3 that the Swiss couple - nabbed in a subu rban hotel a bus ing m i nor street g i r ls f led the cou ntry i n Novem ber 2004, the i r passports sti l l i n a l oca l court 's possession . The i r escape was i n d i rect v io lat ion of a Sup reme Cou rt order that had gra nted them ba i l i n Apr i l 2004 but ba rred them from leavi ng the country. (Supreme Court ca ncel ba i l of Swiss paedophi les, Get Centre's he lp for extrad i tion , pol i ce told , Ch i trangada Choudhury, I E .C , 1 7 . 08.05, E42)

It is imperative that the present provisions u nder the cr iminal law, dea l i ng with chi ld sex a buse and exploitat ion, a re amended and spec ia l courts establ i shed to deal with such cases, sa id A P Shah, Ch ief Justice of Madras H igh Court.

He suggested that a jo int i nvestigat i ng team compr is ing a pol i ce off i cer, a phys ic i an a n d a psych iatri st be formed to dea l with chi l d a buse cases. Stat ing that ch i ld abuse had assumed monstrous proportions, he sa id that ch i ld ren were bei ng traded l i ke a commod ity the world over. M i l l ions of g ir ls and boys a re bei ng used i n f lesh t rade , pornography a n d other forms of sexua l a buse a n d exp lo i ta t i on , h e sa id , add ing that sexua l exploitation of ch i ldren had become a mult i ·b i l l i on dol lar industry of i nternationa l d imensions.

However, reports of crimes aga i nst ch i ld ren , Shah sa id , "are on the i n crease in the country." He added that i t was a matter of concern that 20 percent of the vi ct i ms of rape were c h i l d ren a n d that the rel evan t provis ions i n t he I PC were i n adequate to dea l w i t h the cases of persona l v io lence aga inst chi ldren . (Amend law to tack le ch i l d sex abuse: CJ , I E. C, 1 7 .2 .06 , E42)

E61 Women Workers i n Tour ism

A recent World Econom i c Forum study on gender gap has ranked I nd i a 53 among 5 8 countr ies i n terms of the status of women i n society. Pak istan a t 56 a n d B raz i l at 5 1 gave I n d i a company. Sweden ran ked f i rst wh i l e France stood at 1 3 , a step a head of t he US ( 1 7) .

What p laces Ind ia in such a d ismal posit ion? Accord i ng to the WEF, ach iev i ng gender equa l i ty i s a gri nd i ngly s low process, si nce it cha l lenges one of the most deeply entrenched of a l l human att itudes. The study wh ich compared the globa l gender gap across f ive para meters economi c pa rtic i pat ion , economic opportun i ty, pol it ica l empowerment , educat ional atta i nment a nd hea lth and wel l -bei ng - gave I nd i a a score of 3 .27 i n a scale of 1 to 7 , with 7 represent ing maximum gender equa l ity.

Although the I nd i a n Constitut ion ensures equa l r ights for women i n the workforce, with equa l pay for equal work, the ground rea l it i es a re very different . Across the country, women a re pa id lower wages than men in the formal sector, and in the organ i sed sector, women a re ma in ly conf ined to certa i n types of work wh ich ca l l for repet i t ive tasks, s i tt i ng at one p lace for long hours, or so-ca l l ed softer opt ions l i ke teach i ng or n u rs i ng. For t hose women who have the courage to breach the i nv is i b le barr iers and ta ke up ' a m a n 's job wh i ch wou ld requ i re more decis ion-making or networking, the glass cei l i ng p revents them from reach ing the p i nnacles of power.

Employment of women i n the organ i sed pub l i c and private sector has gone u p wh ich is evident for the fact that in 1 990, there were 227.09 1akh ma les and 36.49 1akh females, out of a total workforce of 263 .53 Iakh . I n 2002, the employment of males went down to 222 .7 1akh and female employment rose to 49.35 lakh i n a tota l workforce of 272.06 Iakh , accord i ng to the Econom i c Survey 2003-04.

The hosp i ta l i ty sector is a n other exa mple. Hotels have trad i t iona l ly been a major employer of women , but these a l so give the opportun i ty to women to c l i mb the corporate l adder. Accord i ng to ITC Hote ls , 45% of the ir employees across d i fferent properties a re women. "We have women employees a t the top rungs too. Our corporate pol ic ies encourage more women to a pply and try for the top posts, " says a company offic i a l . (Worki ng women get a raw dea l , Banashree Purkayastha , F E . B, 29.05 .05, E61 )

Thanks t o the cu rrent boom i n the av iat ion i ndustry, a l l ied sectors l i ke hospita l ity a n d resta u rants a re experienc ing a surge, leading to a sudden ri se i n dema nd for wel l ·groomed hostesses. Hospital i ty sources

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I say that most of these women a re being h i red for guest rel at ions and sales executives. And f in ish ing schools l i ke A i rhostess Academy and the E l i te Model Management School , wh ich offer a range of persona l i ty deve lopment and v isua l grooming programs, a re f looded w i th offers from the hotel sector.

Whi l e the E l i te Model School ma i nta i ns that they do not send out the i r models for hotel a ss ignments , a company source said that young girls from the grooming and placement progra mmes are bei ng "accommodated" i n l ifestyle·related jobs such as h igh·end reta i l stores and five·star restau rants. However, many i n the restaurant busi ness be l i eve that l ooks a re not the sole criteria a nd ski l l s a re as i mporta nt. (Models for Hote l s, N a m ita Koh l i , I E. D, 06. 1 0 .05 , E6 1 )

Even a s the Centre proposes pol ic ies to downsize the bureaucracy, the l a tter f i nds ways of spri ng ing back i n fu l l force. This t ime, the bureaucracy has found ways of employi ng " id le wives" of service officers goi ng by the scheme to be l aunched by the Tourism M in i stry.

Project P riyadarsh in i , a n i n i tiat ive of the Tou rism M in i stry, i s a n endeavour to bri ng women i nto the core a rea of the service sector, a nd take advantage of the tou rism boom in the country.

Address ing a press conference, Tourism Secretary A K M ishra outl i ned the projects where women cou ld be employed from driving taxis to running a taxi service, restaurants, i nformation and fac i l itation kiosks, cafeterias. Mishra said the Tourism M in i stry would welcome wives of service off icers with specia l ski l l s l i ke knowledge of fore ign l anguages to a ct as "pre m i u m gu ides ." So even a s the m i n i st ry's t ra i n i ng progra mme for tou ri st guides l angui shes, it has decided to co· opt women to act as spec ia l gu ides for high·end vis i tors "for tours a s wel l as shopping". With Project Pr iyadarsh i n i , t h e Touri sm M in i stry w i l l a l so fac i l itate self·employment for women under var ious schemes of the M i n i st ry of U rban Deve lopment a nd a lso Poverty A l l ev ia t ion . ( I d l e wives a s guides, vri nda Gopi nath , I E .C, 09. 1 2 . 05, E6 l )

Yet another male bastion i s a l l set to crumble. A i r I nd ia (AI ) , which so fa r had on ly ma le i n·fl ight supervi sors, wi l l now a l low female crew members to take u p what t i l l now was an exc lus ive male doma in . The order a l lowing fema le c rew members to be considered for the post of i n ·f l i ght supervisor was signed by the Cha i rman and Managi ng D irector, MrV. Thulas idas.

An i n·fl ight supervi sor is a person to whom al l the crew of the a i rcraft report. Genera l ly, cabi n crew who have put i n 25·30 years of service a re considered for the post of i n ·f l ight supervisor. I nd ian A ir l i nes a l ready fol lows th i s system a n d has fema le i n ·f l i ght supervisors. (Female i n ·f l ight superv isors to ma ke debut on A i r I nd i a , Ashwin i Phadn i s, BL .B, 29. 1 2 .05 , E61 )

Usheri ng i n a major change i n the Capita l 's hospita l i ty i ndustry l i fted the restrict ion on women servi ng l iquor at pub l ic p laces. Del iveri ng the order, which a l so app l ies to men under 25, a d iv is ion Bench set as ide curbs i mposed by the P u nj ab Exc i se Act, 1 9 1 4, wh ich is a pp l ica b le in Del h i . "We dec l a re that Section 30 of the Punjab Exci se Act, 1 9 1 4 i s v io lat ive of Art ic le 19 ( 1 ) (G 14 and 1 5 and u nconstitutiona l a n d i no perative to the extent that i t i m poses restrict ions u pon the employment of women i n any part of the l i censed premises in which l iquor or i ntoxicat i ng d rugs are consumed by the publ i c , " the Bench ruled.

The court, however, made i t c lear that 'no women employee would be compel led to serve in a bar in case she has object ions in doing so. '

Al l owing the pet i t ion f i led by three hotel management graduates, a long w i th the Hotel Assoc iat ion of I nd i a , the Bench termed Section 30 as an "ant ithesis to the contempora ry era " .

O n the r is ing popu larity of the hospita l i ty i ndustry as a career choice among women, the court sa id , " I ncreasing nu mbers of fema le candidates a ppear and pass in the e nt rance examinat ions conducted for admissions to var ious hotel m anage ment courses. Equa l n umber of fema le and ma le cand idates can be found in c lass rooms of a reputed i nstitution offering courses i n Hotel Management. This shows the enthusiasm of women to take on any cha l lenge shown u p by the hotel i ndustry" . (Women can serve l iquor i n hote ls : HC, Tanu Sharma, I E. B , 1 3 . 0 1 .06, E6 1 )

I Documenta tion Update 1 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

E63 Women Tour ist

Keepi ng i n mind the two th i ngs that women trave l lers look for most safety and privacy, these new a l l -women rooms w i l l have female staff and spec i a l servi ces for women.

I TC G ra n d Centra l Sheraton in M u mba i , for i n sta nce, has i ntroduced 15 exc lus ive rooms for women . The Oberoi group a nd the Bharat Hotels are conduct ing a feas ib i l ity study, whi le The Leel a group w i l l a l so in troduce a women only f loor' i n its new Chenna i property and other forthcoming projects. Hote ls that do not offer these f loors a re mak ing u p with extra attention in terms of safety a nd addit iona l amenit ies for luxury and comfort. These rooms a re stocked with an a rray of u p-ma rket a meni t ies cate r i ng to the needs of the busy woman . Beyond specia l care and attention, the a menit ies provided a re privacy-a nd-safety-focussed secur ity systems, l i ke door video phone, sepa rate l ifts, i n · room check- i n , and workout stepper, va lue addit ions at Spa servi ces l i ke massages. fac i a l s , man i cu res , and body t reaments bes ides sepa rate room service men u . The other amenities i nclude fu l l · length mi rrors, magn ifying two-sided round makeup mi rrors, up-market bathroom toiletries bes ides soft colou r scheme i n the rooms with s pec ia l bathroom l ighting. Guests on these floors a re served by fema le staff. The pr ice tag for such premium rooms range between Rs 7 ,000-8,000 per n ight . ( Hote ls d ress up for fa i rer sex , Rum i Dutta Hardasma l an i , TO I . D, 1 7.05.05 , E63)

E71 Nationa l Parks and Sanctuaries

At dusk, the State Transport bus d i sgorges people returni ng from work i n Khatkal i v i l l age i n the Melghat T iger Reserve. 'We go everywhere l ooki ng for work , " says Gamba Belsa reo

Every year, with dwint i l i ng jobs, the people of Khatka l i c lear forest land and p lant some crops. Very few have land rights_

Nea r the core a rea : L iv i ng i n the forest has problems too. Peop le have to stay u p a l l n i ght to ensure that a n i m a l s do n ot destroy the i r crops . I f c lear ing forests is an i ssue in Khatka l i . then in D ha rgad i t i s the poi son ing of deer. Th is vi l l age has been settled s i nce 1 964 and i t i s nea r the core a rea of the Reserve. "The Forest Depa rtment gave us l and and bu i l t homes for us to stay here and look after the forest. They a l so gave us work. But after t h i s t i ger project , there i s n ot h i ng for us . We have to stea l f i rewood a n d c lear l a nd for agr icu lture. We a re treated unjust ly, " says Punda l i k Ba l i ra m Godmale.

The people fee l they have bigger prob lems. They don ' t u nderstand why the Forest Depa rtment does not perm i t the k i l l i ng of wi ld boar, which destroys their crops. Both Khatka l i and D h a rgad a re part of the 19 vi l l ages, which a re to be re located from the Melghat T iger Reserve in Maharashtra's Amravati d i strict. Three v i l l ages have a l ready been moved out and there a re m i xed react ions a mong the relocated people.

I n Dhargad they have a l ready been shown l and , which people have a pproved. "We a re qu i te keen on l eavi ng the forest . The Forest Department suspects us of k i l l i ng a n i ma l s_ Now they even have m i l i ta ry men to keep vigi l on us , " sa id Godmale. However, Vatsa la Deokar fea rs that i f they leave the forest, they may have to pay for many th i ngs they now take for granted .

Reserve i s understaffed: The Reserve, wh ich has a bout 70 t igers , i s u nder staffed with 206 gua rds a n d 72 foresters aga i nst a sanctioned strength of 600_ Of l ate the prey base i s the i ncreas i ng ta rget. One of the f i rst n i ne Tige r Reserves i nc l uded i n Project T iger in 1 973 , the 1 ,676 sq. km. Reserve comprises the Gughama l Nat iona l Park, wh ich i s the core a rea , the Melgl iat T iger Sa nctuary and a denotified a rea of 500 sq km a rea ca l led the mu l t i p le use a rea . ( U neasy existence, Meena Menon, T H . D, 1 1 .09.05 , E7 1 )

.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I .

• G - COASTAL REGIONS .

GIO Mar ine and CRZ Acts, Rules and Laws

The nat iona l ma r i t ime pol i cy is yet to be f i n a l i sed , even though i t was framed in August 2004. I n fact the pol i cy was pasted on the webs i te of the M in i stry of Sh ipp ing, Roads and H ighways and after i ncorporat ing the i nputs from various stakeholders a modified d raft was aga i n put u p on the s ite i n February 2005. However m i n i st ry offi c i a l s say that op i n i ons a re st i l l bei n g sought on the pol i cy, a n d soon i t wou ld be ready i n i ts enti rety. Once the m i nistry prepares a f ina l d raft, i t would be sent for the Cabi net's c lea rance. However, there seems to be no c lear reason , as to why t he pol i cy has not been f i ne·tu ned . The m a ri t i me po l i cy i s bei n g considered as a s ign if icant step towards prov id ing better coord i nat ion with other modes of tra n sport a nd a l so ass ist ing i n the development of sh ipp ing and port i nfrastructure. (Nat ional mar iti me pol i cy yet to fi nd a n a nchor, An i mesh Singh, FE .B, 03 .01 .06, G 10)

The M i n i stry of Environment and Forests w i l l shQrt ly put in p lace a Coasta l Zone Management P l a n . It w i l l replace the Coastal Regu l at ion Zone (CRZ).

The new pla n , wh ich wi l l take effect i n a few months . w i l l be based on the concept of vu l nera b i l i ty l i ne . Vu l nerabi l i ty l i ne wi l l be the set back l ine demarcated a long the coast. I t w i l l be based on the hazard assessment of each coastal a rea. The Space Appl icat ions Centre, Ahmedabad , wi l l be the nodal agency for mapping th is l i ne. The map and data wou ld be in the pub l i c doma i n once i t i s c leared by the M i n i stry of Defence and suitable a mendments were made to the leg islat ion.

The M in ist ry set up the Swaminathan Committee in 2004 to review the CRZ and the report was submitted in February 2005. 'the committee fee ls that the current practice of fix ing CRZ based on h igh t ide l i ne is not the best of pract i ces and i s less sc ient ifi c . I t has a l so widened the scope of defi n it ion of a coastal zone.

The coasta l zone is to now i nc lude "an a rea from territor ia l l imits ( 1 2 naut ica l m i les). i nc lud ing its sea·bed to t he a d mi n i strat ive boundaries or the b iol og ica l bou ndar ies dema rcated on the l a n dward s ide of the sea coast. The coasta l zone management wil l a l so " inc lude the in land tidal water bodies i nf luenced by tidal action a nd the land a rea a long such water bodies ." Most of the committee recommendations have been accepted. The Min istry has had consu ltations with the Survey of India and other organ isations to fina l ise the vul nerabi l ity l ine.

Seven pa rameters: The Committee has recommended seven parameters for mapp ing the vul nerabi l i ty l i ne and has i ssued guidel i nes for th i s . The pa rameters a re e levat ion , geology, geomorphology, sea l evel trends , horizonta l shorel i ne d isp lacement, t ida l ranges and wave heights.

U n l i ke the CRZ, the p l an w i l l be or iented towards manag i ng resources, deve lopment and regu la t ion . The Committee has proposed 4 Coasta l Management Zones (CMZ). CMZ I wou ld consist of a reas designated as ecologica l ly sensit ive. CMZ I I wou ld i nclude a reas identified as Areas of Pa rticular Concern such as economica l ly i mportant a reas, high popu lat ion a reas and cultura l ly/strategica l ly i mportant a reas. CMZ· I I I wou ld i nclude of a l l other open a reas, i nc lud ing the coastal a reas, exc lud i ng those areas classified as CMZ· I , CMZ· I I I and CMZ · I V. CMZ · I V perta i ns to the Andaman and N i coba r I s l ands and Lakshadweep. (Coasta l Zone Management P l a n to rep lace CRZ, A Srivathsan , TH .B, 1 2 .03.06, G 1 0)

G30m Tami l Nadu

Even though the Government has ordered people l ivi ng a l ong the tsunami ·affected coast to bui ld houses 200 metres away from the ocean , f ishermen are sti l l staying c l ose to the sea . They say that they do not have an opt ion as the i r l i ve l i hood i s at r i sk .

I Documentation Update I 2 a 0 5 - 0 6

The Government Order No . 1 72 l uc i d ly provi des gu ide l i nes for construct i n g houses. The GO states that accord i ng to the Coasta l Regulat ion Zone (CRZ) notif ications, fu l ly damaged houses with i n 200 metres of the high t ide l i ne w i l l have to be constructed beyond the 200·metre zone. I f not the Government w i l l not provide a ny ass ista nce.

Severa l people whose l ivel i hood depends on the sea express serious di spleasure aga i nst the GO. "We do not fea r the onset of a nother tsunami . We need to stay near the ocean , because even the change i n the colour of the sea or the nature of the wind a long the coast l i ne helps us i dentify what sort of f ish we w i l l catch that day. (F i shermen say they can ' t hel p GO v io lat ion , Tam i l Nadu Govt has p lans of expand ing the f isheries sector, Anupama Jayaraman , I E. B, 06. 1 0.05, G30m)

G43 Ports

The 0 ri ssa government has deci ded to handover the loss· maki ng Gopa I pu r fai r·weather port to Orissa Stevedores Li mited (OSL) for its development. The deci s ion to privat ise the Gopa lpur port was taken at a cab i net sub· committee on i nfrastructu re deve lopment cha i red by Chief M in i ster Nav in Patna i k. As per the deci s ion, OSL wou l d i nvest nea rly Rs 750 crores i n two phases for the deve lopment of the port u nder bu i l t , operate, own , share a nd transfer (BOOST) bas is . (OSL to deve lop Gopa lpur port, Akshaya Kumar Sahoo, AA .B, 27.02.06 , G43)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I

• H - H I LL AN D MOUNTAIN R EGIONS .

HIO H i l l Tourism

As temperatures i n the p la i n s a re head ing skywards , there's on ly one p lace that people a re head ing to beat the heat - h i l l s . But there's a s l i ght d ifference th i s t i me. Whi l e Ooty, Koda i kana l a nd Munna r a re st i l l hot favour ites, the ir a ppea l has been decl i n i ng with commerc i a l isat ion and l a rge c rowds . I nstead , trave l lers a re exp lor i ng some of the state's own natu re dest i nat ions. Some of them a re sti l l u nexplored and most of them do not have many tourists so people seem to p refer them .

Accord i ng to i ndustry sources, though h igh·end travel lers prefer to go out of the country dur ing the summer vacat ion , a host of other domestic travel lers, especia l ly from North I n d i a , choose to come down South. For Banga loreans , Nand i h i l l s cont i nue to be a favour ite week·end dest i nat ion , desp i te the bad fac i l i t ies . For longe r hol idays, i t 's e ither Kodagu or Ch i kmaga l u r a re the preferred dest i nat ions, fo l l owed by the Western ghats . (Ooty, Koda i passe, state's h i l l s beckon tourists, An i ta Rao Kash i , TOI .B, 1 9 .05 .05 , H l O)

H20 N i l gi r is

T h e a nc ient and p i ct u resque N i lg i ri h i l l s here have come a l ive t o t h e sounds thousands o f merry mak i ng tourists. But ca n its frag i le ecosystem bear the brunt? That i s the quest ion envi ronmenta l i sts were ask ing as a summer fest k i cked off i n th i s h i I I resort a nd was offic i a l l y expected to attract 1 .5 m i I I i on v i s itors . The number is more than double the 700,000 popu l at ion in the ent i re N i lg i ri s d i strict, extend i ng across 3 ,000 sq km. Th is yea r espec i a l ly due to the December 26 tsuna m i , peop le have chosen to stay away from the coast and the N i lgi r i resorts are overflowi ng. (Can N i lg i r is bea r brunt of tourism? Pap ri Sri Raman , AA. D, 1 6.05.05, H20)

Why a nd how should h i l l stations/areas l i ke the N i lgi r is be developed and for whom? These seemingly rhetorica l , but vital and relevant, questions came up for l ively del i berations a t a recent seminar o n "Plann ing for Development with Conservation in H i l l Stations/Areas: A Case Study of N i lgir is" sponsored by the Union P lann ing Commiss ion and organ ised by Save N i lgi r is Campa ign (SNC) at Udhagamandalam. The seminar conveyed a simple message

Mounta i n a reas a re d ifferent from the p la i ns and , therefore, deserve to be t reated d i fferently; otherw ise d isaster, wh ich w i l l affect the pla i ns a l so, i s bound to fol low.

I nc lus ive p l ann i ng : Dr. Jakka Parthasa rathy, D i rector, Tri ba l Research Centre, Udha ga manda lam, sa i d that wh i le tr i ba l s in the N i lg i r is had access to modern hous i ng, education and loa ns from banks, they st i l l faced prob lems l i ke la nd a l i enat ion , i ndebtedness, deprivat ion of r ights over forest produ ce , a n d l ack of bas i c a men i ties l i ke dr ink ing water, electricity and hea lth fac i l i t ies.

Suggesting "susta i nable l i ve l i hood" for inc lus ive p lann i ng, M.K . Prasad, Co·ord i nator of Envi ronment Centre, Kera l a Sastra Sah i tya Par ishad (KSSP), sa id th is concept i s an advance from "susta i nab le development" .

L ink with p la i ns "H i l l areas, catchments areas, water storage and retention areas and the watershed a reas of p la ins associated w i th h i l l stat ions a l l need to be v i ewed as one cont iguous feature for ho l i s t i c p l a n n i ng , " s he a rgued . It i s , therefore, necessa ry t o i dent ify the extent of the a rea i mpacted by the h i l l s , and p lans for h i l l stations must be d rawn up keep ing in m i nd th is i nterconnectedness.

Socio log ist S iddhartha Kr ishnan , however, ca l l ed for a speedy so lut ion to the l ong·pend i ng Janmam land/ forests d i sputes i n the Guda lur a rea keepi ng i n m ind the asp i rat ions of the encroachers/farmers i nvolved a nd the concerns of conservat ion .

"The rea l problem in the N i lgi r i s l ies in 40 % of the a rea , of which 90 % is occup ied by the tea i ndustry, now i n deep cri s i s , " sa id Krishnan . N i l gi ri s i s home to some 65,000 smal l tea growers. Moreover, a lmost a l l belong to the Badaga commun i ty, which i s the s i ngle l a rgest i nd igenous group i n the d i str ict

I Docwnentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Loomi ng cris is Dr. Madhu of Centra l Soi l and Water Conservation Research and Tra i n i ng I n st i tute (CSWCRT I ) warned that another cr i s i s was l ooming in the tea i ndustry. Accord i ng to h im , wh i le tea is a fa r better so i l b i nder on the h i l l s compared to vegetab les l i ke potato, tea gardens in the d istrict a re prone to frequent l a nds l ides because of the l ack of proper d ra i n a ge. I nadequ a te i nfrastructure, prol i fe rat ion of s l u ms , i na p l J ropr iate tou r ist i nfrastruct u re , l a ck of l i q u i d and so l id waste management systems, lack of coord i n at ion and conf l i ct i ng i nterest of government agencies p lague the d istrict even after 140 years of admin i st rat ion. A zero·tolerance a pproach to untreated waste a nd non·b iodegradable materia l s w i l l ensure the protection of fragi l e ecosystems l i ke the N i lg ir is , added Tara Mura l i . Most speakers c ited the recent successfu l ban on harmful p last ic bags i n t he d i str ict .

Tourism

Stat ing that a d i str ict so dependent on tour ism does not have a ny idea a bout how to promote it, Dr. Raza k ca l led for a Tou ri sm Development P l a n so that the tour ism potent ia l of the d i str ict c a n b e tapped profitably i n consonance with the needs of the environment.

Sa id Ta ra Mura l i , "The day tour ist i s often a person seeking amusement and who contri butes l i tt le to the loca l economy . . . . he i s a l so a major pol l uter because of the number of buses and other motorised veh icles that come u p the h i l l s . Tour i sm faci l i t i es ava i lab le in h i l l a reas must be restr icted to those conformi ng to eco· tour ism and for the d i scern i ng eco·tour ist ."

Dr. Sathyanarayanan of the Anthropologica l Su rvey of I nd i a , however, caut ioned that eco·tour ism cou ld not succeed without loca l part i c ipat ion . C iti ng the exp loitation of the Todas in the name of cu ltura l tour ism, he sa id , "Great i nterference and cu l tu ra l i nj u ry have been caused to thei r pr ivacy. " ( N i lgi r is : An act ion p lan to save the h i l l s, Dharma l i ngam Venugopa l , T H . B, 02. 1 0.05, H20)

H30 H ima layas

A group of As i a n and Eu ropea n mounta i neers w i l l c l i mb Mount Everest t h i s spr ing to c lean up tonnes of garbage l eft on s l opes of the world's h ighest mounta i n . The mounta i neers from South Korea , Japan, France, I ta ly and Austria , hel ped by Nepalese Sherpa guides, plan to begi n the ir miss ion in Apri l , duri ng the popu lar spri ng c l imb ing season.

The tea m p l a n s to c l i m b to the South Cot at 8 ,000 meters, the l a st camp before the push to the 8,850 summit . Although estimates vary, some say there are 50 tonnes of trash on the Nepalese s ide of the mounta i n . The tea m members a re a l l vol unteers who w i l l be f inanci ng their own tr ips. (Clean i ng u p Mount Everest, BL.B, 06.03.06, H30)

They trekked through the H ima l ayas for weeks at a t ime, gatheri ng l oca l lore, su rvey ing the l andscape a nd wi ld l i fe and harvest ing ornamenta l touches for thei r v i l lage from a rt isans i n the Kathmandu Va l l ey.

After f ive tr ips to Ch i na a n d Nepa l , the i r wor ld sta rted to come a l ive i n the form of Serka Zong, a myth ica l Nepalese mounta i n vi l lage in the heart of Wal t D isney Wor ld 's An ima l Ki ngdom theme park i n Florida . Serka Zong is the "preamble" to An imal Ki ngdom's newest attra ct ion , Exped it ion Everest, wh ich offi c i a l ly opens on Apri l 7 . Vis i to rs strol l through Serka Zong, with its rea l museum and make·bel i eve I nternet cafe and trekki ng supply store, on the i r way to a rol l e r coaster r ide th rough the mounta i n and an encou nter with a c reature known as the Yeti , the mounta i n's legendary protector. The settlement i s much l i ke a vi l l age i n Nepa l . surrounded by l ush greenery, with bu i l d i ngs adorned with wood carvi ngs one wou ld see i n the H i ma laya s. (H ima layas i s D isney's newest attract ion , BL .B, 19 .3 .06, H30)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I

• K - KARNATAKA • Kll Planning

The Karnataka Government w i l l enforce a n action p lan to check and prevent i l l egal traff ick ing i n ch i ldren and women in some parts of the State, the M i n i ster for Women a n d C h i l d Deve lopment , T. Bhagi rath i Marua l us iddanagouda , told the Legis lat i ve Counc i l . The Government has formulated the act ion p lan after hold ing many workshops on the issue in associat ion with several non·government organ i sat ions and with the support of the U N ICEF.

The act ion p lan has emphas i sed the need to const i tute watchdog committees a t d i str ict , ta l u k a nd v i l l age l evel s to prevent i l l ega l traff ick ing i n ch i l d ren and women . Besides, the Government i n i ts order on May 30, 2005, has formed watchdog committees to protect and rehab i l itate such ch i l dren and women . I t has a l so constituted a State· level advisory committee. (Action p lan aga inst traff icki ng i n ch i ldren, women ready, TH .B, 1 9 .07 .05 , K 1 1 )

K12 I nfrastructure

Amidst the boom in aviat ion , fa l l i ng a i r fares and the a i r l i nes' tempt i ng seasona l offers, it looks l i ke the sma l l c it ies, too, can f ina l ly enjoy the ir p lace u nder the sky.

I n Ka rnataka a l one, the ha lf·dozen minor a i rports a re set to l and i nvestments of Rs 200·250 crore du ri ng 2005 and 2006, for either facel ift or to bu i ld brand new connectiv ity.

Manga lore's Bajpe i s going to be made i nternat ional c lass by mid ·2006. I n Mysore, a new operat ional runway w i l l give a fresh lease of l ife to the i d l i ng a i rport, and that shou l d some what unshackle i t from Bangalore a nd open u p new u pcountry l i n ks for i t . Trad ing hub Hub l i has a lso got n ight land i ng fac i l i t ies, which cou ld get a n a i r· l i n k with M u m ba i o r tour ist hotspot Goa . A t heritage centre Hamp i , t h e State Government i s convert i ng J i nd a l Vijayanaga r Steel Ltd 's p rivate a i rport operator's l i cence i nto a pub l i c one. As a bonus , i t recent ly c l i nched a pprova ls for two Greenfie ld p rojects , at Gu lba rga and Hassan. Then there i s Belgaum wait ing for a facel i ft ; there i s a l so Bijapu r. (Aviat ion boom: Ai rports i n smal l c it ies reap ing benefits, Madhumati D S, TH .B, 26.08 .05 , K 1 2)

K34 Banga lore

The Taj G roup p l a n s to add two more hotel s i n Banga lore in the bus i ness c l ass a n d l u x u ry category to i ncrease i ts room i nventory from the current 393 . The Tata G roup 's hospita l i ty a r m , wh ich operates three hotels in the bus i ness class and luxury segment, p lans to set up one at the I nternationa l Technology Park i n Whitefie ld and a nother nea r the proposed Banga lore I nternat iona l Ai rport a t Devanaha l l i . The Taj Group was a l so p l a n n i ng to p romote Bangalore as a l e i sure dest inat ion , as the c i ty a tt racts l a rgely bus i ness v is itors . (Taj group p lans 2 more hotel s i n Bangalore, BL.B , 03.05.05, K34)

The preva i l i ng accommodation crunch i n the premium hotel category i n Bangalore may soon be a th i ng of the past. About 3 ,500 l uxu ry hote l rooms a re d ue to be c reated over the next two to three years in the c i ty, a s some of the biggest global b rands a re p repar ing to set u p properties here. The c ity current ly h a s 1 ,600·odd rooms i n the f ive·sta r category but these have p roved to be tota l ly i nsuff i c ient . Rea l estate p l ayers have sensed a huge bus i ness opportun ity in the sector and a re bu i l d i ng world c l ass propert ies for i nternat iona l brands . B ig p layers l i ke Shangri·La , Marr iott, H i lton, and the Carlson G roup (with the brand Country I nns & S ites) w i l l make the i r presence felt soon .

H i l ton w i l l establ i sh a 300·room luxury hotel on Ulsoor Road , Marriott i s putt ing u p a 250·room hotel UB C ity, whi le Hong Kong·based Shangr i ·La w i l l set u p three hotels i n Banga lore, a l l i n the premium bracket. Rad isson

I DOClimen ta tio 11 Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 .

too i s a rr iv ing with a 350-room hote l . Banga lore hote l s today enjoy same of the h ighest tar iffs i n the country but two years down , i t cou ld be a d i fferent story_ The customer cou ld then be enjoyi ng f ive sta r fac i l i ties at rates far more afforda ble.

And the a ct ion is not j u st l i m i ted to the f ive-star segment . There a re three- sta r a n d fou r- star p ropert ies comi ng u p as wel l , w i th standards better than those ava i lab le today. (Ba nga lore to get p latter of new hotels ; Over 3 , 500 Luxury Rooms May Put An End To Accommodat ion Woes, Dar l i ngton Jose Hector & Suj i t Joh n , TOI .B, 20 .05.05, K34)

I nternat ional v is i tors a re i ncreas i ngly prepared to pay more for hotel rooms in Ind ia , reflected i n the hospita l ity i ndustry's grow ing forex earn i ngs. Banga lore, despi te fewer sta r rooms than De lh i or Mumba i , i s generat ing far h igher dol l a r y ie lds from each guest. In fact, its hospita l ity busi ness is sa i d to often spi l l into ne ighbour ing Chenn a i due to room shortage and h igh rates. I n the last 1 2 months (Ju ly 04 to June 05) , the hosp ita l i ty i ndustry i n I nd ia 's s i l i con capita l has earned more forex ($20.7 m i l l ion) from global d i str i bution system (GDS) sales than Delh i ($ 1 5 .8 mi l l ion), Mumbai ($1 5.2 m i l l ion) or Chenna i ($3.2 mi l l ion). Bangalore's biggest advantage i s the large commun i ty of i nternat iona l tech corporate who regu la rly fly i n to the c ity and patron i se i ts hote ls . At least 'for now thi s stream of bus iness shows no s igns dry ing u p, and is i n fact sa id to be only growing, year on yea r. (B ' lore tops i n hosp i ta l i ty dol lar earn i ng, G i r i sh Rao, EI B, 30.07.05, K34)

The l a rgest a m u sement park i n the country 'Wonder· la ' , nestled i n the p icturesque B idad i v i l l age on the Banga lore Mysore nat iona l h ighway, 29 k m from Banga lore, w i l l be opened to the publ i c from October 1 . Mr Kochouseph Chitti l a pi l ly sa id that after the success of Veega Land , a n ISO 1400 1 certif ied amusement park a t Koch i , the V-Guard group had selected Banga lore to p lay host to 'Wonder- I a ' . He sa id the park, coming up in a sprawl i ng 88 acres of l a nd , was bu i l t a t an est imated cost of over Rs 77 crore i n the f i rst phase . Con struct ion work started i n August 2003 a n d was completed w i th a work force of over 1 ,400 , i nc l u d i ng engi neers and technocrats. (V·Guard 's a mu sement park 'Wonder- l a ' to open i n Bangalore, BL .B, 22 .09.05 , K34 / D20b)

K40 Tour ism Pol icy and P lans

The Tour ism Department i s i n the process of const i tut ing a n expert committee to look i nto ways and mean s of i mp lementi ng t h e project, wh ich i nc l udes a ropeway at a n a lt i tude of 1 ,478 metres at N a n d i H i l l s . Jo int Commiss ioner, Karnataka State Tour ism Development Corporat ion (KSTDC), S N Gowrishankar, sa id that the committee would i nc l ude secretar ies of var ious departments i nc lud i ng hort icu lture and tour ism, and wou ld be headed by the Ch ief Secretary The committee wi l l l ater submi t a feas i b i l i ty report to the government. A N a n d i H i l l s Deve lopment Author i ty wou l d a l so be set u p, a proposa l for wh ich has been forwarded to the government . ( N a n d i H i l l s ropeway on way, Tour i sm department to set up comm i ttee soon , S P raveen Dhaneshka r, VI B : 2 1 .06.05, K40)

Karnataka has d rawn u p p l ans to i m prove the Hamp i her itage tou r ism centre and the coasta l a reas i n the State to i mprove the i nfrastructure to attract more foreign tou ri sts. The Government has approached both the Japan Bank for i nternat ional Cooperat ion (JB I C) and the Centra l Government to ra i se Rs 1 ,200 crore for the proposed projects to be i mplemented over f ive years. The State had a l so sought a Rs 6 1 5 crore ass istance from the Centre for i mproving a nd strengthen i ng coastal tou r ism by provid i ng adequate i nfrastructure i n the 3 1 5-km l ong coastal areas of the State. (Karnata ka draws p lans to i mprove tou r ism, TH . B, 28.07.05 , K40)

Al though the Karnataka government has identified more than 1 50 tour ism dest i nat ions inc lud ing the famous Mysore, Hampi and Banga lore, only few attract tou ri sts a round the yea r. Compet i t ion from the neighbour ing states has , however, forced the state government to g ive a face l i ft to the lesser known tou ri s m spots i n the state. It i s deve lop i ng i nfrastructure in lesser known dest i nat ions l i ke Melekotte (where the Cha l u kyas had constructed a fa mous Che l uvaraya Swamy temple) , Bel u r and H a leb idu (the p l a ces known for anc ient sculptures), Badam i , Ai hole, Pattadakkal and Mahakutta . A project, I ntegrated Development of Chitradurga Fort, i s a l so on i n south Karanataka. Gomateswar Temple in Sravanabe lagola has been i nc luded in the C i rcu it Development Programme. The government pays specia l attention here as the Gomateswar festival i s celebrated once i n 1 2 yea rs a n d att ra cts l akhs of J a i n s from across I nd i a . Deve lopment work i s be i n g undertaken at Kokkrebe l l u r, u nder Rura l Tour ism Deve lopment programme. St Mary's I s l and , Ma lpe, U l l a l l and Ma ravante

' :-, ) r) (1 6 1 J)()cu l1wnlul imz l Tpdu [c I beaches and Kodachandri h i l l s are other place that i s being developed. (Karnataka wakes u p to competit ion, Ja ishankar Jayaramiah , FE .D, 04.09.05, K40)

There i s a need to revi ew the taxat ion system i n the State to he lp p romote tour ism, sa id P K Mohan Kumar, Regional D irector of the Taj G roup of Hote l s . He sa id a s i ng le for tax payment has to be put i n p lace of mult ip le l ev ies l i ke sales tax, luxury tax and ente rtai nment tax.

Sett i ng up a tourism pol ice p latoon in Karnataka on the l i nes of the ones in Goa, Rajasthan and Keral a would a lso prove to he of he lp. Development and u pgrad ing o f i nfrastructure in major cit ies across the state would boost tour ism, besides categoris i ng i nto medica l , shopping, weekend , cricket, spa and sp i ritual tour ism, he sai d . (Taxat ion review, a must to i mprove tour ism, VTB, 1 7 .09.05, K40)

The Karnataka High Court has u pheld the amendment i n l uxury tax for the rooms of clubs which provide hotel type comforts. Justice 0 V Sha i lendra Kumar, who heard the petition of several C ity·based c lubs l i ke Century C lub, Bowring Institute, Bangalore Club, Bangalore Golf Club, sai d that the State Government has the right to levy l uxury tax. The Karnataka Luxury Tax Act 1 977 was amended in 2000, which brought i n the p rovis ion to extend the luxury tax to the c lub rooms which was app l icable to the hotel rooms. Accord i ngly, a 5 % tax was levied on room s in the Rs 1 50·Rs 200 category, 1 0 % for rooms with a tariff of R s 200·Rs 400 and a tax of 1 2 % for those above Rs 400 . ( Luxury tax for c lubs u phe ld , VT.B, 1 0. 1 1 .05 , K40)

Karnataka government expects tour ist f lows i n the state to double within next 3·4 years helped by i ncreasing partnershi p w i th the pr ivate entrepreneu rs to promote tour ism i n the state. The a nnua l tou ri st f low in the state during last year stood at 45 lakh s, 1 0% of which comprised of foreigners. A beach resort is coming up by the end of next month at Karwar wh ich is a p rivate in it iat ive to p romote beach touris m i n the state. The government is a l so cons ider ing the methodology by which lands would be offered to the private entrepreneurs for the development of i nfrastructure which, in tu rn , wi l l h el p the growth of to tour ism i nd ustry.

In fact, the state tou r ism department has changed i t s theme f rom 'Theatre of I n s p i rat ion ' to 'One State, Many Wor lds ' in a bid to p romote Karnataka as a major tour ist desti nation i n the cou ntry. The total revenue of Karnataka State Tour ism Corporati on of I nd ia stood at Rs 22 crore for the f inancia l year 2004·05. (K'taka banks on PPP model to enhance tourist inflow, Somasroy Chakraborty, FE .C, 30. 1 1 .05 , K40)

The State Government w i l l formu late her itage regu lat ions on the conservat ion and protect ion of her itage bu i ld ings in the State. The d raft prepared by the authorit ies w i l l be tabled before the l eg is lature i n March, for a pprova l . It w i l l give control over a l l heritage structures.

The Regulation of Heritage Structures Act wi l l delegate powers to the government to decide on the renovation and protection of heritage structures. Heritage commissioner K .R . Ramakr ishna sa id the government had p lanned to bring Bidar, Gu lba rga , Bijapur, Kittur, Mysore and Sri ranagpatna, Kudalasangama, Kagenale a nd other a reas under the heritage a reas.

He d isclosed that the documentation of a l l heritage bui ld ings with deta i l s on style, status, h istorical i mportance a pa rt from conservat ion t ips for i nd i vidua l her i tage bu i l d i ngs w i l l a lso be conducted . (Govt to formulate Heritage Act, I E.B, 06. 1 2.05, K40)

The Karnataka Government would set up a 'thi n k tank committee' i nvolv ing experts in tou r ism busi ness to strengthen the cam pa ign to attract tourists i nto the State. The proposal was await ing c learance the M in i ster for Tour ism, Mr D.T. Jaya ku mar, sa id the committee would meet once in three months to give d i rect ion to the i ndustry.

The M i n i ster sa id that though the budgetary a l l ocation ( plan and non ·p lan) of Rs 75 crore was inadequate, efforts would be made to have proper coord ination between various departments.

Plan deta i l s : G iving deta i l s of the proposa ls , the Tour ism Secretary, Ms Shanta Kumari , said the department had embarked u pon a "tour ism m ission" and it would involve the private sector, munici pal it ies, publ ic works department etc. The l i st of roads , wh ich needed i mmed i ate attention , had been sent to the pub l ic works department. The department had demarcated n i ne new tourist c i rcui ts to enhance tour ism in Karnataka and

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entrepreneurs woul d be prov ided l and at reasonable rates (Ka rn ataka to set u p committee to strengthen tour ism campaign, BL .B, 14.01 .06, K40)

At a bra i nstorm ing session , i nvolvi ng entrepreneurs a n d government off ic ia l s and moderated by ' brand ing' speci a l i st Har ish Bijoor, Tour ism m in i ster D T Jayakumar sa id the department p lans a publ i c ·private ' th i n k tank ' o r adv iso ry committee t o mon itor t h e sector.

New p l ans : Th i s stress on ' pr ivat i s i ng' the sector found echoes i n the v iews of Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR) MD Vinay Luthra a nd pr inc ipa l secretary tou r ism, Shanta kumar i . She sa id the department i s forming n i ne tour ism c i rcuits : l i ke Malnad Coasta l Karnataka and Hampi · Badam i ·Pattadaka l ·A ihol e. Luthra sa id J LR and I nfrastructure Development Corporation of Karnataka , wi l l i n a month's t ime, fi na l i se a study of unopened wi lderness in Karnataka. "We w i l l categorise p laces i nto A, B and C zones . On ly JLR w i l l operate i n 'A' zone; in ' B, ' we w i l l set up i nfrastru cture but outsource management and in 'C' , we w i l l acqu i re the l a nd a nd give it to private part ies, " he added. (Tourism on rebrand ing mode; Ka rnataka w i l l Cash in on its Many Destinations, TO I . B, 14.0 1 .06, K40)

The Karnataka Government, wh ich has p lan ned va r ious tour ism development activit ies, has submitted a Rs 61 1 ·crore proposa l to the Centre. Mr D.T. Jaya kumar, sa id that the development of Maravanthe and Ma l pe beaches i n Udup i d i str ict , Panambur beac h i n Da ksh ina Kan nada d i st ri ct , a n d Goka rna beach i n Utta :a Kan nada d istrict i s i nc luded i n th is proposa l .

He sa i d that the project proposa ls a re l i ke ly to be inc luded i n the forthcom i ng Budget. The Government has requested the Centre to rel ax coasta l regu l ator zone norms i n the State, a s they have come in the way of beach tour ism development. He sa id some private parties have shown i nterest i n beach tourism. The Min ister sa id that three house boats a re ready for i n auguration at Devbagh i n Karwar of U ttara Kannada d i str ict . Rs 61 1 crore proposa l a l so i nc ludes the development of adventure tour ism i n the State. (Ka rnataka submits Rs 6 1 1 ·cr tour i sm p roposa l to Centre, B L . B, 1 0 .02.06, K40)

Buoyed by the enhanced budgetary a l locat ion for tour ism (from Rs. 1 6 crores to Rs. 52 c rores), the Tou ri sm Department has cha l ked out several p rogra mmes to f i rm u p publ ic ·p rivate partnersh ips . Confi rming th i s stra tegy a t "Con nect ' 06 ·Ka rnataka Tou ri sm" organ i sed by the department , Deputy Ch ief M i n i ster B .S . Yediyu rappa a nd Tourism M i ni ster B . Sri ramulu sa id finance wi l l not be a constrain t to tap the tourism potentia l of Karnataka .

Whi le the private sector l i sted out roadblocks i n developing, tourism i n the State, government off ic ia l s , led by Pr i nc ipa l Secreta ry L. Shanta kumari , held out promises , stati ng that these cha l l enges have to be overcome together. Acknowledgi ng the stumbl i ng b locks in tour ism, Ms. Sha ntaku ma ri sa id the Government w i l l come up with a road ma p that w i l l be pro·active. The depa rtment has identified 700 km of roads lead ing to va rious touri st destinations and these wil l be repa i red/upgraded by z i l l a panchayats and the Publ ic Works Department at a cost of Rs. 50 crores. Ms. Shantakumari sa i d the other cha l l enges i nc l ude strengthen ing pub l ic·private partnersh i p, u pgradi ng touri sm· related i nfra structure, cleara nce of projects by si ngle wi ndow agency, i mprovi ng a i r a n d road connectivity, re l axation of taxation po l ic i es such as exemption from entry tax, a n d power a n d water subs idy for hotels .

She sa i d the department has deve loped e ight c i rcu i ts cover ing 98 tou ri st desti nat ions . They a re Belga u m ( 1 1 desti nat ions) , Mad i ker i ( 1 1 ) , M a l na d ( 1 9) , B i j a p u r ( 1 7) , Ma idan ( 1 2) , Southern I ( 7 ) a n d I I (6), and Coasta l ( 1 5) .

At these destinations, the development wi l l be at three levels : strengthen ing basic fac i l i ties, provid ing a menities for budget travel !ers and setti ng up three· star and five sta r accommodat ion. For the budget trave l ler, it w i l l i nv ite pr iva te entrepreneurs t o develop a nd operate tourist complexes, restau ra nts a n d amusement parks. (Road map to deve lop tour ism on the cards , T H . B, 26.03 .06 , K40)

K50 Tour ism I ssues

The wave of new economy i s set to rouse Mysore i nto fu l l wakefulness with a touri sm expert panel suggesti ng more active n ightl ife that wi l l i nject a booster shot to the ready·to·soar tourism i n the city. An expert committee,

:; 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documcntation l Tpdatc I wh ich i s studying Mysore unde r the ' Destinat ion Tour ism' project for the l ast two days, sa id the c ity " lacks vi brancy". "Very l ittle of l ate even i ng and n ight a ctivity" sa id Neeraj Bachkethi . V·P (consultancy and business deve lopme nt), I n d i a Tour i sm D eve lopment Corporati on . The committee held a meet i ng with the c iv ic stakeholders to boost tour ism sector. The c ity has been swal l owing up subu rban outback i n its growth in the l a st two d ecades , but n ight l i fe is con sp icuous by its near·absence. A l so, the comm ittee suggested strengthen i ng of tour i st i nfrastructu re, for which funds a ren't a problem , accord ing to the pane l ch i ef. The pane l w i l l submit its report in three weeks a n d the p roject is l i ke ly to be sanct ioned by August, 0 5 .

Floatin g restaura nt: The committee a l so suggested a 'floating restau ra nt' at Da lvoy Lake and founta i n s with i l lum ination at Kukkaraha l l i Lake to give a boost to tour ism in Mysore. (Mysore, t ime to rock! ITDC Suggests N ightl ife, Bazaars, TOI . B, 1 9 . 04.05, K501 B3 1 )

Interview with Mahendra Jain, Tourism Commissioner, KSTDC

Q. Why has Karnataka been u na ble to attract a s many tour ists as has Kera la?

A . In ove ra l l terms, our a rr iva l s a re on ly marg i n a l ly less than Kera l a 's , both domestic and fore ign . However, cons ider i ng that Karnataka i s f ive t imes b igger, i n te rms of s ize a n d popU lat ion , t h e num bers wi l l not seem i mpressive. Bes ides, Kera l a began consc ious ly promot ing tour ism 20 years a go , whereas we began less than a decade back. However, our efforts have begun yield i ng results much faster.

Q. When i nfrastructure i s the key, why hasn 't Karnata ka rea l i sed th is?

A . That's n ot true. Over the last few yea rs , the state government has u nderta ken projects to provide basic i nfrastructure to key dest inat ions. Roads and ways ide fac i l it ies have been set· up in many places. But we need private partners to set up hotels a nd restaura nts. I n Pattadka l , ou r other heritage s i te , there i s no hotel a t a l l . I t i s th i s a rea that w e a re worki ng o n .

Q. When t h e rea l i sat ion i s there , why a re budgetary a l l ocat ions not m atched?

A . Each state sets i ts own pr iorit ies. U n l i ke Kera l a , Karnataka has other strong sectors l i ke IT and BT which have brought the state revenues a nd name. For Kera l a , tou r ism i s the ma in i ncome·generat ing sector and so i t i s a priority for them. For us , there a re other priorities and hence a l locat ions a re based on p ri or it ies . We have R s 16 .5 c ro re for 2005·06 wh i le they h ave Rs 76 .25 c rore. We have a bout Rs 1 crore for pub l i c i ty and promot ion whereas they have more than Rs 1 2 c rore.

(Karnataka tour ism, a tr i p tease? An ita Rao Kash i , TOI .B, 29.04.05 , K50)

Tour ism a rriva ls i nto Karnataka went up by a bout 20 percent i n t he yea r of the coa l i tion government. But that was n ot due to the new d i spensat ion . In fact, Ka rnata ka is probab ly the on ly state i n the country whose touri s m a l l ocation has gone down . From Rs 17 crore in 2004·05, i t was cut to Rs 1 6 . 5 crore for the current year.

With less than a cro re for pub l ic i ty a n d promot ion last yea r, Ka rnata ka tour ism fa i led to even pub l ic i se its tour i st potentia l . Much of rest of the a l location has gone towards meet i ng admin istrative expenses, leavi ng very l itt l e for i n frastructure .

Worse sti l l , the state governme nt has been u nab le to meet the promi ses i t made in i ts budget. Though tour ism a p peared to be l ow on the coa l i t ion government's pr iorit ies, Deputy C hief M i n i ster S iddara ma i a h a n nounced h i s (the government's) i n terest i n p reservi ng the state's heritage i n h i s 04·05 budget.

Mysore was dec la red a heri tage c ity, whi le f ive others Sr ira ngapatna , B idar, Bi japu r, Gu lba rga and Kittur ­were des ignated heri tage towns , t he post of heritage commiss ioner was created , a sen io r lAS off icer was

I DOCll 1 l lentai ion ( Tpdute l :; 0 0 'j 0 ,)

posted a nd was g iven a l l of Rs 3 crore. But l i ke a l l good th i ngs, it was short l ived . Ba rely weeks later, the off icer was out. The heritage pia n i s sti l l being formulated, whi le nobody has accounted for the Rs 3 crore.

Fortunately for Karnataka, the Centre d ra matical ly i ncreased fund ing a nd provided the state over Rs 40 crore l a st yea r, which enabled the government to i m prove fac i l i t ies at many p laces. These i n c l ude expans ion of some eco·tourism activities, i nc lud i ng the preparation of a feas ib i l i ty report, deve lopment of Bannerghatta Nat iona l Pa rk, development of Kodagu a nd a Kodava heritage centre in Mad i keri , i ntegrated development of Chitradurga Fort, development of the northern and southern c ircuits, deve lopment of the Bhadra wi l derness camp a nd a few othe r tour ist centres. (Monumenta l neglect of tour ism, An ita Rao Kash i , TOI .B, 20.05.05, K50)

The proposed entry of Br it ish A i rways, Northwest A i r l ines, A i r France a nd add i tiona l f l ights from Lufthansa i nto Banga lo re has thrown some fresh bus i ness opportun i ties and greater p ressure on rooms of f ive·sta r hotels . Accord ing to market sources , Le Meri dien has managed to corner the l argest share of crew business, fo l l owed by the Leel a a nd Obero i . An est imated 4, 200 seats a week ( 1 9 f l ights) w i l l he a dded to the c i ty's i nventory from th is November. Even if a fifth of them opt for sta r hotel rooms, the addit ional demand· supply ga p wi l l be a t least 840 rooms weekly. F i na l ly, there may not be e nough rooms to exp lo i t th i s bus iness opportun i ty.

Whi le the crew busi ness does not necessar i ly gua rantee the h ighest room ta riff, it defi n i tely p romises fixed uti l i sation through the year for the hotels. It is however sa id by sources that Banga lore crew occupancy rates a re h igher than other metros l i ke Mumba i or Del h i given its h igher average room rea l izat ions. Banga lore has 1 ,600 odd five star rooms - a numbe r which fa l l s short by a lmost 100% duri ng peak season. The five sta r hotels i n Bangalore a re expected to register occupan cy i n excess of 88% th is winter. S i nce weekends taper out, i t mea ns d ur ing week days there may be over 1 00% occupa ncy o r more than one set of guest/guests staying a nd vacat i ng the room on the same day_

I n c i denta l ly, the c ity's a i rport i s a l ready faci ng t remendous p re ss u re w i th i ts l im i ted space. The a i rport handles a round 57 international f l ights in a week now, which wi l l be raised to 76 from November. (More a i rl i nes spell money for upmarket hotels , G i ri sh Rao, ET. B, 20.08.06, K50 / K34)

The Mysore d i strict admin istration has i ntroduced a "Home Stays P rogramme" to accommodate more far-off tourists dur ing the Navaratr i festivit ies. The p rogramme, a l so known a s Ati th i , has been i ntrodu ced for the fi rst t ime to meet the shortage of accommodation at hotels a nd guest houses.

The Home Stays programme has a lso i nvited appl ications from Karigatha i n Srirangapatna, Hootagal l i , Dattagal l i a nd Belavad i on the outski rts and o ld loca l it ies l i ke Fort Moha l l a and Kr ishnaragava nam. Some residents have vol unteered to host tour ists a nd serve ma l l ige i dly, masala dosa , Mysore pak .

Houses wi l l be categorised as A , B a n d C groups and tar iff fixed accord i ng ly. Any harassment to tourists w i l l be stern ly dealt with. Offic ia l s wi l l l ist Mysorean fam i l ies el igib le to extend ' Home Stays ' . A brochure w i l l be publ i shed en l i sti ng detai l s of the houses; phone numbers and the tar iff to enable tou ri sts f ind homely stays. (Mysore homes open for tou ri sts, BY K Shiva kumar, I E.C, 22.09 .05 , K50)

A tour ism park w i l l be set up in 1 00 acres of l a nd nea r the i nternationa l a i rport coming up at Deva n a ha l l i , near Banga lore , a t a n est i mated cost of Rs .50 crores, M i n i ster for Tour ism D.T. Jaya ch a ndra h a s sa id . A master p lan has been p repared for the park , which i s proposed to be developed by the Centre a nd the State Government. It wi l l offer packaged tours cover ing leading tourist centres i n the State.

Fou rteen Jungle Lodges and Resorts a re bei ng given a face· l ift. I t has been decided to hand over 18 hote ls mainta i ned by the Karnataka State Tou ri sm Development Corporat ion (KSTDC) to ONGC to develop them on a Bu i ld ·Own·Operate a n d Transfer (BOOT) basis. (Rs.50-cro re tou rism park on the ca rds, TH.B , 18 .01 .06, K50)

.

Mysoreans a re of l ate bei ng dubbed a s the wrong people i n the right p lace. For, they have miserably fa i led i n p layi ng host to the f low of tour ists, which has touched a n a l l ·t ime high in recent t imes. The home·stay concept

:' 0 0 5 - 0 6 1 Documcn t a t ion l Tpdu t c I i ntroduced by Tourism Department has met with cold response from the local s. I ntroduced during last Dasara, at present j ust two households in the ent ire city is offeri ng home·stay fac i l i ty.

I nteresti ngly, the concept has worked out wel l i n the ne igh bouri ng d i st rict of Kodagu . Here, nea rly 400 households are runn ing the business, even pos ing a threat to l ocal hotels . (Stay· home tour ism fai l s to i nterest Mysoreans, P M Raghunandan, DH.B, 07.02.06, K50)

I n a j udgment of far· reachi ng consequences, the Supreme Cour t has held runn ing a hotel in a residential a rea is i mpermiss i b le. A Divis ion Bench com pr is ing Justice S B S i nha and Just ice P K Ba lasubramanyam hel d such change of l a n d use (to hote l s) cannot b e permitted u nder the provi s ions of Town a n d Country P lann ing Act .

The ru l i ng was given in a case where a person had purchased a house in Jaya nagar, a resident ial a rea. He app l ied with the BOA for change of land use, which was subsequently granted. However, when he started a restau rant o n the land , res ide nts of Jayanagar 5th Block cha l lenged the same.

The Kar nataka H igh Court , however rejected , their pet it ion sayi ng objections had been ca l led for from the Welfare Association which had said it had no object ion.

Aggri eved res idents then approached the S upre me Court . The Apex court , wh i le sett i ng as ide the H igh Court order, hel d that runn ing a hotel i n a res identia l a rea i s not permiss ib le havi ng regard to the zon i ng regulations.

Change in Land use • Section 1 4·A of the Town and Country P l ann i ng Act states change i n land u se • Shou l d be one i n pub l ic i nterest • Change shou l d not contravene any provis ions of the Act • P roosed cha nges shou l d be i nt imated i n one or more da i ly newspaper

(No hotels i n res identi a l areas, VT.B, 08. 03 .06, K50)

K51 Coastal Tou rism

U d u pi M LA K. Ragh u path i Bhat has opposed the move to privatise Ma /pe Beach i n the name of tour i sm deve lopment. Bhat sa id at a news conference that promoters of Parad ise I sle Beach Resort, deve loped at M a l pe Beach, have been t ryi ng to take possession of the beach deprivi ng the pub l i c o f the r ight to use i t . They have a l so been pressuring the Government to vacate f ishermen's houses from the vici n ity, a l leging CRZ violat ions. Bhat opposed the move of bio fencing the beach and a l l otti ng the beach area to a p rivate par ty. ( Pr ivatisation of Ma l pe Beach opposed , I E . B, 06.04.05, K5 1 )

The M in ister for Tour ism, D.T. Jayakumar, has sa id that the government i s plann ing to promote beach tou rism in a big way in the State. Add ressi ng p resspersons, M r. Jayakumar said the State has 3 1 5 km of pr ist ine beaches i n Uttara Kannada and Dakshina Kannada d istricts. The Government i ntends to bu i ld a road close to the coast u nder its "Marine Drive" project. The Government w i l l approach e ither the Wor ld Bank or the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to f inance the development of the mar ine drive. The potential of beach tourism i n the State is i m mense, h e sa id .

States such a s Goa and Kera l a have promoted beach tou r ism in a b ig way. There a re more than 18 ,000 rooms by the s ide of the beaches i n Kera l a and near ly 30,000 in Goa. S i nce the Coastal Regu lat ion Zone (CRZ) norms make it d ifficu lt to bui l d hotels near the seashore, the Government wi l l encourage fam il ies having beachside houses to bu i ld add itiona l rooms.

This wi l l so lve the problem of room shortage and a lso generate addit ional revenue for the fa mi l ies concerned, besides hel ping tourism i n the State. Towards this end, the Government w i l l promote the concepts of "fami ly tourism" and "vi l lage tour ism." The cooperation of the people i s essent ia l for the success of tourism, he said .

I Documentat ion [ lpdale 1 2 a 0 5 - 0 6

Sea eros ion : O n tacki ng sea erosion , the M in i ster sa id the marine d rive project m ight a l so hel p solve the sea eros ion problem in some a reas of the coastd l d i stricts. Sea erosion i s a recu r ri ng problem . Efforts w i l l be made to find a lasting solution to it , Mr. Jayakumar said. (Ka rnataka to promote beach tourism, TH.D, 05.06.05, K5 1 )

The former Ch ief M i n i ster of Ka rnataka , M r Veerappa Moi ly, has s a i d that i ndust ri a l i sts have not come forward to estab l i s h a ny i nd u stry in the coasta l d i str i cts of Ka rnataka for the last severa l years due to res i stance by envi ronmenta l i sts. He sa id that envi ronmenta l orga n isations a re opposing the imp lementation of sma l l , med ium and l a rge industries in the name of envi ronment protection . The d i strict admin istrat ions of Daks h i n a Kan na d a a n d Udup i shou l d t ake str ict act ion to p revent any i nconven ience to i nvestors . C Eco act iv ists i m pedi ng i ndustri a l a ctivity i n coasta l Ka rnataka ' , T H . B, 29.08.05, K51 )

The Ka rnataka H i gh Court ord ered the remova l of a l l i l l ega l encroachments a nd construct ions o n Mal pe beach i n Udup i , which v io lated the coasta l regu l ation zone (CRZ) notification .

I n i ts order, a D iv is ion Bench, compri s i ng Just ice B . Padmaraj and Justice V. Jaga n nathan , sa id the beach wi l l have t o be kept c lean a n d that the CRZ not ificat ion had been i ssued t o protect the ecology a n d envi ronment i n coastal a reas . Constructions ra ised in v io lat ion of such regu l at ions cou l d not be condoned a n d a l l such structu res would have to go.

The Bench passed the order on pub l ic i nterest l it igati on ( P I L) petit ion by Murthy K. of Bangalore seeki ng a d i rection to remove e ncroachments, i l legal structu res a n d s l u ms on the beach . (C lear e ncroachments on M a l pe beach , says court , T H . B, 1 9. 1 1 .05 , K5 1 )

K53 Heritage Tour ism

The Archaeologica l Su rvey of I nd ia (ASI ) and the Karnataka State Road Tra n sport Corporat ion (KSRTC) a re l i ke ly to s ign a MoU on p ly i ng buses wit h i n the Wor ld H er itage S i te of H a m p i . The proposa l i s a i med a t provid ing transportation to tou rists to go from one h i storical monument to another. The idea, if i m plemented, wi l l p revent the movement of pr ivate veh ic les w i th i n the her itage s i te to a g reat extent . The p l a n i s to p ly buses between V iru paksha Tem p le and the Vi jaya Vitha l a temple complex , v i a ' Kad leka l ' , a nd 'Sas iveka l ' Ganesh ido ls , Ugra N a ras imha , Queen's bath , Mahanavami D ibba, Lotus Maha l , the e lepha nt stables, and Hazara Rama Temple . The tou ri sts ca n board these buses, wh ich w i l l make c i rcu i t tr ips , a n d a l i ght a t the p laces of thei r choice before moving on to a nother monument. (P l an to make tourists' Hampi visit memorable, M Ah i ra j , TH . B, 08.04 .05 , K53)

The world 's ta l lest monol ith ic statue, towering 58 ft i nto the sky, is the cynosure of a l l eyes in this celebrated p i lgr image centre a s it awaits the grand Mahamastakabhi sheka i n Februa ry 06 .

Wh i le the authorit ies d raw u p p lans to hand le m i l l i ons of people expected to a rrive i n the days leading to the mai n event, the Archaeologica l Su rvey of I nd i a (AS I ), Bangalore C i rc le , has taken up conservation measures on the 1 ,000-yea r·o ld Gomateshwara statue atop the I nd ragi r i H i l l s whose ben ign smi le seems to be appreciat ive of the work i n p rogress.

Conservation measures: The Superintend ing Archaeologist of the ASI , Banga lore C i rc le, S.V. P. H a l katt i sa id the statue itself is in good cond i t ion , but the support i ng structures need to be strengthened in v iew of the mass ive turnout expected from a l l over I nd i a and the wor ld .

The AS I has fol lowed scientif ic conservation pr incip les in the process. Tradit ional construct ion mater ia ls that went i nto the maki ng of the monu ment and its surrounding structures have been used , " he said. The ASI has outsourced some of the services and roped in conservation a rchitects specia l is i ng i n restoration of monuments a n d heritage structures. D r. Ha l katti sa id conservat ion efforts were undertaken by the department in the past, but now there a re spec i a l i sts who understand the pr inc i p les of heritage conservat ion and a re a bl e to meet our requ i rements. (Sh ravanabe lagola being spruced up fast by ASI , R. Kr ishna Kumar, TH . B, 14.06.05, K53)

A comprehensive vi l l age development project in a l ittl e v i l l age ca l l ed Anegund i , a stone's throw from Hampi , i s a l l set to become the nat ion 's model for rura l tou ri sm. Constantly u nder Hamp i 's shadow, Anegund i has

:�) C (J ,') - : J C, I nocl/mentation Update I never ga i ned p rominence. However, the l i tt le vi l l age i s a home to numerous tem ples and a rch itecture which pre·date Hampi . As part of the central government sponsored rura l tourism, Anegundi is now gain ing i mportance on its own steam .

" I n a ssoc iat ion with a loca l NGO Ki shk ind a Trust, m u lt ifaceted deve lopment h a s been tak i ng p lace. Apart from essenti a l i nfrastructure , a lot of ski l l s and e m ployment generation programmes have been l aunched . Loca l women have been taught to ut i l i se loc a l ly ava i l a ble mate r i a l to ma ke a var iety of a rt i c l es a nd se l l them, " Tourism Commissioner Mahendra Ja in .

However, more nove l s a re the concept of converti ng a nc ient houses i nto guest roams for tou r ists , wh ich a re ma i nta i ned and managed by the loca l s. I n tandem, the Trust has u ndertaken a va r iety of conservat ion measures encompa ss ing both a rchi tecture and cu ltu re. a nd showcased for tour ists . Anegundi is a mong five rural tour ism projects that the centra l government has chosen for fund ing i n Karnataka . Of the other fou r i n Karnataka, Banavas i nea r Si rs i a nd Na laknadu pa lace i n Kodagu are being taken u p as a rchitectura l locations.

The rema in i ng two desti nat ions a re eco·tour ism spots: Kokkarebel l u r nea r Mandya a nd Attiveri b i rd sanctuary i n Uttara Kan nada d istrict. (Ru ra l tou ri sm to change Anegund i 's face, Anita Rao Kash i , TOI . B, 19. 07 .05 , K53 / K54)

The dangers of pol lut ion a re hover ing over the Hampi world heritage s ite. 'The Centra l government funded Rs 2 , 1 00 crore Bel i a ry Therma l Power Stat ion is be i ng set u p o n N H·63 nea r Thora naga l l u on 1 ,767 acres of l a n d . The f i rst phase of th i s 500 mega watt power p l a nt i s schedu led to be completed by October 2006. Envi ronmenta l i sts a re of the opi nion that once the power plant i s in p lace , the va rious gases emitted from the p l ant , such as su lphur oxide, n i tr ic oxide and other gases w i l l s i lently pol l u te the Hampi s i te.

Ka rnataka Power Corporat ion L imi ted Execut ive D i rector Jayaprakash has, however said that a l l measures a re being taken to ensure that the Hamp i s i te i s not a ffected by the sett i ng up of the power p la nt . He said that RS .600 erore has been spent towards th is and as per the Centre ru les ; the c hi mney is be ing set u p at a he ight of over 275 metres.

No i mpact study done: The State Archaeology Department has not shown any attention to the possib le ha rm that may be caused to the Hampi ru ins by the emissions of the thermal power stat ion . A senior offic ia l of the department sa id that a n i mpact study' on the h a r m to Hamp i by the power p l a nt has not yet been done. State Archaeo log ica l Department Deputy D i rector' C h i kkamaregowda sa id that fol l ow ing comp la i nts by concerned c i t izens a bout the poss ib le harm to H a m p i , the reperc uss ions a re bei n g l ooked i nto. Hamp i Deve lopment Authori ty Cha i rman a n d Bel l a ry Deputy Commiss ioner Arv i nd Srivastava sa i d tha t the enti re p roject has to he reviewed before it i s executed. CHampi faces da nger ! Th is t i me from thermal p l an t, M T Shivakumar, D H . B, 02.08.05, K53)

The Archaeological Survey of Ind ia (ASI ) has formulated a major p lan to conduct an � impact study' of m in ing on h i stori ca l monuments i n a n d a round H a m p i . The d raft p l a n ca l l ed ' r i s k preparedness ' i s ready fo r i mp lementat ion . Archaeologists of nat iona l a n d i nternat iona l repute w i l l conduct a thorough research on damage caused to monuments by floods i n the Tunga bhadra , natural ca lamit ies , m i n i ng and other causes. They w i l l then submit a deta i led report on the steps to be taken towards conservi ng the Ha mpi monuments to the Centra l government through the AS! . This measure i s sa id to be one of the ra rest act ions taken by the ASI i n protect ing h istorica l monuments.

Most of the structures in Hampi a re weake n i ng after being exposed to the e lements for centur ies together. The Vijaya Vittha la temple has deve loped hundreds of cracks fol lowing enemy attacks and a rson . The ASI has support beams a n d p i l l a rs to protect the monument . But a sma l l a cc ident i s a l l it takes to ca use grave damage to the temple.

Apart from th is , h u nd reds of sma l l temples , mantaps, bast ions et al a re i n danger of col la ps i ng. Most of them s port shrubs growi ng out of the crevices, nooks and corners. Though lack of protection for centuries togethe r i s sa id to be the ma in cau se , i t maybe noted here that m i n i ng has a lso contr i buted majorly to the situation. M in i ng i s carried on at Sandur and Hospet which a re close by; l a rge a mount of explosives are being used on a da i ly bas is . Even bu i l d ings of the Hampi Kan nada Un iversity have not escaped the damage caused by these exp los ions , a ccord i ng to Vice·Chance l lor Dr BA Vivek Ra i .

I f the r isk preparedness plan k icks off, experts wi l l be able to give su itable opin ion and guida nce on va rious topics, i nc lud i ng regu lating m in ing, scientific conservation of the structures, c lea ring the encroachments in severa l monuments etc. (Study on m in i ng impact i n Hampi, M T Shivakumar, DH .B, 2 1 . 1 1 .05, K53)

I f th is materia l ises, then the heritage of Sriranga patna , renowned for its tryst with foreign powers under T ipu Su ltan i n h is fight aga inst the Brit ish, w i l l receive a thrust from the automobi le major Mercedes·Benz. It is sti l l ea rly days, but the l egenda ry car manufactu rer i n the l uxu ry segment with an enviable heritage of its own , has expressed i nterest i n restoration of the heritage sites in S ri ranga patna . S im i la rly, experts from England and France a re keen to revive the heritage of Sri ranga patna as both the countries have a h i storic association with the is land. (Auto major keen to restore heritage of S ri ranga patna; Mercedes·Benz expresses i nterest i n conservation efforts i n T ipu Su ltan 's ca pita l , TH .B, 06. 1 2 .05, K53)

Buddha is on the rocks again : the Centre has upbra ided Karnataka for its d iametrical ly opposite views on the proposed statue of Buddha at Ramanaga ra m . .

D id ecological wisdom dawn on the state government by accident? That is the sti nker the Centre has sent to the state. I n a letter dated December 6, 2005, the Un ion Min istry of Envi ronment and Forests has lambasted the state's forest, environment and ecology department for changing its stance overn ight on ecological issues vis·a·vis the 7 1 2·foot Buddha statue to be ca rved out of the Handigondi rock .

Do thorough field verification rather tha n take su perfic ia l sta nds that can be a ltered at a l ater date, i s the Centres ' pa rti ng shot. For now, on pa per the Buddha project i s s i mply off because the state wh ich had approved the behemoth p lan reversed i ts sta nce on the project and recommended that it be shelved. Sources i n the Sanghamitra Foundation, the orga nisation that has been fighti ng to seethe project take off, say they wi l l fight it out i n the court.

Wh i le forwa rd i ng the Buddha project proposa l to the Centra l govern ment, authorities certified that "the project would not affect any monument of historica l , rel igious, a rchaeological or recreationa l i mportance . . . The project wou ld not cause any envi ronmenta l damage . . . "

This approva l was granted i n November 2004. I n August 2005, the very department that granted unconditional approva l did a 360 degrees shift and wrote to the Centre seeking withdrawal on grou nds of "antiqu ity of the rock , its a rchaeologica l and heritage va l ue, l a rge va riety of f lora and fa una , cr it ica l ly enda ngered b i rd and mammal species". (Buddha statue row gets l i fe, Centre Sends Stinker to State for Changing Stance Overnight, Smitha Rao, TOI . B, 1 2 . 1 2 .05, K53)

The Gul barga fort is fighting unsuccessfu l ly to keep the encroachers at bay. The approach road to this historical place has been reduced to a pothole fi l l ed cart·way. Even though the fort and its bui ld ings have been recognised as national monu ments by the Archaeological Su rvey of I nd i a a nd is on the tou rist map, nothi ng has been d one by the AS I to protect th is 'magn ificent bridge' , except hoards proc la i ming that these bu i ld i ngs a re guided by The Ancient Monu ments a nd Archaeologica l Rema ins Act of 1 958 (24 of 1 958). Many have encroached upon th is l and now. L i nes of nea rly 200 ' i ! !ega l ' houses dot the vast expanse of the fort a rea withi n , i nc lud ing kuccha·pucca , and RCC·roofed houses. (Gu lbarga fort now fights encroachment, Ananad V Ya mnur, D H . B, 09.01 .06, K53)

With ma ny of the pi lgrims and tourists attending the mil lennium first Mahamastakabhi sheka at Shravanbelgoa a l so visiting Mysore to see its famous tou rist spots, the local Ja in Samaj is gearing up to provide free lodging and boarding for pi lgrims passing through.. More than 40,00'0 pilgrims visiting Mysore wil l be served traditional Rajasthan i d i shes and south 1 t'lt!H�n d�licacies. In 21,[:1 , more than 200 N'RI's from USA, Germany and other cou ntries visited the city and proceeded towards Sharava nbelgola to take part i n the festiva l . (Mysore plays host to Ja i n pi lgr ims, K Sh iva Kumar, I E. B, 10 .01 .06, K53)

The 700·foot ta l l monol ith i c Buddha statue p lan ned to be carved out of the rocks at Ramanagara m by the Bangalore·based Sangharn itra Foundation, is not l ikely to material ise. A year ago, the foundation held a major fund ra is ing progra mme featuring Bol lywood actors. When deta i l s of the statue project came to l ight, it was i mmediately opposed by envi ronmenta l i sts. The statue was to come up at Handigondi , where a number of these giant rock formations sta nd. The fou ndation had offered to buy 10 acres of land a round the rocks. The

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 1 f)()(,lI11H'l ltu l ioll Upda te I U nion M in i stry of Envi ronment and Forests i s reported to have withdrawn the permission given for the statue to be carved out. The Un ion M i n i stry has a l so asked the State Gove rn ment to cons ider declar ing the a rea a w i ld l ife sanctuary. (Buddha statue project d ropped, Un ion M in i stry of Envi ronment a nd Forests withdraws permission , TH .B, 18 .01 .06. K53)

A team f rom Un i ted Nat ions Educationa l , Scientif ic and Cultural Orga n isation ( U NESCO) is l i kely to v is it the Hampi World Heritage Site. The purpose i s to review the i mplementation of suggestions a nd gui del i nes i ssued by U NESCO after Hampi was p laced i n the "List of World Heritage Sites in Danger". The team wi l l d i scuss the steps taken to f i n a l i se the I n tegrated S i te Management P l an ( I SMP) prepared for the management of the Hampi Wor ld Heritage S i te and gu ide l ines be ing p repared for v i l lages in the heri tage s i te a rea.

Hampi i s the on ly World Heritage Site in the country to have an ISMP for conservation, protection, management a n d deve l opment . The I S M P has been prepared by a tea m of experts from the School of P l ann i ng a n d Arch itecture, New Delh i , headed by Na l i n i Thakur. The d raft ISMP was d iscussed at the stake· holders' meet ing in Hospet l a st yea r. Rep resentat ive s of U NESCO part ic i pated i n the meet i ng. ( U N ESCO tea m to i ns pect Hampi this month , TH . B, 05.02 .06, K53)

With only two days to go for the Mahamastaka bh isheka to begin , a l l rooms i n hote ls a nd lodges i n the d istrict headquarters are fu l l . Jai n p i lgr ims from north I nd i a had booked hotel rooms two months i n a dvance.

With accommodation bei ng l i mited i n and a round Shravanabe lagola , tour i sts and p i l gr ims have chosen to camp in Hassa n , which is a bout 50 km from the p i lgrim town . With the KSRTC deploying addit ional buses to Shrava na belagola from Hassan , many people feel commuting would not be a problem.

Hoysa l a Vi l lage on the outski rts of the c i ty has 33 rooms, and they had been booked in N ovember i tse lf sa id Sabu Varghese, manager of the resort The s ituat ion is s im i l a r in Southern Star. The hotel management has reported fu l l occupancy for three days from Februa ry 8th . Rooms had been booked some s ix months ago. The hotel has h i red people to cook Ja in food for ent ire February.

Accordi ng to sources i n Mahamastakabh i sheka Committee ( MMC), Sh ravanabe lagola i s a s ma l l town a d m i n i stered by the gram panchayat a n d i t has ga i ned a sem i - u rban status by v i r tue of bei ng a p i lg r im centre and a tou ri st desti nation. Though i t has good accommodat ion fac i l i ties with guesthouse i t i s d ifficu lt to provide accommodation for everyone. The sate l l ite towns that have come u p a re expected to accommodate more than 30,000 v is i tors. Efforts have been made to provi de a l l fac i l i t ies in these towns. There has been a de lay i n comp l et i ng the work o n the five types of cottages. The cottages a re expected to accommodate nearly 300 people. But the delay i n completion of the work has c reated p roblems for the M MC. However, the commi ttee is hopeful of getti ng at least 10 cottages ready. (Hote ls report f u l l occupancy of rooms, T H . B, 06.02 .06, K53)

J i nda l South West Fou ndation , the CSR arm of the JSW Steel Ltd . , has taken up the restorat ion of the World Heritage Site, Hampi in Vijayanagar. The restoration work has begun with the Sri Chandramouleshwara temple l ocated on the north east of H a m p i , on the banks 0 of the r iver Tungabhadra wh ich is o n the i sl and of Rishikmukh.

The Hamp i Foundat ion , the p h i l a nthrop ic a rm of the J SW, was formed i n 2000. I t s igned a MoU with the Government of Karnataka l ast November. The Foundation i s work ing with G loba l Heritage Fund (GH F) in San Franc isco and the World Monuments Fund in N ew York. The restorat ion process wi l l be done i n two phases. The f i rst phase i nvolve s cond it ion ma pp i ng, the structu ra l conso l i d at ion of the temp le a n d the stone e m ba nkments, a n d a l so the a rch i tectu ra l restorat ion of stones , br i ckwork and l i me stucco. The second phase i nvolves the i l l u m i nat ion of the temple a nd the s i te . The who le process i s l i kely to be f i n i shed in two yea rs. The company is spend ing approxi m ately Rs 1 , crore i n t he restorat ion p roject . (Ra i s i ng a c i ty from rui ns , Su lekha Na i r, FE .D, 1 9.02.06, K53)

Srikantadatta Naras imharaja Wadiyar wants to convert heritage properties i nto f ive-star hote l s in Kerala and Kar nataka . Wad iyar, who owns the Fernh i l l Pa lace in Ooty a nd the u nder· renovat ion Rajendra Vi l a s Pa l ace, has i dentif ied a few heritage properties that can be converted i n to hote ls in Leh, Munnar, Kova lam, Koch i a nd Coorg i n South Ind ia .

I Documentation Upciate I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

He has a lso p lans to adopt few properties i n Rajasthan , Gujarat , Pune and other States . The Wadiya rs have purchased Woodcock Ha l l , a heritage property, Pa lace of Hyderabad, and Pr ime M i n i ster Sola rgi um i n Ooty. The heritage property spreads over 2 .5 acres a nd has 25 rooms with wooden f loori ng. The Regency Vi l l a i s a l so owned by the roya l fam i ly, Wad iya r d i sc losed that the renovated heri tage propert ies i n Kera la a re very popular among tou rists. There a re pla ns to i nvest $90 m i l l ion i nc luding $50 m i l l ion on the a i rl i nes project and $40 m i l l ion to convert heritage properties i nto hote ls , which would add another 800 rooms in the next three years . Wad iya r sa id that he has appl i ed for 'No Dues' cert if icate and w i l l fi l e wea lth tax w i th i n a cou ple of weeks. He has a l so sought res identia l certif icate from Home M i n istry to a pp ly for l icence to run a i r services with in a year. His wife Promada Devi w i l l redesign the heri tage hotels and the i nteriors of the a i rcraft. (Wadiya r to convert heri tage s i tes i nto hote l s . , I E. B, 22.03.06 , K53)

K55 Eco and Wi l d l ife Tou rism

I nd ian People's Tri bunal ( l PT), a non governmenta l organ isation (NGO) dedicated to the cause of envi ronment and human r ights, has u rged both centra l and state governments to cancel the enti re Kudremukh nat iona l pa rk project i n the best i nterest of the t r iba l s of the region . Br iefi ng reporters about the contents of the report, Suresh sa id the genes i s of a l l the t roubles faced by the t r iba ls and the u n rest in the Ma l nad region was the conversion of forest a rea i nha bited by the tr ibals i nto the nationa l pa rk. (NGO dema nds scrapp ing of Kudremukh nat iona l pa rk, VT. B, 20 .04.05, K55)

Cou ntry C l u b ( I ) Ltd (CCl l) has acq u i red i ts f i rst w i l d l i fe property 'Bush -Betta ' located in the Band ipur w i ld l i fe nat iona l pa rk nea r Mysore. The acqu i s i t ion o f the w i l d l i fe resort located on a 20-ac re expa nse was a nnounced by Mr Y. Rajeev Reddy, Cha i rman a nd Managi ng D i rector of CCl l . The company has i nvested Rs 20 crore both for acqui s it ion a nd renovation of the property. The 'Country Club Bush-Betta Resort' cu rrently has 60 cottages . Country C lub p lans to add another a bout 1 00 rooms in the Bush-Betta resort in the next two yea rs .

To propel its growth i n t h i s booming wi ld l ife tour ism, Country Cl ub would be i nvesti ng Rs 1 00 crore i n the next two yea rs . It p l ans to add s i x more propert ies i n Ooty, Goa , Kha nda l a , Koda i ka n a l , Sh i m la a nd Kera l a . I t wou ld soon open i ts off ices i n New York , U K, a nd major c i t ies i n northern I nd i a to ma rket i ts t i meshare properties. (Country C lub acquis i t ion , Bl .B, 04.05.05, K55)

Deve lop ing tour ism in Kodagu to boost its economy, otherw ise dependent on coffee, has been the favourite rhetor ic with the d i str ict a d m i n i st rat ion , tou ri st operators, and tou rism author it ies. No ser ious effort has gone i nto ma king Kodagu a commerc i a l ly v i ab le tou ri st dest i nat ion , i rres pect ive of opposit ion from some qua rters that commerc i a l i sm can spo i l the region . lethargy and l ack of response have l eft the i ssue of touri sm development in Kodagu rema in on ly on pa per.

Systemis ing trekki ng: The proposed moves of the Ju ngle lodges a nd Resorts (JlR) to systematise trekki ng in the chosen locat ions of the Western G hats, a ppear to be the r ight dec is ion to attract nature lovers to the d i str ict . The J lR has reportedly asked the Forest Depa rtment to prepare a p lan to sta rt t rekk ing operat ions i n a systematic manner and to constitute v i l lage forest committees compris i ng vil lagers and Forest Department personne l in Na lad i , Yavaka padi a nd Kunj i la v i l lages for popu l a ri s i ng trekki ng in Kodagu.

I n the absence of Government-sponsored tou r ism and unrespons ive private operators, home stay concept has become very popu l a r i n Kodagu . However, home stay fac i l it i es cou ld come under the sca nner of the d i str ict a d m i n i st rat ion in the coming days beca use some have sta rted express ing reservat ions over thei r function i ng. (Attract ing nature lovers to 'God's own parad ise' , T H . B, 02.09.05, K55)

The Ban nerghatta Nationa l Pa rk, parts of which is now designated a Biological Park, i s going to get a facel ift . An average of 5000 tou r ists a nd loca l s v is i t Bannerghatta every day a nd a round 30 % more on weekends. With such a l a rge number of visitors throughout the yea r, the park authorit ies face the problem of d isposi ng of pa per, p last ic and other i norga n ic waste. With few good eateries in the v ic in i ty, most v is i tors bri ng p icn ic l u nches w i th pa per and p l ast i c pl ates. Accord i ng to Forest Depa rtment offi c i a l s , the waste ly ing a round poses a serious hea l th haza rd to a n i ma l s. (Facel i ft for Ban nerghatta Park soon , T H . B, 25 . 1 2 .05, K55)

.? 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentat io1l Update I The th ick forest a rea i n Chamarajanagar d i st r i ct , ear l i e r under the "contro l " of Veerap p a n , i s n ow bei ng deve loped i nto a tou ri sm hot spot by the State Government a nd i s expected to d raw the attent ion of tourists i n a big way. The Government launched the ambit ious project "Mystery tra i ls" with the loca l G i r i jans roped i n t o serve as guides t o the tour ists. A n d with a nom ina l fee o f R s . 400 per day towards t h e trekk ing, the r ich Chamarajanagar forests a re expected to be a big d raw not merely to the local tou r ists but a l so those from a broa d who enjoy t rekk i ng i n the Western G hats. F i rst t i me i n over 25 yea rs that the Government had decided to promote Chamarajanagar tour ism dest inat ion. (Chama raja nagar forest a rea to be d eveloped as tourism hot spot, TH .B, 03 .01 .06, K55)

Karnataka i s tak ing a lead role in deve lop ing eco-tou r ism in the country by gu i d i ng other states a bout the n i tty-gritty of the projects. The government has set up a separate w i ng under the umbre l la of the Karnataka Tour ism Department cal led Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR) to offer the conSU ltancy services to other states to deve lop eco-tour ism. Currently, J LR is prov id i ng consu lta ncy services to Or issa and Jammu & Kashmi r, wh i l e north easte rn states and Madhya P radesh a re i n the p i pe l ine. (Karnataka to he lp other states i n eco­tour i sm, Somasroy Chakraborty, FE .B, 20.01 .06, K55)

The Forest Department is p lan n ing to br ing B i l ig i r i Ranga na H i l l s once part of the forest brigands ' a rea of operat ion , u nder the purview of P roject T ige r.The department has proposed to launch what it ca l l ed B i l ig i r i Rangana Temple Wi ld Life Sanctuary (BRTWLS) and is optim ist ic about the proposa l being made part of the forthcoming t ige r census . Karnataka has a l ready three - Nagarhole N at iona l Park , Band ipu r and Bhadra t ige r reserve - out of a tota l 28 t iger reserves i n the country and a l l th ree were inc luded under Project Tiger. Accord i ng to offic i a l s , t iger reserve has a spec ia l status w i th its protection and ma intenance as wel l as the salaries of the staff bei ng met by the Central Government. (BR h i l l s may be i ncl uded in P roject T iger, Subhash Chandra , VT. B, 1 9.02.06, K55)

In order to protect the water b i rd popu lat ion in Bangalore, the department has mooted an i dea of declar ing certa i n wetla n d s i n the c ity a s bi rd conservat ion zones. The idea , a f i rst of i ts k i n d , w i l l n ot o n ly he lp i n improvi ng the b i rd habitat i n the City but enable b i rd lovers t o part ici pate i n conservation programmes. The Forest department has a l ready begun work in th is d i rect ion . Work on the mapping of the wet lands where the b i rds a rrive, has begun , whi le b i rd-r ich areas l i ke Madi va l a l ake , Puttenha l l i Lake , Jakkur and Byramangal a lake which attract thousands of b i rds a re being monitored. Once the water bod ies are declared as conservation zones, they wi l l be brought under the lega l provis ions and deve loped to protect the landscape and the f lora and fauna of the l a kes and surround i ng areas. (Proposa l to convert wet lands i nto b i rd conservat ion zones, Subhash Chandra , VT.B, 27.03.06, K55)

K56 Nagaraho le

I t ' s a c lass ic example o f how t h e I nd i an bureaucracy works dur ing a cr is is and what i t does when t h e cr is i s i s past . For once the t iger cr is i s ' wh ich shook t h e country van ished from t h e medi a spot l ight , t h e P roject T iger Di rectorate has resumed i ts old ways of funct ion ing .

Noth ing cou ld prove the poi nt better than the i ssue of tr iba l resett lement from N agarahole Nat iona l Park. Though 300 tr ibal fami l ies are keen on ava i l i ng of the rehab scheme and the Forest Department has a l ready bu i l t over 1 0 5 houses, the Project T iger D i rectorate has dec l i ned to release funds for the resettlement.

The resett lement scheme for tr i ba l s of N agaraho le and Bhadra found a ment ion i n the T iger Task Force constituted by the Pr ime M in i ster to look i nto the t iger cr is i s . The Task Force had a l so recommended that such models cou ld be emulated i n other areas as wel l . But, the D irectorate is tak ing she lter beh i nd the fact that the funds were not comp letely u sed d u ri ng the l a st f i nanc ia l yea r a n d i s t hus thwart ing the ent i re resettlement process. The tri ba l s who have registered for the reha bi l itation scheme a re feel i ng let down by the Government.

The on ly th i ng the Department is wa it i ng for is Central funds as it has to g ive Rs . one l a k h in cash to the fam i l ies which want to move out . The tr iba l s should have moved last March . S ince the construction of houses nod the identification the land was delayed, the Rs, 1 ,55 crore received from the Centre, which was earmarked for th is purpose, was sent back. N ow, the repeated p leas of the Forest Department have fa i led to move the Project Tiger Di rectorate which has not released the money. (Red tape sta l l s Nagarahole tribal s ' resettlement, Vi nay Madhav, I E . B, 1 3 . 1 1 .05 , K56)

I Documen tat io n Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

K57 H i l l Tour ism

Ch i kmaga l u r's d istr ict admi n i stration i s a f i rm bel i ever i n the sel f-he lp concept , at least where tou ri sm i s concerned_ M iffed by the low i nterest l evel s i n Chi kmaga lu r, espec ia l ly the lack of focussed promot ion , the d i str ict is attempt ing an a mbit ious campa ign on its own, l i n ki ng up with i nternationa l travel operators and agents_ The emphasis wi l l be on nature and wi ldl ife. Chikmaga lur has breathtakingly beautiful range of mounta ins studded w i th coffee plantations. He agreed that m in imum fac i l it ies were lack ing i n some of the destinat ions. but i nd i cated that efforts a re on to address those i ssues in phases. (Ch i kmaga l ur set to l u re g loba l tourists, Anita Rao Kash i , TOI . B, 22 .06.05, K57)

Asia 's l a rgest coffee p lantation company Tata Coffee Ltd . has d iversif ied i nto the hospita l ity sector with the l aunch of "P lantat ion Tra i l s, " a c l uster of ho l iday homes in Kodagu, set amidst idyl l i c coffee g rowing estates i n and a round Pol l ibetta , once renowned for its h igh yield i ng and f ine f lavoured Coorg mandar ins that were grown a s a n i nter crop.

Tata Coffee's hol iday homes a re or igi na l estate homes or bunga lows that were occu pied by the planters of Tata Coffee Ltd . i n Kodagu . ' P lantat ion Tra i l s w i l l be i n it i a l ly confined to 36 rooms spread over e ight estates in Kodagu. (Tatas launch ' Plantation Tra i l s ' , It w i l l i n it ia l ly be conf ined to 36 rooms i n eight estates in Kodagu, T H . B, 23.02.06, K57)

K59 Gol f Tou rism

Th i s c i ty i s i d ea l ly s it uated t o deve lop a green belt o f golf courses a l l a round i t , says one o f the wor ld 's l ea d i ng "golf a rc h i tects . " Golf courses w i l l c reate jobs for hundreds a nd ea rn some hard c urrency for the government , says Rona ld W. Fream of the U.S. based Fream and Dale Golf P lan , wh ich provides golf course a rch i tecture. Apart from v is i to rs, the c ity has hundreds i n the h igh - i ncome bracket for whom golf can be recreation , l ifestyle and even a status sym bol . Another suggest ion he has i s for golf courses to be developed a s pa rt of the tech parks. ( Bangalore idea l for golf tou r ism: expert, T H . B, 06.09 .05, K59)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation C Tpdate I

. L - KERALA .

Ll0 Pol icy, Economy

The Kera l a Governme nt has d rawn u p an act ion p l a n with an out lay of Rs 1 3 ,495 crore to i mp lement the projects i dentif ied for its 'Vis ion 20 1 0' programme. The Governor, M r R . L. Bhat i a , sa id that f ive task forces had i dent i f ied the p rojects that wou ld be i m plemented over t he next f ive years . The share of the State Government i n the outlay w i l l be 1 6 %, wh i le the Centre w i l l contri bute 6 %. I nvestments from private sector and fi nanc ia l i n st itut ions w i l l account for the ba l ance a mount. (Rs 1 3 ,495-cr act ion p l an for 'V is ion 201 0' , BL .B, 04.02 .06, L l O)

Lll Planning

Kera l a wou l d br ing i n a comprehens ive legis lat ion to ban c h i l d l a bour i n the state , Labour M i n ister Babu Divakara n sa id . The d raft for the legi s lat ion was being considered by the cabi net, Mr D ivakaran sa id . Though ch i ld ren under 14 yea rs of age were nor engaged in ' hazardous' jobs , as defined by the I nternat ional Labour Organ isat ion in the state , a ny k i nd of hard work i mposed on them wou ld be ba nned u nder the new act, he sa id. (Kera l a mu l l s B i l l to ban ch i l d l a bour, FE .B, 1 3.06.05, L l 1 )

L12 I nfrastructure

The State Government w i l l seek f i nanc ia l ass i stance of Rs 528 crore from the Wor ld Bank to complete the Kera l a State Transport project that envisages deve lopment of State h ighways a n d other i mportant roads . The Chief M in i ster, Mr Oommen Chandy, sa id after the Cab i net meeting that the Cabi net resolved to go ahead w ith the project, a s it d i d not make sense to abandon i t m i d -way. The Government . however, w i l l try to complete the work without I ncurr ing excess expenditure. (Kera la to seek Rs 528 cr from Wor ld Bank for road project, B L . B, 06. 1 0 .05 , L l 2)

Leel a Ventures i s p lann i ng to set u p a n a i rport at Kannur i n Kera la wh ich wou ld take shape with i n three yea rs . "Ka n n u r has a gar ment park, IT park and horticu l tu re park and i t needs a n a i rport. Leela w i l l be sett ing u p t h e p roject here w h i c h w i l l b e t h e f i rst 1 00% p rivate a i rport i n t he country, " CP Kr i shnan N a i r, cha i rman , Lee l a Venture s a i d . N a i r stated that 300 acres of l a nd has a l ready been acq u i red for the project i n north Kera la a nd another 1 ,000 acre of l and would be acquired after state legis lative Assembly elections schedu led in May. " ( Lee la p l ans a i rport at Kan nur, FE, 04.02.06, L l O)

The Nat iona l Tran sportat ion P l a n n i ng a n d Research Centre (NATPAC) has just conc l uded a study for the secon d phase of the h i l l h ighway project, pass ing through the high ranges i n Kera l a , suggest i ng that the i mp lementation of the project be taken up in stages due to l arge deve lopment costs . The study pointed out that the development of the second phase of the h ighway for a route length of 627.40 km from Pa lakkad to Thi ruvananthapura m wou ld cost around Rs 31 ,087 I akh. The order of priority woul d be developing the miss ing l inks f i rst and then u pgrad ing major d i str ict roads to State h ighways standards . (H ighway to development , V. Sajeev Kumar, BL .B, 1 3.03.06 , L 1 2)

The Coch i n Port i s f loat i ng global express ion of i nterest (Eol) to a ppoi nt consu ltants for design i ng a world c l a ss c ru ise term i n a l on the port p re mi ses. Accord i ng to port a uthor i t ies , the p roject is env isaged on a p u bl i c- private pa rtners h i p and wi l l i nc lude construct ion of a modem cru ise jetty a nd a world c l ass cru i se termina l complex-cum·pub l i c p laza . To make the project f inanci a l ly v iab le , the port i s p lann i ng to deve lop part of the termi na l complex a s an a ccess i b le pub l ic desti nati o n , a range of fac i l it i es for enterta i n me nt , hosp i ta l i ty shop p i ng ma l l s a nd bus i ness a n d conferenc ing a n d trade exh i b i t ions . (Coch i n Port seeks consu ltants for cru ise term ina l , FE .B, 2 1 .03.06, L l 2)

I Documenta tion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

L20 Environmenta l I ssues

The H i ndusta n Coca-Cola Beverages (P) Ltd . was permitted by a Div is ion Bench of the Kera la H igh Court to resume production at i ts P l ach i mada p lant i n Pa la kkad d istrict , d rawing ground water up to f ive l a kh l itres per day, the maxi mum l i mit f ixed by a team of experts of the Centra l Water Resources Deve lopment and Management (CWRDM).

The compa ny had not been function i ng as the Perumatty g ra m pa nchayat had refused to renew the l i cence gra nted by it on the grounds that the company was over-exp loit i ng ground water result ing in water sca rcity in the a rea, a nd was causi ng envi ronmenta l pol l ut ion.

D isposi ng of three writ appea l s, the court sa id the panchayat was not justified i n rejecti ng the appl ication for renewal of l i cence before a scientific assessment of the ground water potent ia l was made. The panchayat had no lega l authority to ca ncel the l icence for function ing with in the panchayat a rea for any of these reasons. The pa nchayat was, therefore, d i rected to consider with i n two weeks the appl ication for renewa l of l icence for the coming yea r, or a ny block yea rs, if such a n a ppl i cat ion i s rece ived i n two weeks.

The company has the obl igation to appra ise the panchayat that it has l i cence i ssued under the Factories Act and c learance from the Pol lution Control Board . If the panchayat is satisfied that the company is in possession of these two docu ments, i t should grant l icence.

It i s not w i th in the j u ri s d i ct ion of the panchayat to i nq u i re a bout the deta i l s of the mach i nery i n sta l l ed , borewe l l s etc, a s such matters fa l l with in the j u risd iction of the enforcement off icer under the Factories Act. After the granti ng of I i cence, the panchayat ca n make i nspecti ons so as to see whether a ny further l i cence fee is paya ble. (HC g ives nod to Coke's P lach i mada p lant , I E. B, 08.04.05, L20)

Susta i ned mult i p le assau l ts on envi ronment s igna l an emergi ng cr i s i s for Kera l a as l a rge a reas across the State struggle to cope with r i s i ng pol l ut ion l evel s , c l i mate change a nd i nc reased vu l nera b i l i ty to natura l d i sasters. The f i rst 'State of the Envi ronment' report for Kera l a wh ich i s schedu led to be re leased by Ch ief M i n i ster Oommen Chandy, provides a n i ns ight i nto the st�ess factors responsible for the i mpend ing threats.

The report states that u n p l a n ned u rban growth , convers ion of wetl a n d s a nd f iel ds , coasta l eros ion and i ncrea si ng consu mpt ion of petro leum products have p laced t remendous pressure on the l i mited natura l resources i n the State. The report i s the cu lm ination of a two-yea r progra mme l aunched by the Kera la State Counci l for Science, Technology and Envi ronment (KSCSTE) with assistance from the M in i stry of Envi ron ment and Forests. (Kera l a becoming wa rmer, says envi ronment su rvey, Touri sm growth pos i ng threat to coasta l degradat ion, T. Nandakumar, TH_B, 05.06.05, L20)

Last week the Perumatty panchayat refused , for a second t ime, permission to Coca Cola to d raw water for its P lach imada plant. As envi ronment stories go, the one about thi s p lant in Kera la is an i nternationa l favourite that refuses to fade away. The story i s one of both ground water depletion and surface pol l ut ion that i s ma king the water in wel l s i n the v ic in ity of the plant undri n kable. Coke says its d i rect cu lpab i l i ty i n the matter has not been esta b l i shed.

The p lant was c losed after the pa nchayat ca nce l l ed the l i cence of H i ndusta n Coca Co la Beverages Pr ivate Ltd to use groundwater from here in March 2004. The panchayat has si nce rejected the company's appl ication twice.

The P lach imada protest i s led by Da l i ts a nd ad ivas is . The pol l ut ion comes from the s l udge Coke dumped i n the a rea su rround ing i t s p l an t wh i ch the BBC tested a nd decl a red to have a h igh content of cad mium a nd n i ckel . Coke was pass i ng it off as a ferti l izer. (The P lach imada saga, Seva nti N i nan , TH . B, 1 9 .06.05, L20)

The Kera la Forest Depa rtment wou l d promote a project to deve lop wooded a reas i n c i t ies and v i l l ages, the M i n i ster for Water Resources and Forests, Thi ruvanchoor Radha krishnan , announced . At a press conference, the M i n i ster sa id the objective wou ld be to i ncrease the forest cover of the State by 5 percent i le poi nts. He sa id 28 % of the State's terri tory was forests. Th i s needed to be i ncreased to 33 %. The M i n i ster sa id that the envi ron menta l and other orga n i sat ions would be i nvolved in the effort to use fa l low a reas in cit ies, towns

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I and vi l l ages for p lanting. Around 20 lakh seed l i ngs wou ld be d istr ibuted i n the fi rst stage of the afforestat ion programme. (Project to deve lop green cover in Kera la c it ies , T H . B, 29.06.05, L20)

La nd grabb ing by 'the r ich , the powerfu l and the i nfl uenti a l ' is conti n u i ng u nabated in the Cardamom H i l l Reserves (CHR) of Idukk i d istr ict i n Kera l a , accord ing a recent report of the Centra l Empowered Committee (CEC) of the Supreme Court. The CEC submitted its report to the Supreme Court l ast month acti ng on an appl ication fi led before i t by a n envi ronmenta l group ca l led One Earth One Life seeking the court's i ntervention in p revent ing l a rge·sca le encroachment of forests i n the C H R w i th the support of bu reaucrats a nd establ i shment.

During the i r probe, the CEC members came across a staggering number of cases i nvolving " i l legal a ssignment of l a nds a n d grant of t i t le deeds . . . a n d consequent deforestat ion" i n the C H R , wh ich is l ega l l y ' reserved forests. ' (Forest encroachment unabated in I dukk i , says pane l report, P. Venugopa l , T H . B, 06. 1 0.05, L20)

Kera la M in ister for Water Resources Thi ruvanchoor Radhakri shna n sa id that the Government would not agree to i nter l i n k the Pam pa and the Achancoi l r ivers to the Vypar i n Tam i l Nadu under a ny c i rcumstances. The M in i ster said Kera l a had a l ready l ost water from five rivers to Tam i l Nadu . The Centre had no l ega l powers to ask the State that it should a l l ow further d ivers ion of its waters. Mr. Radhakrishnan said the Government had, in pr inc ip le , a pproved a proposa l for the formation of a river deve lopment authority. He sa id h is department was of the view that it s hou l d have a say in the use of the River Ma nage ment Fund . The use of the Fund shou ld not be l im ited to construction works . Conservat ion of water resources shou ld be the focus. (Kera l a n ot to a l l ow d ivers ion o f r iver waters, T H . B, 03. 1 2 .05 , L20)

The State Government has proposed shifting the controvers ia l Coca·Cola bottl ing plant at Perumatty in Pa lakkad d istr ict to some other l ocat ion where i t w i l l not e ncounter publ i c res i sta nce. The Government made th i s proposa l at a meet ing convened by Pr inc ipa l Secretary for I ndustries T. Ba lakri shnan . The meet ing was part of conti nu ing efforts to f ind a sol ution to the d ispute over the Coca·Co la bottl i ng p lant, which remains c losed since March 2004 following publ ic agitation and court cases over the a l leged overexploitation of the groundwater resources of the a rea by the company. Accord ing to i nformation received by th is newspaper on what transpi red at the meeting, the compa ny's offic ia ls d id not respond either posi tively or negatively to the suggestion. They sa id they wanted t i me to study the proposa l from a l l a ngles . (Coke reserves res ponse on G overnment suggestion , T H . B, 04. 0 1 .06, L20)

L30 Non-Tour ism Issues

I t could be a smal l but s ign if icant victory for the green brigade, vi nd icat ing yea rs of struggle. As the debate rages whether triba ls shou ld be granted res idency rights i n forests, Keral a coul d show the way. The Supreme Court a ppoi nted Centra l E mpowered Comm i ttee i n its report sa id forest l a n d cou l d be tra nsferred if compensated with afforestat ion progra mmes. I n a report submitted to the SC on Apri l 29, the committee sa id the State G overnment can transfer forest l a nd to tri ba l s so that it is used on ly for forestry. I n effect, it has wa ived the ea r l ier condit ion of payment of net present va lue of l a nd by the State Governments.

Kera l a has been eager ly wa i ti ng for the a pex cou rts dec is ion . After a v io lent struggle by tri ba l s for the i r trad it iona l l ights, the State government i s mak ing efforts to resettle 53 ,000 tr iba l fa m i l i es in the forests of Muthanga Sanctua ry by transferring nearly 7,000 hectares of forest l and . If it comes through, th is wi l l be the fi rst victory for tri ba l rights in the country. (Kera la leads the way in tri ba l forest rights crusade, Yoga Rangatia , TP.D, 03.05.05, L30)

L40 Tourism Pol icy and Plans

I n a series o f roadshows Kera l a tourism i s attempti ng to tempt the domestic trave l ler with a l l thi ngs that the t i ny state is famous for as wel l as some vi rgi n , offbeat dest inat ions . Last yea r fore ign a rr iva l s i n to Kera l a stood a t 3 .25 lakhs wh i l e domestic tour ists crossed 60 l akhs .

I Documcntation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Interview Kerala Tourism Principal Secretary, E V Bhara t Bhushan

Q. Kera l a i s fam i l i a r with tour ists, so what a re you attempting with th is cam pa ign?

A . We a re tak ing a d i fferent l i ne th i s t ime. Our focus is on sustai nab i l i ty because we bel i eve u n less tour ism can susta i n itself; i t cannot provide a n u nforgettable experience.

Q. Aren ' t the two contrad i ctory?

A. It may seem contrad ictory our campa ign to a ttract more tour i sts and the s usta i n a b i l i ty l ine but there i s no d ichotomy. On ly if its susta i nable can more tour ists enjoy the experience. It 's chal lenging but we' re gea ri ng for i t .

Q. How do you p ropose to do th i s?

A. The Kera l a Assembly passed a legis lation recently providi ng for demarcat ing tourist zones, where the government w i l l have wide-ra ngi ng contro l . Such is the scope of the legis lat ion that it lays down stri ngent gu ide l ines for waste d isposa l of houseboats and control of emiss ions_

Q. But why the strong focus on domest ic tourists?

A. Because more a nd more I nd i a ns a re begi n n i ng to travel , a n d we wa nt them to travel to Kera l a . In addition to a l l the USPs, we a re a l so promot ing some of the u nexplored territories for those domest ic tourists who p refer sol i tude. The new set of commerc ia l s shot by Santosh Sivan a ptly convey a l l that Kera l a is a bout.

(Kera l a targets domestic tour i sts , An ita Rao Kash i , TOI . B, 26.04.05, L40)

Kera l a Tour ism has prepared a prel i m inary set of guidel i nes for the conservation and preservation of the four spec i a l tour ism zones i n the State. The d raft gu ide l i nes for the conservat ion and preservat ion of Kova l a m , Munna r, Kumara kom a n d Fort Koch i a re ava i l ab le for comment on the Kera l a Tour ism Website, s a i d M r B. Suman, D i rector, Department of Tour ism, Government of Kera l a . These four regions were recently decl a red specia I tour ism zones by the State Government u nder the Keral a Tourism (Conservation and P reservation of Areas) Act 2005. Wh i le preservat ion , conservation a nd i ntegrated development of the spec ia l tour ism zones is the ma in objective, sepa rate gu ide l i nes have been prepared for each zone. (Kera l a Tourism prepares d raft norms for s pec ia l zones, Sankar Radhakrishnan , BLC, 03.06.05 , L40)

Tel evis ion sta rs Smri t i I ran i and Mona Vasu wi l l endorse Kera l a as a hol i d ay desti nat ion i n a series of ads to be tel ecast on Sta r P lus . Confi rming the development, Kera l a Tourism M i n i ster Mr K.C. Ven ugopal sa i d that the promotion is part of Kerala Tourism's efforts to promote the State i n the domestic market. Kera la Tourism also hopes the advert isements w i l l boost v is i tor i nf lows d u ri ng the 'off season' and strengthen the State's posit ion i ng as a year- roun d tour i st dest inat ion . One advert isement wi l l feature Mona Vasu , who acts in the seria l M i i l ee, ta lk about how ayurvedic hol idays in Kera la revital i se her and help her cope with a busy schedu le.

Accord i ng to a sen ior tou r ism offi c i a l , the three -ad campa ign wi l l a p pear on Sta r P l us i n a few weeks. The cam pa ign is part of an overa l l medi a package with Star P l us and has been shot by the channel , he said. The ma in objective of the campa ign is to reach out to people i n Northern I nd i a and a l so in states such as Gujarat and Maharashtra , sa id the offici a l . Research has shown that women i n these a reas have a s ign i f ica nt role i n determin i ng where the fam i ly hol i days, h e expla i ned. (TV stars to promote Kera l a tourism , BL .B, 24.06.05, L40)

2 0 05 - 0 6 1 Documenta t ion Update I

Interview with B Suman, Director, Kerala Tourism

Q. With the boom i n civi l av iat ion thanks to the arr ival of a number of l ow·cost a i r l i nes, has there been an i ncrease in the number of domestic tour i sts com i ng to Kera la?

A . As of n ow there are no low·cost a i r l i nes flyi ng i nto Kera la . However two l ow cost a i rl i nes , A i r Deccan a nd Paramount, a re scheduled to f ly to Kerala in September. I t i s a nt ic ipated that there w i l l be an i ncrease in the domest ic tourist a rr iva l s once they sta rt flying i n .

Q. Kera la i s right on top of every tour ist's i t inerary. However, why i s t hat most pr ivate a i r l i nes a re averse to fly ing to Kera la?

A . Keral a i s w ithout doubt the most sought after tour ist dest inat ion i n the country. However, Kera l a 's geogra p h i ca l l ocat ion of bei ng l ocated i n one corner of the count ry i s to our d isadvantage. Currently most of the capacity i s f i l led by bus iness trave l lers who fly to Kera la due to the h igh p ri c i ng that conventional a i rl i nes have at p resent. The le isure travel segment is qu ite p ri ce ·sens i t ive , u n l i ke the bus i n es s t ravel segment. O u r d isadvantage is that the h igh p ric ing to an extent deters le isure trave l lers from flyi ng i n .

Q . H igh cost i s o n e major factor that puts off domesti c tour ists. What a re you r strategies to address th i s crucia l i ssue?

A. I t is agreed that h igh cost deters domestic tour i sts. Kera l a Tour i sm is p resently look ing at a host of pol i cy opti ons , wh ich cou l d be u sed to i n centives a i r l i ne a rriva l s i nto the state. Some of them cou ld be reduc ing the leve ls of taxation on ATF, subsi d is i ng ground hand l i ng cha rges, etc . A decis ion on th i s w i l l have to be taken at a h igher level kee p i ng i n m i nd the trade·off between the loss of reven ue a nd a nt ic ipated gains in do ing so.

( 'H igh val ue tour ism is i ntri ns ica l ly l i nked to a i r l i ne a rriva ls ' , FE .D, 27.09.05, L40)

As Kera l a becomes a hot tour ist spot for more trave l lers from Europe, backwaters and ayurveda may n ot be the on ly attractions to l u re them. The State Tourism Department is p lann ing to promote 'experience touri sm' which enable the tou rists to i nteract with the l oca ls and enjoy the ambience. The concept brings in addit ional i ncome for the fa rmers . The state i s targeti ng h igh·end tour i sts with experience tour ism. Along with that the Tour ism Department is goi ng to u n l ea sh a tour ism p romot iona l campa ign in the US joi ntly with the Taj and Obero i groups in March . U n l i ke Europeans , Kera l a has not become must·see p lace for the Americans . The tourist i nflow from the US i s sti l l l im ited . Another trend observed in the current season is t he r ise in i ndiv idual tourists. There is less demand for preschedu led and ta i lor-made p rogram mes. A lso the touri sts seem more o riented towards cu lture than beaches, perhaps because at the t ime of the booki ng a round six months ago, tsunami cou ld have been at the back of the i r m inds. (After backwaters a nd ayurveda, it's experience tou rism in Kera l a , P K Kr i shna Kumar, I E .C, 07 . 1 2 .05 , L40)

Tou r operators and t ravel agents w i l l soon have to sh i ft t he i r base out of the state or j u st shut s hop. T he Tour ism Depa rtment i s i n the process of transfor m i ng its websi te www. kera latou r i sm.org i nto a "one stop shop" for a l l tour ism needs. I f the idea becomes a rea l i ty, a touri st can not only get i nfor mation on the tour ist spots i n the state and but a lso book h i s fl ight t ickets, arra nge h i s a i rport transfer, p lan h i s i t inera ry and even book a seat i n a l onely beach-s ide restau rant through the 20· i nch frame of the website. (kera latourism.org i n for a major revamp, R Ayyappan , I E .C, 06.02.06, L40)

The Centre has given the green signal to the p roposed 'Kada lora Tou ri sm Ci rcuit ' , a tou rism p roject connecting beaches in Kera la , the State Tourism M in i ster, Mr K.C. Venugopa l , sa id .

I n a written reply, he sa id the Rs 7 .98·crore project wou ld be i mplemented through the Kera l a I ndustri a l a nd Techn i ca l Consu ltancy O rgan isat ion i n Sankumugham , Cherayi , Natt i ka , Payyamba lam, Meenkun nu and Muzhuppi langad beaches.

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Mr Venugopal sa id though the Government had not received any compla i nts of sex tou rism, it wou ld examine the matter and ste rn act ion wou l d be taken aga i nst those i nvol ved . He sa id emp loyment opportun it ies through tourism was i ncreas ing each year and according to the report by the Travel and Tourism Counci l , 7 .8 l akh jobs were created duri ng 2005-06 and by 201 3 i t wou ld touch 22 l akh .

Forest protection : The State Forest M in i ster, Mr A . Suja napa l , told the Assembly the Government proposed to a p point spec ia l prosecutors for speedy settlement of cases re lated to forest protect io n . Mr Suja napa l sa id three projects for forest protection had been implemented with World Bank a id . No outsiders wou ld be engaged for forest protection and th is work wou ld be entrusted to tri ba ls l ivi ng i n forest areas. Accord i ng to ava i l ab le stat ist ics , there were 80,000 triba ls l ivi ng in forests. Mr Suja napa l sa id not an inch of forest l and wou ld be pr ivat ised . The State and Centra l Govern ments' dec l a red pol i cy was to protect forest. (Centre okays Kera la coasta l tou r ism c i rcu i t , BL .B, 1 5 .02.06, L40)

As part of i ts efforts to promote respons i bl e tou ri sm , Kera l a Touri sm has unve i l ed a set of gu ide l i nes for t rave l l ers a nd tour operators in the State. The gu idel i nes a re part of a mult i - pronged strategy to move the tourism i ndustry in Kera l a towards respons ib le tourism based on conservation a nd preservation .

One aspect of the tou r ism department's responsib le tou r ism strategy i s to work with the hotel i ndustry to promote th is concept. I n t ime, ecologica l considerations w i l l be i ncorporated into the hotel classifi cation and i ncentives system currently fol lowed in the State. As part of its responsible tou rism strategy, Kera l a Tourism a lso p lans to create a certification scheme for tour operators.

S imi la rly, the tou rism department p lans to sensit ise tou rists to the need for respons ible tou r ism th rough an i nformation campaign. The guidel i nes, which a re posted on the Keral a Tourism Web s ite, touch on a number of s imple but effect ive th i ngs that both tou rists and tou r operators can do to promote respons ible tou r ism. (Kera l a Tourism unve i l s norms for tourists, operators Sanka r Radhakrishnan , BL.C, 22.02.06, L40)

Kera l a Tou ri s m has d rawn up a Rs 5 ·crore project to deve lop Vel i and Akku l a m i n the c i ty i nto i m portant dest i nat ions for domestic tourists. The Kera l a Tourism Mi n ister Mr. K .G . Venugopa l announced th is at the i na ugu rat ion of a new f loat ing resta u rant at the Vel i tou ri sm v i l l age. A sect ion of the wa l kway from Ve l i to Akku l am a nd a renovated project at the Ve l i tou r ism vi l lage were a l so i naugurated . Bu i l t by the c i ty-based Floate l s I nd ia Pvt Ltd , the two-storey f loat i ng restau rant w i l l be ru n by the Kera l a Touri s m Deve lopment Corporat ion. ( Floati ng restaurant , BL. B, 24.02.06, L40)

LSO Tourism Issues

Setting itself up a s a parad igm for home-spun success , God 's Own Cou ntry has registered a record number of tou r ist a rriva ls . From January to December 2004, domest ic tou rist a rriva l s touched a high of 59,75,000, which is more than 1 1 akh in comparison with the audited figures of 2003. I nternational a rriva l s a l so recorded a growth of 1 6 .69 percent. This would proba bly have gone up by another 4 to 5 percent had it not been for the tsunami scare, sa id Kera l a Tour ism off ic ia l s. (Kera l a registers record tourists, I E.B , 27 .04.05, L50)

The Kera la government w i l l steel its c la i ms on Ha lcyon Castle, but the encroachi ng M-Fa r Group ( I nd ian arm of Muscat-based Gu lfar G roup) is noth i ng l ess than an honou ra b le i nvestor; accord i ng to Ch ief M i n i ster Oommen Chandy. The state Cabi net decided to promu lgate an ord i na nce to take over Ha l cyon Cast le. A d i rective by Kera la H igh Court had overru led a spec ia l order by Kera la govern ment. To strengthen the cla i ms the Cabi net decided to go for an o rd ina nce. I n the eye of a l ega l storm now, Ha l cyon Cast le on Kova l a m sta nds has a h i stor ic dazzle that ra kes u p both t h e bus iness and t h e her i tage memories. The fi rst recent controversy f l a re ·up was over the token price ( reportedly Rs 40 crore) for wh ich ITDC had transferred i ts beach property to M ·Fa r Group. The adjacent Ha lcyon Cast le , o rigi na l ly a ho l iday-home for erstwh i le roya l fa mi ly of Trava ncore, i s now hot ly c la i med a s part of M -Fa r G roup's buy. (Ord i nance to ta ke over Ha lcyon Cast le, FE . B, 05 .05 .05 , L50)

Kera la ayurveda is desperately searching for a good va idya to cure i t of a l l sed i mented i l l s . Th is bra nch of medic i ne i s on a s l i ppery s lope towards los ing a l l i ts trad i t iona l respect a nd repute after being pestled to thrash i n the tourism morta r. The fi rst signs of its fast- losing va lue a re a l ready vis ible with many i nternational tour agencies writ ing to the Kera la Government about mounti ng compla ints agai nst quacks and rank amateurs who masquerade as professional masseurs.

2 005 - 06 I Documenta t ion Upda te I I n fact, a sampl i ng of feedback books i n resorts and houseboats reflects how a l lergic the backpackers are towards th is which a utomatica l ly found space o n a l l b i l lboards l u ri ng foreign trave l lers. With no monitor ing mechan i sm in p l ace, capsu le ayurved i c packages a re today seen as n ightmar ish experiences which sca re vi s itors.

The government has a l ready prepared a d raft B i l l to tame mushrooming massage and ayurveda centres. Al l centres wi l l be i nspected by a team of experts from Hea lth a nd Tour ism Departments before they a re accorded 'A: ' B ' or 'C' certi f icates. Sources sa i d the draft B i l l wou l d be tabled i n the Assembly i n the next sessio n for adopt ion . (Kera l a ayurveda on a s l i p pe ry s lope; scares tour ists, I E .C , 1 4.06.05, L50)

Fore igners v i s i t i ng For t Koch i i n the nea r futu re wou l d have he l p com i ng i n the form of tour i st-friend ly a utorickshaws d riven by women. Spurred by the i ncreas ing i nc idents of misbehaviour a nd f leeci ng of foreign tou ri sts by a sect ion of auto d rivers, the Fort Cochi n Tou rist Home Owners Associat ion is p lann ing to operate r ickshaws that would cha rge on ly a reasonable fare. The women d rivers, of these vehicles wou l d a l so double up as guides and p rovide tour ists the i nformation they requ i re. The Tour ist Home Owners Associat ion, wh ich has a round 35 members, was formed to serve the i nterest of susta i nab le tour ism i n Fort Koch i . The other objectives of the associat ion i n cl ude preservi ng Fort Kochi as a heritage zone and keepi ng it c lean . (Soon, tourist-friend ly autos i n Koch i , I E.C, 25 .06.05, L50)

The part ic i pants at a sem i n a r on 'Coch i n Port - A N ew D i rect ion ' o rgan i sed by the Coch i n Chamber of Commerce and I ndustry suggested convert ing the Wi l l i ngdon I s l and i nto a c i ty centre of Koch i with fac i l i t ies for recreat ion a nd shoppi ng. To push th i s p ro posa l a head, the chamber has dec ided to request the U n ion Government to set up an empowered taskforce to study the issue and provide-With l and use recommendation to attract long-term i nvestments. The taskforce can have rep resentatives from the M in i st ry of Sh ipp ing, the Kera l a Government , the port and from t rade and commerce, the chamber sa id . (Plea to convert Wi l l i ngdon I s l and i nto Koch i centre , BL .B, 1 3.09.05, L50)

After ayurveda tou rism a nd backwater tou r ism, Kera l a tour ism i s set to launch its fa rm tour ism product. The project catapu l ts a ny fa rmer with 1 0 acres cu l t ivated l and ho ld ing to the tou r ism i ndustry's ambit .

Coffee and tea p l antations, goi ng through deep gloom because of WTO-driven ma rket depress ion , wi l l a lso be a l lowed to spread the i r i nvestment through p lantation touri sm. The state government wou ld give subsidy support equiva lent to 25% of the a mount the farmer i nvests i n hospital ity fac i l i t ies. This a mount w i l l be u pto Rs 5 l akh . Kera l a Tour ism i s a lso worki ng out a cred i t package with ban kers to make loans ava i lab le for the farm tourism fac i l i ty.

I n return for subsidy and loan support, the farmer is expected to create a m in imu m hospita l i ty i nfrastructure, conforming to Keral a Tou rism standards. A farm-tour ism doma i n , accord ing to the scheme, should i nc lude a d rawing room fac i l i ty, s ma l l restaurant, and smal l shopp ing area , parking a rea and roads with rural ambience, a l l w i th i n the farm land . There shou l d a l so be gu ide-arrangement to give deta i l s of p lant ing methods of the crop i n cu l t ivat i o n , speci a l it ies of the crop va r iants and ha rvest i ng tec h n iques . ( Fa rmers to get a b i te of Kera l a tour ism p ie by J a n , FE.C, 24. 1 0 .05 , L50)

Kera l a Tourism is worki ng on an i n it iat ive to give a boost to med ical tour ism i n the State. Accord i ng to Mr B. Suman, D i rector of the State's Department of Tourism, the ava i lab i l ity of h igh-qual ity hea lthcare i nfrastructure a t reasonable pr ices makes Kera l a an idea l dest i nat i on for medi ca l tour ism. Kera l a Tourism i s work ing on a market ing campaign to promote the State as a medica l tou r ism dest i nat ion . On the a nvi l a re p romot iona l events i n Sr i Lanka, Ma ld ives, Europe and in West As ia . The tour ism department i s a l so work ing on c reat ing partnershi ps between hospita ls i n Kera l a and i nsurance compan ies i n Eu rope, espec ia l ly i n the UK. (Move to boost medi ca l tour ism in Kera la , San kar Radhakrishnan , BL .B, 10 . 1 2 .05 , L50)

With the onset of Kera l a b rand of Ayu rved a and newly found c ru i se tou ri sm , the state has been su rg ing a head by establ i sh ing a n iche for itsel f i n the globa l tour ism map. B lending the cru ise and ayurveda tour ism potent ia l s of Kera la , Ayurvoyages Pvt . Ltd is venturi ng i nto a lonesome path by setti ng on sa i l Ayu r Nauka . Ayu r N a u ka i s a un ique concept i n hea l th tour ism , conceived by the Thr issur based Ayuryogashram . I t i s a f loat ing hea lth care centre offer i ng tou ri sts a p lethora of faci l i ties for a b l i ssfu l cru ise i n the backwaters with the accompa n iment of ayurvecdic rej uvenat ion therapy. (A b lend of cru i se and ayurveda , I E .C , 29. 1 2 .05 , L50)

I Documentat ion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Koch i · based H ighway Garden Pvt Ltd has emba rked on having properties i n the major tour ism dest inat ions l i ke Thekkady, Wayanad, Kumarakkom, Alappuzha and Kannur in a yea r and a ha lf. Company d i rector KE Roy sa id i n most p l aces the sites had been ident if ied a nd negot iat ions were i n the f i na l stages . The group was sett ing up a four·sta r business hotel a t an i nvestment of Rs 15 crore i n Thi ruva na nthapura m. The group has a resort i n Munnar ca l led ' Fore st Haven' . It had pumped i n Rs 3 crore to renovate and u pgrade i ts H ighway Garden to a three·sta r hotel . ( H ighway Garden to acqu i re new asset for tour ism c i rcu it , FE.C, 07 .01 .06, L50)

Jose Domin ic , managing d i rector of Kerala ·based CGH Earth group of resorts sa id , "The demograph ics of the i nternational travel ler a re undergoing a noticeable change. The top end of the market is getti ng more invo lved with the loca l community at thei r destinat ion. The new crop of trave l lers is thus sett ing a trend of respons i bl e trave l l i ng, trying to learn more about the society a round and seek ing more fulfi l ment from the i r hol i day rather than j ust head i ng for some beach . The pronounced sh ift towa rds such res pons ib le tour ism seems to have caught on with a number of tou r operators, travel agents and even the state government"

Perhaps the most sign if icant of the ventures a i med at tour ism promotion with an emphasis on commun i ty deve lopment i s the Lu l l aby·at-Varka la project, a venture launched by lea d i ng tour and trave l sector p layer Kera la Travels by promot ing Pro·Chi ld , an NGO that works towards empower ing the ch i ldren of an enti re area in Varkala . The project covers seven panchayats, one munic ipal ity and 140 anganwadi s i n Varka la , an emergi ng beach desti nat ion i n Kera la and is empower ing not on ly the 3,320 ch i ld ren attend i ng the a nga nwad is , but even the women i n fam i l ies a round them. (Tour ist s cost u p to Kera la v ibes, Joe A Scar i a , ETC, 25 .01 .06, L50)

Kera la has become one of the three fi na l i sts i n the Destination Category for the Tour ism for Tomorrow Awards 2006 i nstituted by the World Travel a nd Tour ism Counc i l (WTTC). Kera la made it to the l ist a long with Greece a nd Mexi co from out of 1 00 a pp l i ca nts from more than 30 countries, a spokesman for Kera la Tou ri sm sa id . The award wi l l recogn ise 'the dedicat ion and success in ma i nta i n i ng a po l i cy of susta i nab le management i ncorporat ing socia l , cu ltura l , environmental and economic a spects of the dest ination . ' In the next stage, an on·s i te eva l uation p rocess w i l l be carr ied ou t to select the num ber one desti nat ion. A WTTC rep resentat ive i s cur ren tly i n the State to a ssess the propert ies f i rsthand a nd meet w i th ma nagers, staff, com m u n i ty rep resentatives a nd others i nvol ved i n the p roject Based on th is , a f i na l report w i l l be made to the j udgi ng committee. (Kera la makes i t to the f i na l l i st for WTTC award , BL .B, 06.02.06, L50)

In Koch i , the ma i n bus i ness and tour ism hub of the state, leadi ng bu i lders started off the concept of service apartments - a concept widely endorsed by the tourism ci rcu i t . However, a partments are now bei ng uttered not j u st by bu i lders but even by the ord i nary i nvest ing publ ic . I n fact, for the N on Resident Kera l i tes (N RK's), who booked a pa rtments in Koc h i , the service a pa rtments have opened up a new i ncome stream. Today, Kochi has some of the best service a partments l i ke The R iv iera Su ites, Star Homes, a nd Mermaid Days I nn . Many less know n a pa rtments a re a lso be i ng offered i n the c ity to the busi ness a nd l e i su re trave l lers . The concept has been so w idely accepted that even some of the tour operators have sta rted offer ing service apartments. Some hotels are a lso tying up with apartment owners in prime local ities to provide accommodation for the i r customers. (Apartments at your service, Tha run Kumar, TO I .B, 03.03.06, L50)

Kera la received ' best tou rism state' award wh i le the ' best hote l ' awards were bagged by Obero i ' s Amarvi l l a i n Agra a nd the Taj Residency i n Ba ngalore. Bes ides w i n n i ng the best performing tour i st state award for outstanding achievements in the tourism sector, Kerala a lso won 'best mainta i ned tourism friendly monuments' award for its Sakthan Tham pura n pa lace. (Kera la receives best touri sm state award , FE .B , 1 8.03.06, L50)

L51 Coasta l Tour ism

T h e l a rgest p rivate yacht with over 1 00 c u stom·des igned res idences a nd amenit ies o f a l uxu ry resort on board, The World , has anchored at Koch i Port. The vessel , a rr ived for the fi rst t ime i n I nd ia , w i l l spend three· days at Koch i before leaving for Goa and Mumbai . Travel Corporation of I nd ia , the travel agents for passengers on board , has a rranged sightseei ng tours, backwater cru i ses a nd vi l l age v is i ts for them.

Conceived by a member of a Norwegia n mar i t i me fa m i ly, The Wor ld i s the on ly resort com m u ni ty c i rcumnavigat ing the globe. You ca n e i ther own a home on board the vessel or enjoy a vacation at sea by rent i ng a n apartment provided your pockets a re deep enough. (The World anchors at Koch i , BL .B, 02 .04.05, L5 1 )

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentat ion Update I The Kera l a Cabi net has sanctioned Rs 4.3 1 crore for con struction of seawa l l s to protect people affected by the recent swe l l waves on the coasta l a reas. The Ch ief M i n i ster sa id that the peop le l iv ing on the coast of 9 d istricts had been affected by the waves. Mr Chandy sai d that a forest station a nd pol i ce a i d post wou l d be set up at Kadavari Va l sa petty to prevent ganja cu lt ivat ion . As the a rea was i naccessible, concrete footpaths and steps would be bu i lt . (Keral a Govt sanctions Rs 4.31 cr to bui ld seawal l s , I rrigation Department entrusted with the task , BL . B, 26 .05 .05 , L51 ) •

An ocean park wi l l be set u p at M uzh ip i l a ngad , known as 'drive· i n · bea c h ' , to give a boost to the i ntegrated tourism development in the North Ma labar region. The Tourism Department had a l ready submitted a deta i led project report on Ocean Park with an est imated cost of Rs 1 cro re to the State Government for its approval . A deta i led su rvey for the setti ng u p of aquarium , marit ime museum, ch i ldren'S park , water s ports a n d a m in i oceanar ium was a lso conducted . M r Ravindran sa id the ocean park i n the M uzbip i langad·Dharmadom a rea wou ld be a major development, br inging socio-economic changes th rough i ntegrated tourism development i n the a rea . Muzh i pi l a ngad , a consol i dated beach wh ich !s motora b le even i n the severe monsoon months , attracts a l a rge number of touri sts. A 4 -km drive a long the beach i s a n enthra l l i ng experience. (Ocean park mooted in Kannur, BL .B, 1 1 . 07 .05 , L5 1 )

L51a Backwater Tour ism

To cater t o t h e i ncreas i ng number o f t h e tou rists vi s it i ng Kumara kom and near·by tou ri sm s pots, Lakevi ew House Boats has l aunched a houseboat n amed ' Pa lazhi ' with three-sta r fac i l it ies. The 6·hour Kumarakom . Alappuzha cruise provides food, i nc lud ing buffet l unch. The cost of the trip i s Rs 650 a person . Th is i s the fi rst t ime that a l uxu ry cru i se boat has been l a unched exc lus i ve ly to promote l a ke tour i sm with d a i l y t r i ps to touri sts s pots i n the Kum a ra kom . A lap puzha belt , sa id Mr Sreekumar, M anaging D i rector of Lake V iew House Boats. (Luxury boat l a unched, BL .B, 28. 1 0 .05 , L51 a )

Kumara kom i s once aga i n witnessi ng a heavy i nf low of tou rists, m a i n ly from Fra nce, Switzerland , Germa ny and Russi a . I n Coconut Lagoon , there i s u nusua l rush as they cou ld not even offer l uxu ry su i ts to those who have not made a ny advance reservat ion. For pool v i l l a and standard bungalow they charge Rs 27 ,000 a nd Rs 1 7 ,000 respect ive ly. Kum a ra ko m L a ke Resort i s charg i ng Rs 9 ,500 exc l u s ive of tax for standard a ccommodat ion . But for luxury s u i ts they charge u p to Rs 35 ,000.There a re a l so resorts that charge Rs 50,000, i nc lus ive of food, for a s ingle day accommodation . The tour ists who do not get accommodation a re s pending the day a n d n ight i n houseboats provided by the resorts. A day's rent for houseboats ranges from Rs. 5000 to Rs. 25 ,000 . Some a re compl a i n i ng about the exorbitant rates charged by lead i ng resorts. They even described it as 'exploitation' and asked, "How many I nd i ans cou l d pay such rates?" (Fore igners crowd Kumara kom, Aravi ndan , BL.C, 28. 1 1 .05 , L51 a)

L52 Pi l gr im Tour ism

As part of its efforts to improve i n frastructure i n tou rist dest inat ions i n the State, Kera l a Touri sm i s cha l k i ng out a p l an to u pgrade fac i l it ies at important p i lgrim s pots . The tou rism department, i n associat ion with the temple, mosque or church management, wi l l i mplement th is scheme to improve basic a menities at p i lgrimage centres . D ist ri ct level committees w i l l supervise the operation and mai ntenance of the fac i l it ies set u p u nder th is scheme.

Meanwhi l e, the tour ism department has i nvited a pp l ications from p rivate entrepreneurs for its 'Vazhiyoram' p roject to provide bas ic a menit ies for trave l lers a long i m portant h ighways i n the State. Accord i ng to the gu ide l i nes of th is scheme, 250 Vazhiyoram u n its w i l l be set u p across Kera la at a n est imated Rs 6 1 crore. Of the tota l i nvestment, the State Govern ment w i l l contri bute Rs 1 3 c rore, wh i le the private sector is expected to i nvest the rema i n i ng Rs 48 crore. Each 'Vazh iyoram' u n it wi l l have a range of faci l i t ies and services such as, restau ra nt , to i l ets, telephone booths , souve n i r shops and ATMs. The u n its wi l l be set up a ccord i ng to design specifications provided by the Department of Tour ism. (Kera la Tour ism draws plan to u pgrade pi lgr im spots, B L . B, 09.06.05 , L52)

L52a Sabarimal a

The Un ion Government has a pp roved the release of 1 2 .675 hecta res of forestl and for deve lopme nt of the Sabari m a l a h i l l shr i ne. The Kera l a Tour ism a n d Devaswom M in ister, Mr K C Venugo pa l , sa id the Supreme

I Documentation Update 1 2 0 0 5 � 0 6 .

Court wou ld have to a pp rove the rel ea se of forestland. The release of forest land w i l l provide a boost to the development of Saba r imala . I t w i l l a lso help l aunch various activit ies connected with the Pamba Action P lan , he sa i d . A l l development i n i tiatives at Saba r imala w i l l be carried out a s per eco·friend ly norms conta i ned i n the master plan prepared for the region. (Centre okays a l lotment of forest land for Sabarimala , BL.B, 24.05.05, L52a)

More fac i l i ti es wi l l be provided for Sabarima la p i lgrims this yea r in the land made ava i l ab le for the purpose a t N i l a kkal . A h igh· level meeting convened by Ch ief M in ister Oommen Chandy to review the arrangements being made for the p i lgr ims dur ing the coming season decided to provi de electr ic ity connection to N i l akka l us ing underground cab le , d ig three bore wel l s and ponds to provide d ri nk ing water, construct 400 new toi l ets and renovate the o ld ones and construct pa rki ng for 1 0 ,000 veh ic les . Fifty cents of l a nd a t N i l a kka l wou l d be made ava i lab le to the Ayyappa Seva Sa ngham for i ts activit ies as part of the Master P lan . (More faci l it ies for Sabar imala p i lgr ims, TH. B, 1 4. 10.05 , L52a)

Hote l iers, snack sta l l owners and i nstant coffee vendors at Sann idhanam and Pampa a re f leeci ng the p i lgrims to the Lord Ayya p pa temp le in a b ig way. Often they h i ke the pr ices of coffee, tea and food i tems by 50 percent . They cha rge Rs 7 for a c u p of coffee and Rs 6 for a c u p tea at Sann idhanam though the d i str ict admin istrat ion a l l ows them to cha rge on ly Rs 6 and Rs 5 respectively. Though the hote ls/shop-owners a re requ i red to show the price l i s t for the convenience of the pi lgri ms, most of them are not adhering to the rule. The exp loitat ion by hote ls between Laha a nd Vadasseri kara is worse. (Hotel iers in Sabari mala f leecing the p i lgr ims, I E.C , 20. 1 1 .05 , L52a)

L54 Cul ture Tour ism

The Guruvayoor Temple, I nd ia 's second-ri chest shr ine after Tirumala T i ru pathi Devasthanam has revoked the new d ress code it i ntroduced l ast month fol l owing p ressu re from devotees. Tem ple ru l es i ntroduced in Apri l sa id that for secu rity reasons , men wou l d have to enter the sanctum without thei r sh i rts . Ear l i er, ma l e devotees were a l lowed t o take off thei r sh i rts a nd s l i ng i t over their shoulders. Another temple order bann i ng ch i ldren above the age of five from wea ri ng short pants has a lso been withdrawn after protests from devotees. Though fema le devotees have been demanding the right to wear d resses of thei r choice, the temple a uthorities conti nue to i ns ist that they either wea r sar is or pavadas ( long s ki rts) withi n the complex P i lgr ims from other parts of the country have registered compla ints about the u ncomfortable d ress code for women , but for the moment, the status quo rema i ns . (Temple revokes d ress code, TRD, 1 3 .05.05 , L54)

Cultura l and envi ronmental tourism are the new growth areas global ly, and Kerala is wel l positioned to capita l ize on th is t rend , sa id Ms Jenny Sh ip ley, former Pri me M in ister of New Zea land .

Ms S h i pl ey, who vi s i ted Kera l a , recently, to ld that tou ri sts today l ook for a uthent ic exper iences that he lp them understand the cu l ture and l i festyles of d i fferent nat ions . Th is i s a g reat th i ng, even in foreign pol i cy terms , as i t enhances global understandi ng. So, i n stead of trying to be l i ke other tour ist dest i nat ions, Kera l a shou ld look at h igh l ight ing what makes it d ifferent. ( ,Kera l a must promote cu l tura l , eco touri sm ' , Sankar Radha krishnan , B L.B, 1 2 .07 .05 , L54/ L55)

L55 Eco and Wi ld l i fe Tourism

The Kera l a 's eco tou ri sm department wi l l soon sta rt work o n a new p roject at Chadayamanga l am i n Kol l a m d istrict. Cal l ed t h e 'Jadayu Para Development Project' , the venture takes its name from a huge rock formation. I n keepi ng with the rock·strewn nature of the project zone, the plan is to deve lop i t with ' rocks' as the ma in theme. At the same time, Jadayu Para wi l l a lso be an eco·friendly tourist dest i nation . The tota l i nvestment i n t h e project i s expected to be Rs 2 .5 crore.

The eco·tour ism department w i l l design a series of activit ies that h igh l ight the natura l features of the rock formation; wa lkways that take v is itors to the top of the rock and overn ight stay in tents w i l l be a pa rt of th is experience. Si mul ta neously, the eco-tourism depa rtment wi l l deve lop Jadayu Pa ra as a p icn ic spot. A lso on the cards i s a proposa l to develop a trad i ti ona l rura l marketp lace with i n the Jadayu Para project area . (Eco­tourism project for Chadayamanga lam, Sankar Radhakrishnan , B L.B , 06.05.05, L55)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documen tation 1 Jpdale I Over the past few yea rs , eco-tour ism has become a key focus a rea for Keral a 's tour ism authorit ies. The eco· tour ism wing of the Department of Tourism has identif ied 56 places in the State that have the potent ia l to be deve loped as eco·tour ism centres . Whi le six of these s ites are a l ready funct ional eco·tou r ism projects, work on a nother 1 0 projects has been sta rted .

Al l these projects are being implemented with partic ipation from the local community and the forest department. Another un ique eco-tour ism project cu rrent ly be ing imp lemented is at Konn i i n the State's Pathanamthitta d i str ict . I nsp i red by the region's associat ion with e lephants a nd e lephant · re l ated fol kl ore, the Konn i eco­tour i sm p roject focu ses on e lephants . When com pleted , t h i s project i s expected to i nc l ude an e lephant museu m , e lephant r ides a nd vi s its to a tra i n i ng camp for e lephants . (56 s i tes ident if ied for eco·tour ism in Kera l a , Sanka r Radhakrishnan , BL .B, 26. 1 2 .05, L55)

The Kera la Government has given its nod for setti ng up Per iya r River Author ity so as to conduct regu la r monitori ng and suggest measures to i mprove the qua l ity o f the river. The authority, wh ich was constituted consider ing the suggest ions from the Periyar Action P lan , wi l l i n i t iate steps to formulate action p lans on areas such as afforestat ion, rehab i l i tat ion and resett lement, survey of river bas ins , pol l ut ion mon i tor ing centres, and sewage treatment p lants, provis ion of sept ic tanks and i nstal l at ion of s laughter houses. I t wi l l a l so ca rry out resea rch on the ecologica l status of the river period ica l ly and w i l l coord i nate the act iv i t ies of var ious government departments, NGOs, and other organ i sations i nvolved in river protect ion. The authority wi l l ca rry out m a i ntenance of e mbankment s and wi l l suggest measures for the i mp rovement of the r iverbanks . A comprehens ive act ion p lan for protect i ng the river w i l l be evolved. Act ion p lans on eco·tour ism a nd i n l and navigation , prevention o f sa l i ni ty i ncursion, watershed management and awa reness program mes wi l l a l so be prepared as part of protecti ng the rivers. (Kera la Govt approves proposal to set up Per iyar r iver authority, BL.C, 1 6.02.06, L55)

L57 H i l l Tourism

Munnar; Kerala's premier h i l l resort may be widely acclaimed for i ts salubrious c l imate and scenic tea p lantations but certa i n ly not for i ts desired. Regarded as one of the c leane st h i l l · stat ions in the country unt i l the mid· 1 970s, today th is tou r ist hotspot could wel l f igure at bottom of the l i st . Surpr is i ngly, few seem concerned about the town's squalor. I nstead everyone is preoccupied with explo i t ing its tour ism boom. So v ita l basics l i ke c l ea n l i ness a n d hygiene take a back seat. Garbage i s m i n d l ess ly strewn everywhere. P l a st i c cu ps, p lates, bottles and bags l itter t he town and i ts environs which is , i ronica l ly enough, a p last ic-free zone. The market i s an eyesore. Cluttered u p and fi lthy, i t 's i nvariably l i ttered with trash. There's degeneration everywhere. A l oca l NGO does val i ant ly strive to set matters r ight , but i t s i nf l uence i s l i m ited . Thus the widespread damage to the town's envi ronment goes largely u nchecked. One wonders whether Munnar i s tryi ng to attract or repel tour ists - i ts undoubted ma instay. (H i l l s go down h i l l , I E. D, 03.03.06, L57)

L58 S pec ia l Tour ism Area

Despite i n i t ia l h itches, the Bekal tourism project in Kasaragod d istr ict has gai n ed moment with a UAE·based hotel group sta rting work on a sea·fac ing resort. Though the Leela Pa laces and Resorts has backtracked from the p roject c it i ng in frastructure reasons , the ambit ious project is to deve lop a cha in of resorts at the famed beach d est inat ion i n north Kera l a is back on rai l s.

The two p lots that had been a l lotted to the Leel a Group had a l ready been taken back from them and given to other hotel groups for deve lopment, t he Bekal Resorts Development Corporation (BRDC) Managi ng D i rector, Mr P K. Kesavan , sa id . H e said the UAE·based Hol iday G roup of Hote ls , which was a l lotted 32 acres of land at Chembarika v i l lage, has star ted the layout and beautification work at the site. (Bekal tour ism project ga ins momentum, BL .B , 1 1 .07.05, L58)

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

• M - TAM IL NADU • Mll Plann ing

The Tam i l Nadu Government u nvei led i n the Assembly, a pol i cy a i med at reduc ing the negative i mpact of a l l k inds of d isasters th rough 'vibrant d i saster management machinery ' .

The pol icy envisages convergence of d isaster management and deve lopment p lanni ng. Comprehensive disaster management p lans w i l l be formulated at a l l leve l s after taking i nto account the loca l condit ions. The focus w i l l be on reduci ng the vu lne rab i l ity of communit ies i nstead of merely p rovid ing d isaster rel ief. The need for the pol i cy was felt , as the State has been prone to cycl ones a nd d rought. In December, a tsunami hit the coastal d i str icts.

In the trad it ional system, such activities are undertaken in a phased sequence plan. But the new model cal l s for a cont inuous process. The management wi l l b e done i n three phases - pre-d i sa ster, i mpact phase and post-d isaster phase. A Disaster Management Authority (DMA), i s to be estab l i shed by the Government, w i l l be the nodal agency to gu ide, fac i l itate , coordi nate and monitor var ious aspects o f d i saster management. (State Government unve i l s p l an to mit igate d isasters, T H . B, 07 .04.05, M 1 1 )

M20 Envi ronmenta l I ssues

The State Government w i l l ra i se mangrove forests a nd bio-shie l ds i n coasta l d i str icts at a tota l cost of Rs 8 crore, Tami l Nadu Ch ief M i n i ster J. Jaya la l ithaa told the State Assembly. Dur ing the debate on demands for gra nts for Forest and Env i ronment Department, Jaya la l i tha sa i d the mangrove forests woul d be raised i n Thi ruva l lu r, Cuddalore, Nagappatti nam a n d Ramanathapuram d istricts i n an a rea of 1 ,000 acres a t a cost of Rs 1 c rore a nd the b io -sh ie ld wou l d come u p at a cost of Rs 7 crore i n 5 ,000 acres of l a n d i n Che n n a i , Th i ruva l l u r, Kancheepura m , Vi l l upuram, Cudda lore , Naga ppatti nam , Thi ruva rur, Tha njavur, Pudukotta i , Ramanathapuram, Thoothukud i , Thirune lvel i and Kanyakumari d istricts. (TN to grow mangroves, bio-shields, I E. B, 05.04.05, M20)

The Rs.2 ,000-crore Sethu Samudhram Sh ip Cana l Project, off the Tami l Nadu coast, can now be put on t he fast track a s t he Un ion Envi ronment and Forests Min i stry has given it "envi ron mental c lea ra nce" under the Envi ronmenta l ( Impact) Assessment Notif ication , 1 994_ However the p roject must comply with 22 specific cond i t ions and 1 9 general condit ions . I f everyth ing goes wel l , the country's long·pend ing d ream p roject s lated to operate sh ip services to a d i stance of 1 67 .22 km. i n the Gu l f of Mannar, w i l l be completed in four years. (Sethu project gets green Signa l ; I t is subject to comp l i ance of 22 specif ic cond it ions, J Ba laj i , I E . B, 07.04.05 , M20)

Tigers in Tami l Nadu a re safer than in most other States, according to the Tiger Taskforce, which is i nvestigating the status of the big cat in I nd ian forests. The "i nnovative pract ices" adopted by the State such as recruit ing ex-poachers as forest gua rds augured wel l for the t iger, sa id Sun ita Nara i n , D i rector, Centre for Science and Envi ronment, who i s cha i rman of t he taskforce. 'Out of 1 14 t ige r deaths i n the country between 1 999 and 2003, on ly 5 were from Tami l Nadu . Also, out of 2 1 1 seizures of t iger parts made by law·enforc i ng agencies in this period , o n ly 4 were from Ta mi l Nadu . Some of the a p proaches adopted by Tami l Nadu needs to be exp lored by other States. "Experts poi nted out how exc lud ing local communit ies in forest management and wi ld l ife conservation affected the gatheri ng of i ntel l igence and i nformation, crit ical to preventi ng poach ing," she said. Wi ld l i fe managers in the State see the taskforce's commendation as a v ind ication of their decade's long campaign to inc lude triba ls in conservation efforts. "The eco-deve lopment programme we put together i n the Kalakkad-Mundanthura i Tiger Reserve w a s ha i led by the Wor ld B a n k as o n e o f t h e best i n the wor ld . We have been ab le to br ing down the fel l i ng of trees for f i rewood by 95 % and grazi ng by 70 %. N ea rly 7 0 % of the benefic i a ries of the p rogramme are women. Tri ba l s have thus been given a part ic i patory role i n forest management, " Dr. Sukhdev, Chief Wi ld l ife Warden, sa id . ( I f you ' re a big cat, you ' re better off i n Tami l Nadu , Van i Dora i samy, TH .D, 2 1 .05.05, M20)

2 0 0 S - 0 6 I Documentation Update I The Centra l Government decision to appoint an eight-member committee to study the envi ronment impact of the Sethusamud ram cana l and advise the authorit ies peri od ica l ly i s a step i n the right d i rect ion , given the a p prehens ions expressed in severa l quarters about the project. D redging for the cana l w i l l be u n dertaken between the Pa l k Bay and Gu l f of Mannar, and the Centre has acknowledged that t he a rea i s h igh ly eco­sens itive, w i th many forms of mari ne l ife a nd cora l reef. Envi ronmenta l i sts say the waters a round Adam's Bridge a re home to one of the world 's r ichest biosphere reserves, with 3600 types of mar ine l ife, i nc lud i ng a bout 400 endangered species . There has a l rea dy been a controversy a bout the p roject gett ing h asty envi ronmental c learance from the Union Env i ronment M in istry, bypass ing the Tami l Nadu government. There have a l so been suggestions that there a re deficiencies i n the report of the National Environmenta l Engineering Research I n st itute (NEER I ). Late last month Tami l Nadu Chief M i n ister Jaya la l i thaa expressed fears that the project might affect the l ivel ihood of f ishermen because of the d redging.

With the project facing major controversies even before it takes off, i t i s qu ite l i ke ly that these w i l l continue to dog the cana l even after it opens. Fishermen have been quite concerned about the i mpact of the cana l . They say that the project w i l l p rovide jobs to only 5 ,000 persons , wh i le 3 .5 lakh fishermen w i l l l ose the i r l ivel ihood.

Envi ronmental activists have been goadi ng fishermen to agitate aga inst the project, and here aga i n how much of the doomsday scenario wi l l come through is a big quest ion mark. The soc ia l a nd envi ronment costs of big dam p rojects h ave been found to be far higher than the benefits they p rovided. The Sethusamudra m cana l shou ld not go the same way. (Sethu project fears , Centre a ppoi nts pane l to study i m pact , I E. B, 1 2 .07 .05 , M20)

The govern ment has sa id that Sr i Lanka 's concern a bout the envi ronmenta l prob lems a ri si ng out of the Sethusamudram channel project a re unfounded. Top sh ipping min i stry offic ia ls sa id that the project had been a pp roved after goi ng t h rough a l l the p ros a nd cons rel ated to the env ironmenta l i ssues a n d l ong-ter m repercuss ions . Last week t h e Lankan Foreign M i n i ster La kshman Kad i rgamar h a d ment ioned d u ri ng a d i scussion on the project that it may consider tak i ng I nd ia to i nternationa l court if the envi ronmenta l issues re l ated to the p roject a re not so lved . As the p roject i nvolves d redging a n d sett i ng u p of other fac i l it i es through an eco·sensitive zone, the m in i stry has constituted a monitoring committee to assess the i m pact of envi ronment and su itably a dvise the p roject a uthorit ies. The off ic ia l s sa id that Lanka 's ma i n concerns a re related to i ts coast l i ne , cora l reef a nd f is h i ng activit ies. A l so , the i sl and nat ion feel s that its neighbour i ng territory would be i nundated if the p roject i s implemented. However, sources say that i n fact, if the project i s not imp lemented, then there a re more chances of S r i Lanka's territory getti ng i nundated. (Sethusamudram project: I nd i a terms Lanka's concern baseless, An imesh S ingh , FE.B, 1 5.07.05, M20)

M30 Non-tour ism I ssues

For the fi rst t ime in Tam i l Nadu , the Self·He lp G roups (SHGs) , mostly from the triba l commun ities, are being brought under one umbrel l a for a novel and i nnovative p rogramme to p rotect the Pachamala i forests, where i l legal tree fel l i ng has been ram pant. When the forest cover deter iora ted a l l over the count ry due to var ious factors, the government had introduced many schemes to encourage the loca l s from p rotect ing the forest a rea . Severa l afforestation projects of the Department of Forests i n Tam i l Nadu i ntroduced i n the past had fetched resu l ts today. The state average of forest cover of around 25 % is wel l above the nat ional average of 16· 1 7 percent. D i str ict Forest Off icer K V Gi r idhar sa id , rea l i s i ng that people's part ic i pat ion was essent ia l for the success of a ny project; people have been i nvolved in forest management in some way or the other from the t ime of i m plement ing SOC ia l forestry schemes. (SHGs converge to p rotect Pachama la i forest, L S ri kr ishna , I E.C, 29.03.05, M30)

M40 Tour ism Pol i cy and Plans

Dest i nat ion development o f eco·tour ism spots, u pgrad i ng i nfrastructure a nd i m plementat ion of Phase - I I i n tegrated Mama l la p u ra m deve lopment are the a reas of focus for the Tam i l N a d u Tour ism Deve lopment Corporation (TTDC). On destination development i n Yercaud, Sha ktikanta Das, TTDC Managi ng D i rector said that work on des i lt i ng of the l ake , improvement of the surroundings i nc lud ing landscapi ng and i l l umination and provision of publ i c conven iences would be done at a cost of Rs. 4.48 crores. Th i s yea r the Point Cal i mere w i ld l ife sanctua ry, Muthupet, and P ichavaram would be the spots for dest i nat ion development works being carr ied out i n Nagapatti nam , Thi ruvarur a nd Cudda lore d i st ri cts . (TTDC focus on desti nat ion tour ism, IS. Shankar TH.C, 20. 04.05 , M40)

I Documenta t io1l Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

With 1 26 development works having been completed in the past three years on an outlay of Rs. 2.48 crores, Courta l l am , which w i l l attract tourists from va r ious parts of the country dur ing the next three months, i s a l l set to add few more faci l i ties for i t s guests a t the cost of Rs . 1 .04 crores before the season sta rts th i s year. Whi le the Department of Tour ism has agreed to a l l ocate Rs. 41 lakhs, the Courta l l am spec ia l panchayat, the ri chest a mong the s peci a l panchayats i n the d i str ict . wi l l g ive Rs. 36 l akhs . (Cou rta l l a m rea dy to receive guests with more faci l it ies, 1 26 development works have been completed i n the past three years, P. Sudhakar, TH .C , 04.06.05, M40)

I n an attempt to boost touri sm. the Tami l Nadu Tourism Development Corporation is marketi ng the state as a n a l l season desti nation , through a campa ign tit led Enchanti ng Tami l Nadu , Exper ience Yourself. The state which is known for its tower i ng temples , h i storic forts a nd beaches, is promot ing re lat ively lesser known regions l i ke Tranquebar, Pu l i cat and Chett i nad . Besides that, Tami l Nadu's gateway Chennai and Coimbatore wi l l be u pgraded to conduct world c lass conferences backed by better roadways. Health tour ism too w i l l be given a boost.

The average l ength of stay of tourists has been 2 . 1 days and last yea r, the tourist a rriva l s were 300,76,832. It has attracted an i nvestment of Rs 7 ,725 crores d i rectly or i nd i rectly. "

I t has been , found that 23 % of foreign tour ists stay at sta r hote l s , a nd now attempts a re on to recogn ise guest houses for tou rists. Stat ist ics i nd icate that there were 1 0.58 1 akhs foreign tou r ists l ast yea r. (TN set for a tour is m boost, AA. B, 3 1 .08.05, M40)

Ch ief M in i ster J Jaya l a l ithaa sa id the State Government proposed to promote 'tw inn ing of desti nations' by "closely synerg is ing our efforts with neighbour ing countries and states , and deve lop ing common c i rcu its. " Point ing out that th is was one of the 7'po int p lan that the state had for promoting tour ism, she said that Tami l Nadu and Sr i Lanka were today emerging as twi n destinations for a l arge number of v is itors from Europe and e lsewhere. (TN , La nka emergi ng a s twin tourist s pots, I E .C , 1 6 . 1 0 .05, M40)

The Tam i l Nadu Tour ism Department has decided to l aunch Adi San kara and Ja in temples c i rcuits to attract more tourists, particu larly the domestic ones, State tou rism Secretary V Varaprasad Rao sa id . A 'Vivekananda tour ism c i rcu it' wou l d a l so be i ntroduced with i n the next cou ple of months , he added. He said whi le Rs 4.3 c rore has been a l located for deve lop ing a menit ies for the 'Adi Sanka ra ' c i rcu i t , u pto Rs 3 crore has been a l l ocated for the Ja i n tour ism c i rcu i t . P rivate sector should part ic i pate in a b ig way to deve lop these three c i rcuits. (Ad i San ka ra , Jain temple c i rcu i ts in TN on ca rds , FE. B, 28.01 .06, M40)

MSO Tour ism Issues

Rama nathapuram d i str ict , wh ich , unt i l a few yea rs ago, rema ined a hazy grey patch on the tour ist map of Tami l Nadu , i s now emerging as a favoured destination for both foreign a nd local tou ri sts. Th is , i n add ition to the t housands of p i lgr ims who visit this d i stri ct everyday to offer worsh ip at the va rious wel l · known shri nes of a l l fa i t hs . I n o rder to attract tou r ists , the government has unfol ded a n um ber of p rojects, wh ich i s fast changi ng the profi l e of th is d i strict. A number of parks a nd enterta i n ment centres now dot the long coast of the d i strict. (Ramnad fast emergi ng as favou red tourist s pot, S Raja , I E .C , 1 6 . 1 0 .05 , M50)

Qua l i ty i n frastructure , a v ibrant hospita l i ty i ndustry and easy connectivity with exot i c tou ri st spots make Chenna i an i ncreasi ngly favourite destination for M ICE (Meet i ngs, I ncentives, Conferences and Exhibit ions). The numbers of i nternational conferences, each of which are attended by at least 2 ,000 to 5 ,000 delegates, have gone up over the yea rs . With the season a l ready on , several i nternat ional g roups have written to major hote l s a nd hosp ita l i ty agencies. hand l i ng M I C E, confi rm ing dates to host conferences. Hi Tou rs, an agency wh ich handles M ICE , has received the i nt imation to a rrange for conferences as late a s 2007 . And the trend is considered a good sign at a t ime when the tourism boa rds of Sri Lanka and South-East Asian countries a re aggressively market ing thei r home countries for M I CE. (Chennai emerges as a hot spot for M ICE, V Ayyappan , I E .C , 2 1 . 1 1 .05 , M50)

The temple town of Bhadrachalam cou ld soon offer you th is rare mix of a purifyi ng pi lgr image and a soothi ng tou ris m exper ience. A f ive-acre Ramayana Theme Park , the new- look Pa rnasa la , boat i ng to Papi H i l l s a nd packaged tours a re i n the offi ng. A l l these i n it iat ives a re a resu l t of the recent v is i t of the Central Tou ri sm

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Docurnenta tion Update I Department off i ci a l s to the temple tow n . The tea m p roposed a Rs 1 4-crore package for a ctua l i s i n g the tourism potentia l of Bhadracha lam, with Rs 8 crore in the f i rst phase. (Spir itual tourism at Bhadracha lam, B Satyana rayana Reddy, I E .C, 18 . 1 2 .05 , M50)

For the hosp i ta l i ty majors such as I nd i a n Hote l s Company Ltd , Hote l Lee laventure , H i l ton , M a rr iott and others, Chenna i i s fast becoming a hot s pot After lying low for over the yea rs , Chennai i s suddenly turn i ng to be the most happen ing c ity i n I nd ia as compared to Banga lore, Hyderabad and Pune. With view to cash ing i n o n the expected gap in demand a n d supply thanks t o i nc reas ing bus iness a ctivit ies i n both man ufacturi ng and services sectors, and a lso major investment proposals from both mu ltinationa l and domestic compan ies coupled with encouraging average room rate, hospital ity majors a re vyi ng for a big p ie i n the major southern metro, accord i ng to i ndustry sources. "There i s goi ng to be an add it ion of over 1 ,000 rooms i n the next 2·3 yea rs with an est imated i nvestment of over Rs 1 ,000 crore , " sa i d a sen ior offic i a l of the Federation of Hotel & Restau ra n t Associat ion of I nd i a (FHRA I ) . (Hotel majors f i rm up C he n n a i p l ans , R Ravi chandra n , FE . B , 03. 0 1 .06, M50)

M51 Coasta l Tou rism

The recently-opened beach park at Mandapam, has turned out to be a top tourist attraction of Rameswaram, thanks to i ts design a nd locati on . The park was estab l ished at a cost of Rs. 24.30 l akhs on 40 a cres of l a nd belonging to the Mandapam Specia l Vi l l age Panchayat. I t was designed to meet the expectations of tourists, who were often d isappointed over the i nadequate tour ist spots at Rameswaram. The major attraction at the pa rk is the ch i l d ren 's swim m i ng pool , j ust 50 metres off the sea . An added attract ion is the g lass ·bottom boats operated by the Forest department , wh ich gives a s ight of the cora l reef format ions unde rwater. (Mandapam Beach Park a h i t with tou rists, TH .B, 1 7 .05 .05 , M5 1 )

Tour ist desti nat ions i n Kanyakumar i w i l l get a facel ift. A tota l of R s 1 4.82 crore i s bei ng s pent for tour ism promotion activities such as provid i ng new i nfrastructure, renovation work and provid ing for more faci l i ties i n various tourism centres i n Kanyakumari d istrict. Deta i l i ng the various ongoing tour ism promotion activities i n the d i str ict , the Co l l ector s a i d a tota l of R s 25 1 akh i s be ing s pent t o p rovide ways ide a men it ies such a s l andscapi ng, gardeni ng a n d new pathways to the beach at Vattakotta i i n Kanyakumari , where the c ircu lar fort i s s ituated . A parki ng lot i s bei ng deve loped at the sunset poi nt at Kanyakumar i by the PWD at a cost of Rs 1 crore. A Tour ism Reception Centre at Kanyakumari is bei ng bui l t at a cost of Rs 60 lakh , Pal iwa l sa id . Flood l ight ing at Vivekananda Rock by Centra l PWD is bei ng provided at a cost of Rs 32. 1 3 1 akh wh i l e the 'Sound and Light Show' on Swami Vivekananda i s bei ng setup at a cost of 2 .25 crore. I nd i an Touri sm Development Corporation has taken up promotion works a t a cost of Rs 2 .55 crore for developing f ive cottages, in open a i r th, atre, Vivekananda Rock jetty improvement works, generator i nsta l lat ion a n d sunset poi nt deve lopment at Ka '1yakumar i . Muttom Beach a nd Thekkuruchi beach a re being deve loped at a cost of Rs 1 .5 crore. (Mult i · crore p lan to deve lop tour ism in Kanyakumar i , I E.C , 05 .07 .05 , M5 1 )

M53 Heritage Tour ism

The N i lg i r i Mounta i n Ra i lway which connects Mettupa layam (326 metres) to Ooty (2 ,203 metros), i s now a world heritage s ite for i ts outstand ing contri bution to keep ing steam heritage tour ism a l ive. Th i s was decided by U N ESCO's world her itage committee i n Durban . The U N ESCO i n scr ipt ion is an extens ion of the ear l ier nomination of Darjee l ing H ima l ayan Ra i lway as a heritage site. NMR, a long with Darjee l ing ra i l , i s now part of U NESCO's Mountai n Rai lways of I nd ia . (N i lgir i rai l chugs its way i nto U N ESCO heritage l ist, TOI . B, 1 7 .07.05, M53)

Ar ika medu . an archaeologica l site , which serves a n i ndex for South Ind ian H istory wi l l soon be developed i nto a heritage tou ri st spot with the a id of H UDCO, said Dr. T Sathyamurthy, supe ri ntendent, Chenna i C i rc le of the Archaeological Survey of I nd ia (ASI) . H UDCO, which had been entrusted with the task of beautifyi ng the site, had ear l ier evolved a blue pri nt for the project and was a l l set to take i t up for i mplementation duri ng l ast yea r itself. But, it was delayed due to tsunami and there were a l so a pprehens ions that a port ion of the site was damaged . But , i t was l ater found out that there was no damage to the s i te. The project wou l d be imp lemented in January: tourists wou ld be a ble to reach Arikamedu a long the Ari anku ppam River through a boat from Ar iankuppam. (Ari kamedu to be made heritage spot, I E.C , 1 7 . 10 .05 , M53)

I DOCll111eniatiol1 Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

M57 H i l l Tourism

With the tea i ndustry facing a cris is for the past few years, Va l pa ra i town i n the Anamala is i s p inn ing i ts hopes on tou r ism. Thousands of estate workers have sta rted movi ng to the p la i ns a nd busi ness activi t ies have h it an a l l -t ime low. The town does not have much private land for construction of hotel s a nd other commerc ia l estab l i shments . Most of the l a nd has been leased out to pr iva te estates wh i l e the rest i s a reserve forest . The mun ic ipa l i ty has sent a p roposal fo r bu i l d i ng 1 00 resorts and a ch i l d ren 's park on the ba n ks of the proposed check-dam across the Na l l akathuoda i , a ju ngle stream .

Once tou rists start comi ng, tea sale wi l l go up, benefit ing the estates, says Hameed , an AIADM K funct ionary. However, envi ronmenta l activists a re cautious. "Al ready it has been opened up for tourism. Regulated tourism i s a l l right that too, for w i ld l i fe enthusiasts and nature lovers. Mass tou rism wi l l be haza rdous to th is fragi l e p lace," says a n activ ist . The poor, espec ia l ly t he estate workers , w i l l be affected as the cost of l ivi ng wi l l go up once tourist f low i ncreases, says a nother. (Va l pa ra i p i nn i ng hopes on tou r ism, M . Gunaseka ra n , TH .C, 1 9 . 1 0 .05, M57)

M57b Koda ikana l

The sa l ubrious, 24-hecta re Koda ikana l Lake wou ld tempt a nybody to take the p lunge without a thought. But a ppearances can be deceptive, as is sad ly the case with the l a ke. Thi ngs have deteriorated to the extent that v is i tors throngi ng lodges or cottages may be suscept ib le to both water-borne and skin d i seases i f these establ ishments ha ppen to use wate r from the l ake for dr ink ing or other pu rposes.

According to a report prepared by the Tami l N adu Water Supply and Dra i nage Board , the l ake is dyi ng a s low death . A samp le test conducted by its water ana lysis l aboratory recently revea led that the l a ke water has been conta m inated to a great extent . The l evel of e-col i bacteri a , respons ib le for caus i ng d i a rrhoea and u ri n a ry tract i nfect ion , was fou nd to be 1 , 100 t i mes h igher than the l i mit sti pu l ated by the Centra l Pub l i c Hea l th Engi neeri ng Envi ron menta l Orga n i sat ion . The l evel o f faeca l streptococcus , that ca uses a moebi c dysentery, w a s fou nd to b e 2 3 0 p e r 1 00 m l of water as aga i nst ' n i l ' specif ied exa mi nat ion of t h e water revea led that the tu rbid i ty un its and ferrous content exceeded the maxi mum permiss i b le l i mi t of 10 un its and 1 mg per l i tre respectively.

Envi ronmenta l i sts a re putti ng the b lame on sewage released i nto the l ake by some hote ls a nd lodges. A Boat C lub member a l leges that the water is bei ng i l lega l ly tapped and suppl ied to some un l i censed lodges usi ng ta nkers . An off ic ia l of the Koda i Mun ic ipa l Counci l revea ls that water tankers transporti ng water from the l ake were seized at n ight a few days ago, admits Municipal Cha i rman Kurien Abraham, 'Un l icensed hotels i ndu lgi ng in these i l l ega l activities bring a bad name to the good establ ishments, too. The munici pa l admin istration has i ssued noti ces to these l odges a nd hote l s . " Abra h a m poi nts out that the l a ke de-weedi ng a nd de -s i l t i ng project, fo r wh ich Rs 1 0 .33 crore had been sa nct ioned , i f i mp lemented , can provide a sol ut ion to the contami nation problem. "But a local forum has obta i ned stay from court." (Contamination ki l l i ng Koda i Lake, A R Meyya mma i , I E .C , 05.05.05, M57b)

M58 Specia l Tou rism Areas

Two more temples have been d iscovered i n Mahaba l i pura m by the Archaeologi ca l Su rvey of I nd ia du ri ng excavat ion . A lso , underwater explorat ion has i n d i cated that there may be more man -made structures (presumably temples) submerged under the sea . Though there i s excitement of rea l iz i ng the exi stence of legendary 'seven pagodas ' , the ASI is bound by a resource crunch. ASI Di rector Genera l C Babu Rajeev sa id that the ASI p roposed to strengthen tour ist fac i l i t ies a t M a h a ba l i pu ra m . (More temples d i scovered in Mahaba l i pura m , Swati Das, TOI . M, 02.04.05 , M58)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Docllmentation Update I

• N - A N D H RA PRADESH .

Pol icy and Plann i ng

The Federat ion of I nd i a n Chambers of Commerce a nd I ndustry has asked the And hra P radesh Government to develop a free zone at Visakhapatnam port on the l i nes of Jebel Al i Free Zone in Duba i . The free zone would tr igger economic growth by givi ng i m petus to i ntense manufacturi ng and processi ng a ctivity. The Jebel A l i Free Zone charged no duties on a l l i mports a nd exports with i n the free zone. There was no need for enter ing t ie ·ups with loca l compan ies . Mr Kanwar sa id the free zone cou ld offer flexib le l abour ru les . F ICCI w i l l l aunch the ' Dest inat ion And h ra P radesh ' campa ign to attract i nvestments i nto the State. (F ICC I for sett ing u p free zone at Vizag port, BloB , 03 .05.05 , NOO)

I nf ra stru cture

In a b id to enhance a i r connectivi ty the Andhra government has decided to deve lop a i rports i n sma l l towns a n d c it ies. I t has i n it i ated ta l ks with the A i rports Authori ty of I nd i a (AAI ) to modern i se exist i ng a i rport i nfrastructure i nc lud ing n ight- l and ing faci l it ies . A request has been made to the C ivi l Aviat ion M i n i stry and AAI to u pgrade the Vijayawada a nd T i ru pat i and s peed up u p-gradat ion of the Visakhapatnam a i r port. The government has a l so wanted to convert exi st i ng runaway strip s at Mang inapud i near Rajamundry, Ne l lore, Puttaparthi and Cuddapa .

Meanwh i le , the government has d rafted a n Avi ation Pol i cy to be carried out for the next 10 yea rs. U nder th is , t he government p lans to have a i rstr ips i n each of the d istrict headquarters among others. (AP p lans a i rstrips in a l l d i stri ct headquarters , Satya N a agesh Ayyagary & KVVV Charya , FE .B, 1 3 .02 .06, NOO)

Tour ism Pol icy and P lans

T h e Government of A P has taken steps for promotion o f tour i sm by prov id i ng accommodat ion , cateri ng, tra nsport and recreat ional fac i l it ies at various touri st p laces. Greater emphasi s is given for rura l commun i ty based, fam i ly or iented , p i l grim , adventure, eco, l e i sure tou r ism a n d now on c ru i se tou r i sm, cha rters and c i rcu l a r t ra i n . Response f rom pr ivate sector for i nvestment i n tou r i sm rela ted act iv it ies - beac h resorts, water s ports, theme parks , a mu sement parks, t rekk i ng, golf, convent ion centres etc has been good .

With the cont inuous efforts of the Tou rism Department, domestic tourist a rriva l s have i ncreased sign ificantly from 63.3 m i l l ion i n 2002 to 74. 1 m i l l ion in 2003 and 84.9 m i l l ion in 2004. Sim i l a rly the i nternat ional tourist a rr iva l s a l so i nc reased from 2 . 1 0 lakh in 2002 to 4.80 lakh i n 2003 and 5 .01 1akh i n 2004. ( Buttressi ng the tou r ism potent ia l , I E.D, 27.09.05, NOO)

N ea rly 18 months after getti ng a p romise from the U n ion M i n i ster of Tour ism. Ms Renuka Chowdhary, the tour ism i ndustry i n Andhra Pradesh can now expect a 'n ight bazaa r' in a few months_ The U n ion Government has chosen Hyderabad as one of the two s i tes to test the concept. The Rs 5-crore n ight bazaa r wou ld come at Sh i lpa ra mam, surrounded by i nformation technology a nd I TES companies i n the H i -Tec City, at Madhapur.

The proposed night bazaar would not be on the l ines of the popu lar perception on the bazaars. The Government pro posed to broaden the idea of bazaars to go beyond the popu l a r not ion that they wou l d be dotted with pubs_ The a im of sett ing up such a bazaa r at the H i ·Tech City was to cater to the hundreds of IT pros , who worked l ate i n the even i ngs. The bazaar wou ld house eateries a nd shops specifica l ly targeti ng them. ( 'N ight bazaar ' soon to boost tourism in Ap, Bl. B, 06. 1 2 .05 , NOO)

Recognis ing tourism as a major growth engi ne for i ncreased employment generat ion and boosti ng economic growth , Andhra Pradesh i s position i ng itself as a favoured i n ternat ional and domesti c desti nation . For th is ,

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

the state government i s cha l k ing out a long·term strategy, i nc lud i ng the publ ic ·private partnersh ip model , for promoti ng the state as a favourable and u l ti mate dest inat ion both for domestic a nd i nternat iona l touri sts.

Start i ng from the bas ics wh ich i nc l ude road , ra i l network, a i r connect iv i ty, wayside a men it ies , convent ion centres, the Department of Tour is m i s leaving no stone u nturned to market the state in tota l i ty. This stems from the fact that the state government has taken ass istance from the World Tour ism Organ i sation to car t out a l ong term strategy to boost the sector.

Besides, i t i s a l so the on ly state to offer s i ngle-wi ndow c leara nce for tou r ism projects thus fac i l i tat i ng the P P P model . O n i ts pa rt , the government is partner ing with private part ies for setti ng sta r hote l s . Further, d istr ict co l lectors wi l l be given Rs . 1 c rore each to make the master p l an a v iab le propos it ion .

I n order to give an a l l ocation for the tourism department has been i ncreased to Rs 77 crore for th is fisca l from the ear l ier government's Rs 36 crore. I n i ti a l ly as part of prov id ing ways ide a menit ies, the state govern ment i s worki ng with I nd i an Oi l and Rel ia nce to house restaurants with a l l a men it ies in their petrol stations on the state 's h ighways at 1 2 s i tes .

As part of rural development. the state government i s focusing on t ier· 1 1 c it ies such as Puttaparthi , Konaseema i n the east coast whose backwaters a re bei ng aggressively promoted. However, the biggest sp i ri tua l tour ism event bei ng planned in the state i s January 3 · 14, 2006, which envisages two l akh Buddhists to visit Amaravathi . Fi na l ly, to deve lop a pol i cy framework for susta i n a bl e deve lopment and to deve lop human resource in the tourism sector development. AP government has estab l ished the National I nstitute of Tourism and Hospital ity Management in Hyderabad. (AP government i nit iatives to strengthen tourism sector, Satya Naagesh Ayyagarv & BV M a hatakshm i , FE ,B , 07 . 1 1 .05 , NOO)

Ms Geeta Reddy, Andhra P radesh Tourism M in i ster said, "The Government of Andhra Pradesh decided to put the State on par with other southern states l i ke Tam i l Nadu , Ka rnataka and Keral a i n attracting tou rists. With a focu sed a pproac h a i med p u re ly a t giv i ng a major thrust to tour i sm i n state, the state government i s embarking o n a three·d imensional strategy · improvi ng fac i l ities at places of h istor ica l prominence, developing i nfrastructure and transport and givi ng a major boost to rura l tou r ism. With these objectives i n perspective, the government with the act ive i nvolvement and part ic i pative associat ion of the private sector has a l l ocated Rs. 1 0 0 cm to take u p new p rojects . "

Revea l i ng about the latest i n it i atives designed at giving a thrust to tour ism in Ap, she exp la i ned : "new tour ism packages a re bei ng designed and evolved with Hyderabad, Araku,

Vi shakapatnam and T i ru pa t i a s foca l poi nts . I t is observed that foreign tour i sts to the State have been evi ncing keen i nterest to know about our agricultura l products, farming p ract ices a nd culture. A new concept in the form of Fa rm Tour ism is bei ng developed to ensure that the tou ri sts spend considerable t ime in our state. Th is woul d provide the tour ists with a n opportun ity to l ive i n our environs and enjoy our hospita l ity and cu lture."

With a scope for employment generat ion in the rural sector, new market i ng strategies a re to be adopted. I n a n effort t o give major boost t o rura l tour i sm , twe l ve p l aces have been i dent i f ied . These p l aces wou ld be provided with a major facel ift by developing accommodation faci l it ies. These p laces of h i storical signif icance w i l l be protected with scientif ic i nputs and museums wi l l be deve loped . Kuchi pud i , the famous vi l l age from where c l ass ica l Kuch ipudi dance form has o rigi nated, wi l l be deve loped on these l i nes with a fund of Rs. 1 c r.

Bu i l d i ng "Highway Hotels" i s a nother concrete step i n the right d i rection where the tour ists w i l l enjoy qua l ity Andhra cuis ine in highly refreshi ng a mbience. These H ighway Hote ls wi l l be establ i shed in Hyderabad, Kadapa, Vijayawada , Suryapet, Nel lore, Siddipet, Tun i and other p laces with in a year. (Touri sm: The brand ambassador of AP's hospita l i ty, FE .B, 22 .04.05, NOO)

Tou rism I ssues

The Andhra P radesh Govern ment has s igned a pact with a tourism i nfrastructure company to take u p the Rs 2 ,000·crore ' Desti nat ion Vizag' project a long the beach. The project, cover ing 1 ,000·2,000 acres, i s a i med

_ 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I at sett ing up world-class hospital i ty, leisure, I ifestyle a nd entertai nment fac i l ities on the beach. Once completed, the project would help attract 45.000 foreign tourists more i nto the State. I t wou ld br ing in foreign excha nge to the tune of Rs 550 crore a yea r. Besides, i t would generate revenue to the order of Rs 1 1 2 crore for the local economy.

The project wou ld comprise a five-sta r hote l , beach resort, golf courses, hea lth spa, theme parks, convention and exh ib it ion centres, mu lt ip lexes, mega shoppi ng ma l l s , mar ine he l icopters and sea p lanes. The project would a lso take u p commun i ty deve lopment act iv it ies in V isa k ha patn a m . It wou l d ta ke u p c lea n i ng a nd ma in ta i n i ng the 30-km coast l i ne , i mprove amen it ies i n the loca l commu ni ty c lusters, a nd spruce u p the ex ist ing Zoologica l Pa rk. CAP signs pact for Vizag touri sm project, BL .C, 09. 1 1 .05 , NOO)

Hyderabad is fast emerging as an attractive desti nation for i nternational conferences and seminars. But, one thing that can mar the city's a ttraction i s the lack of adequate hotel rooms. Duri ng the SAP Games l ast year, one hotel even asked some reg u l a r guests to put off the i r t ravel p l a n s a s i t cou l d not offe r rooms. More recent ly, there were two m ajor pharma confe rences. One, the I nd ia - Asean , GCC Hea lthc a re and P ha rma Conference, a nd over- l app ing w i th i t was the 56th I nd i a n Pha rmaceut ica l Congress a l ong w i th a Pha rma Expo. Both the conferences had a total of about 4,500 delegates. As these conferences ended , a nother two· day meet of the Oi l Technologists Association of I nd ia began. This is when the mad rush to get accommodation began in Hydera bad.

Currently, there a re about 1 ,200 rooms in the five·star category i n Hyderabad, wh ich a re woeful ly i nadequate. I n terest ingly, a nother 1 ,200 rooms w i l l be open for occupat ion i n the next few yea rs . For i n stance, the MR group i s putti ng u p 280 rooms i n t he three·four star categories and Marriott through Viceroy Hotels i s adding another 1 30 rooms by January. Moreover. accord i ng to i ndustry watchers, the Leela Group, Hyatt and lTC, too, a re eyi ng properties in the expandi ng c i ty. (Hot spot Hydera bad ru n n i ng short of hotel rooms, Satya Naagesh Ayyagary & KVVV Charya , FE .B, 1 2 . 12 .05 , NOO)

Coasta l Tou rism

A boat cru i se on the Godava ri from Ku nava ram jetty to the p i ctu resque Pap i H i l l s a nd the mythologica l Ramayana theme park i n Bhadracha l am a re sure goi ng to be a thri l l i ng experience not on ly to the devout who make a beel i ne to this a ncient shrine on festive occasions but a lso to hol i rlay·makers. The tourism Department has many p lans to deve lop th is riverfront town i nto a major tourist desti nat ion once the Polava ram i rrigation p roject is completed . The Department is exp lor ing the poss i bi l i ties of deve lopi ng a tou ri sm corridor from Bhadracha l am to Rajahmundrv on the river Godavar i , the fi rst of its k ind in the state.

The present l evel of water in the r iver is not adequate enough to operate h igh·speed cru i se boats. However, a s the Pol avaram project wou l d increase the i nf low u pp ing the water level here, speed boats and l i ner service can be operated . CAP p l ans cru ise on the Godavari , B Satyanarayana Reddy, I E .C , 09.02 .06, NOO)

Pi lgr im Tourism

T i ru pati , t he second richest rel igious body i n the world after the Vatican , has been faci ng a problem of plenty a l l these yea rs. The temple complex dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara i s the world 's l a rgest s i ngle consumer of commodities l i ke sugar, cardamom, rice. pepper, cashew, turmeric, ed i ble oi l . vegetables and jaggery. The templ e's huge k itchens feed thousands of devotees da i ly; some 1 00 ,000 l addoos a re made every day for devotees A I I free of cost.

The shr ine d raws the l a rgest number of p i lgr ims each day. The temple has prospered from the gold , money and even ha i r that p i lgr ims offer to the dei ty. The temple trust, which a l ready has e ight tonnes of jewel l ery lyi ng i n i ts lockers , receives nea rly 1 0 kg of gold ornaments every week from devotees.

So what novel measures have the temple authorit ies taken to manage this problem of p lenty?

I n a un ique venture, the Ti rupati temple authorities have roped in J RG Wea lth Management Ltd, one of I nd ia 's l ead ing commodity brokers, to i nsta l l an on l ine commodi ty futu res termi na l at the temple complexWith 157

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 .

bra nches across the country, Koch i -based J RG i s a premier stock , commod i ty and i nsu ra nce brokerage house. For l a rge rel ig ious p laces l i ke T i ru pat i wh ich m i l l ions of devotees v is i t every yea r, the d a i ly rates of va rious commodities in I nd ia a re very importa nt. Through the J RG termin a l , the TTD management can now view the commodity prices from a l l the lead ing commodity exchanges - National Multi Commod ity Exchange of I nd ia Ltd , Mu lt i Commodi ty Exchange of I nd ia Ltd and Nationa l Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Ltd .

But how do on l ine futures t rad ing i n commodities help the Ti rupati temple authorit ies?

Transparency in the purchase of va rious commodities is the most positive outcome of setti ng up the commodity futu res termi n a l , poi nts out a sen ior temp le offic ia l . Every yea r, the temple author it ies purchase eata b le consumables worth over Rs 300 crore. More than 30 d ifferent contractors a re the ma in supp l iers of these commodities who bid and wi n the annua l contracts.

Temple sources say the supp l iers have jo ined hands to form a midd leman cartel and ta ke a big cut on the commod it ies supp l ied to the temple. "We w i l l e l i mi nate th is ca rtel with the o n l i ne commodity termi n a l " . (T i rumala Temple opts for commodity trad ing, George Iype, VT.B, 02.05 .05, NOO)

All roads w i l l lead to Andhra Pradesh's Ama ravati in January next yea r when the Ka lachakra 2006 w i l l beg in . Th is i s a n annua l i n it iat ion ceremony for Buddhists complete w i th ritua l s and prayers and i s conducted on a l a rge sca l e across the globe. Every yea r, a new p lace is chosen for the event and th is yea r, Amaravat i , which i s located nea r the river Kri shna in AP's Guntur d istr ict , has been picked . The state i s set to make a p lace for itself in the world map for Buddhist tourism in a big way. The tourism min istry has ident ified a lmost 144 s ites across the state, of wh ich 44 sites a re the major ones. The state govern ment is i nvest i ng Rs 1 0 crore to update the i nfrastructure and deve lop the p laces i nto major touri st s i tes for Buddh ists across the world . "Not many know that even AP has a huge Buddhist i nf luence and so we a re now tryi ng to create a n enti re Buddhist c i rcu it i n the state, "says AP M in i ster for Tour ism and Sugar Dr J Geeta Reddy. (Amaravat i to host Ka l achakra , Sruti Naya n i , ET.C, 06. 1 2 .05, NOO)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documcntation Update I

I nfrastructure

The prospect of brand new Greenfi e ld a i rports at Bangalore and Hyderabad in three years has prompted states l ike Punjab and Maharashtra to push for s imi lar ventures but lead i ng the pack is Goa which has drawn up the contours of a state-of-the-art a i rport at Mopa by 20 1 4.

The p lan has been prepared with the he lp of experts from the I nternational Civi l Aviation Organ i sation ( ICAO) and the A irports Author ity of I nd i a (AA I ). Close to 2 m i l l ion passengers f ly i n to the p l ace every year and officia l s poi nt out that there is a bee l ine of charter operators for permiss ion . (Goa 's ready with p lan for world· c lass a i rport, Pranab Dhal Samanta, I E. D, 27.05.05, POO)

The agitation aga i nst the proposed Mopa a i rport, led by Church i l l Alemao, MP from South Goa , got a major boost with M i ni ster for Water Resources F i l ipe Neri Rodrigues join ing the bandwagon . Mr. Rodrigues, a M in ister in the Congress-led coa l it ion , shared the platform of "Save Dabol im Airport Committee" i n South Goa . He has joined the a nt i -Mopa agitat ion, and is fu l ly in favour of expans ion and u pgradation of the Dabol i m a i rport for opt imal c iv i l i a n use . Mr. A lemao has been going a head with h i s agitat ion br ing ing embarrassment to the Congress. (Min ister jo ins sti r aga inst Mopa a i rport, T H . B, 29.03.06, POO)

Envi ronmental Issues

With the garbage i ssue sti l l haunt ing the major c i ties i n the state, the same i ssue has ra i sed its ugly head i n some of the vi l l ages a long the coasta l belt . Right from Majorda t o Colva a n d Bena u l i m t o Varca , heaps of ga rbage is seen scattered a long the roads ide. The loca l s a l l eged that the contra ctors col l ect the garbage from the hotels and dump the same at i solated places in the wee hours. The hote l iers countered the a l legations of the l oca l s by stat ing that they d i sposed of the i r ga rbage with pa i d contractors and that i t was the respons ib i l i ty of the contractors to d ispose the same without caus i ng any harm to the loca l s. However, due to lack of c iv ic sense a mong those d um pi ng the ga rbage , the p lace has become a conduc ive p lace for mosquitoes to breed a nd a l so for the domestic a n i ma ls to feast on the heaps of waste a long the road . The loca ls were of the op in ion that there should be a check on the hote l i ers and the i r engaged contractors so as to where they shou l d dump the hotel waste.

Accord i ng to the vi l l agers , the waste generated by the three and five ·sta rred hote ls create a nu i sance and very often the e lected representatives turn a b l i nd eye to such activ ity. The garbage managing commi ttees a l so fa i l to y ie ld the des i red resu l ts and as such the v io lators take maxim u m adva ntage of the preva i l i ng lethargic s ituation . (Garbage issue haunts some vi l lages a long coastal belt , NT.G , 1 1 .09.05, POO)

The o i l ba l l s wh i ch have been so far creat i ng pan i c a l ong South Goa beaches seem to have reached the beaches in North Goa . Some residents from Reis Magos, Anj u na and Baga have c la i med that they had seen the substance a long the beaches. The D i rector of Tou rism , Mr Sandeep Jacques, when contacted said that he had not received any reports of c i t ing of oi l ba l l s along the North Goa beaches. However, he wou ld verify the s ituation tomorrow by send ing a team. The pol l ut ion control experts say that though th is was a routi ne phenomenon dur ing the monsoon along the shore, this year the qua ntity of oi l ba l l s a long the beaches has i ncreased. They however say that th is may be because of the change in the const itut ion of the ocean due to tsunami .

The offic ia ls of Touris m Department said that the department has taken up the beach c lean i ng operation and added that the i n sp i te of c lean i ng the o i l ba l l s are a ppear ing on the beaches. They sa id that th ick o i l l ayer was c leared at Majorda a nd Aross im beaches. The beach c lea n i ng operat ion has started on a l l beaches i n South Goa . (Oi l ba l l s now a ppear on some N Goa beaches, N T. G , 1 9 .09.05, POO)

I Documenta tion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

Tour ism Pol i cy and Plans

Master p l ans fo r a l l · round deve lopment o f v i l l ages i n Goa i s i n the off i ng as B l ock Deve lopment Off icers (BOOs) have been d i rected to i ni t iate the process with the participation of elected bodies, gram sabhas and the general publ ic . Mr Shi rodkar said that Goa has 1 90 vi l lage panchayats and about 52% of Goa's population res ide in rural Goa. The preparation of the master plan for all the vi l l age panchayats, which w i l l cover each and every v i l l age, cou l d take as long as a month or two after del i berat ions at a l l l eve ls . He regretted that there i s no compact eva l uat ion o f deve lopment o f v i l l ages and fel t the need to set targets for the same. (Master p lans for development of v i l l ages i n the off ing, HE .G , 25 .06.05, POO)

The Goa Ch i ldren's Act, 2003 was recently amended , ostens ibly to dea l more str i ngent ly with various forms of ch i ld abuse, as a lso to regu l ate the ch i ldren's homes and hospital s, but non·govern mental organ i sations a l l ege that the Government was a ctua l ly tryi ng to lessen its broader respons ib i l i t ies .

Extens ive amendments were made to the 2003 Act i n the budget session of the Assembly. The 2003 Act, a i med at creat i ng a ch i l d ·fr iendly society, came in the wake of cr i t ic ism about the grow ing ch i ld a buse i n tou rist a reas .

However, activi st A l berti na A lmeida of Bai l a ncho Saad, an NGO worki ng for women and ch i ldren sa id that the Govern ment has u sed the 'facade of a mendments' to d i l ute its obl igat ion u nder the origi n a l Act to work towards "the goa l of u niversal e lementary education and erad ication of ch i ld i l l iteracy with i n a period of three yea rs . "Now the target has been pushed back to seven years. S im i l a rly the u ndertak i ng to era d icate ch i l d l abou r "with in two yea rs of th is Act [2003] coming i nto force" , h a s been changed . Now, the Government w i l l attempt t o do it �' i n a phased manner" .

Good provi s ions The new Act, however, has some good provis ions. I t proh ibits a ny medical i nstitution or c l i n i c or hospita l or n u rs i ng home from refus i ng admiss ion or treatment of a c h i l d o r pregnant mother who has a ny i l l ness or disease or a i lment l i ke leprosy, A I DS, etc . , which has a socia l stigma attached to it . I t provides for pun ishment to erri ng i n st itut ions with a f ine which may extend to RS.50,000.

The amended Act, among other th i ngs, has expanded the scope of various abuses under "commercia l sexual exp loitat ion of ch i l d ren" to i nc lude "a l l forms of sexua l exp lo i tat ion of a ch i l d i nc lud i ng v isua l dep i ct ion of a ch i ld engaged i n expl ic i t sexua l conduct, rea l or stim u lated, or the lewd exhibit ion of gen ita l s i ntended for sexua l grati f icat ion of the user, done with a commerc i a l pu rpose, whether for money or k i nd . It i nc l udes i mplyi ng, a l l owing, us ing , i nduc ing or coercing a ny chi ld to engage in sexual condu ct. I t a lso i nc ludes the use of the ch i l d i n ass ist i ng with other person s to engage i n exp l i cit sex . "

Goa had i n t he recent past faced much bad publ i c i ty over chi l d abuse by some fore ign tou ri sts . I t was found that chi ldren of migrant labour loiteri ng or straying on beaches were easy prey for chi ld abusers. The defi nit ion of "grave sexual assau l t" has a l so been expanded to i nclude acts l i ke mak ing ch i ld ren pose for pornograph ic p hotos and f i lms , forc i ng m inors to have sex with others , de l i berate ly caus ing i nj u ry to sexua l organs of ch i l d ren etc. I n the a mended Act the state rol e has been expanded to ensure that ch i l d ren a re protected from abuse, sexual offence trafficking, prostitution and violation of rights. The Act now provides for counsel l i ng faci l it ies by tra i ned personnel to ch i l d re n i n schools . (Some ame ndments to Goa Ch i l d ren's Act d raw f lak , TH .D, 04.09.05, POO)

Vigi l wou ld be stepped up on foreigners overstayi ng i n Goa, pol i ce said . Fore igners, espec ia l ly with busi ness visa have come under scanner of the pol ice fol lowi ng a deportation order i ssued by the chi ef secretary of the State aga i nst a German nat iona l . I ngo ru ns a Saturday n ight baza a r at A rpora . " Po l i ce have f i l ed a case aga i nst h im as he was creati ng law and order problem". I ngo i n i ti ated Goa's f i rst n ight bazaar concept a few years back, but l oca l s began compla i n i ng a bout noi se pol l ut ion due to the bazaar. Goa Sanskrit i Rakhan Sanghatna a local body a lso a l leged sale of d rugs at the n ight bazaar. I ngo has chal lenged the ch ief secretary's order i n the court. "Through my bazaar, I am trying to give i nternationa l exposure to local a rtisans, ' sa id I ngo, who has about 500 sta l l s sel l i ng products from shoes, garments to food. (Vig i l on fore igners overstayi ng i n Goa , TP.D, 20.02.06 , POO)

2 0 0 5 � 0 6 I Docllmentation Update I 'The l ifestyle i n vi l lage a nd rural I nd ia has tremendous marketab i l i ty a mong western tourists, 80 % of whom take cultural tours ' , says Hotel ier Ra l ph de Souza , welcoming the Budget proposa l . Goa m ust make a p itch to see that some of the 50 vi l l age projects a re developed here, says Goa chamber of commerce and industry president N it in Kuncol ienkar. The state a l so hopes to attract some of the Centre's Budget proposa ls for the 1 5 i ntegrated a rea tour ist desti nation developments proposed. After a mid-ni neties i nvestment boom a nd with the end of Central tax exemptions, the state i s hoping to bounce back by 2007. Los ing out to states l i ke H i macha l Pradesh s i nce 2000, Goa experienced cap i ta l f l ight. (Goa welcomes focus on tour ism, Pamela D ' Me l lo , AA. D, 0 1 .03.06, POO)

The Government w i l l enter i nto a t ie -up with p rivate sector to add water s ports, a dventure s ports and eco· touri sm to tour i st package s in the Western Ghats . Aware of the need to offer more to reta i n its edge i n tour ism, the Government h a s fi n a l i sed Tou rism Master P l an : Goa·20 1 1 (TM P) with emphas is o n "strategic p lann ing for long·term tourism development with focus on i nfrastructure" .

Accord ing to the Econom ic Survey 2005-06 presented to the State Assembly dur ing the budget session, the m a ster p l a n has ident if ied severa l sports a n d act iv it ies such a s scuba d iv ing , snorke l l i ng, pa ra gl i d i ng , parasa i l i ng, yachting, river raft ing, trekki ng, cycl i ng, skati ng, jogging, and sea surf i ngfor tourism promotion. Some of the a ctivit ies suggested in the master p l an would be mainly set up in private sector with gui de l ines for regul at ion . I nfrastru cture is to be developed at the le isure tour ism dest i nat ions such as beaches, water bodies , spr ings , and l a kes . Aware of the need to resolve the tussle between the tour ist taxi operators and the tour o perators, M r. Rane has proposed a one·year moratori u m on buying new tour ist veh ic les .

Mr. Rane's budget has dealt with t he cont inued demand of t he hospita l ity i ndustry to red re ss some of the a nomal ies i n the l uxury tax and VAT system . Luxury tax, enterta i n ment tax and VAT structures have been rationa l i sed , s impl ified and restructured with a s lew of concessions. The Government has p roposed to remove services such a s cas i nos, water s ports and boat cru i ses from the l evy of luxury tax and make them taxable under enterta i nment tax. (Goa fi na l i ses tourism master p lan , T H . B, 27 .03.06, POO)

Tour ism Issues

S pa i n 's C l ub de Vacaciones' f i rst charter to Goa , schedu l ed to touch down on 3rd Aug 0 5 , has the tou ri s m i ndustry exci ted about t h e p rospects o f n e w markets for charter tour is m t o I nd i a . C lub de Vacaciones, i n co l l aboration with Spana i r, p l a n s a weekly cha rter to Goa from Madr id . The charter's local hand lers , Travel Corporat ion I nd i a (TC I ) , expect 1 20 passengers a week on the l ong·hau l f l ight. Goa 's i nternat iona l tour ism season has over the years shrunk to a mere s ix months , from October to March , given the weather conditions here, and the leisure industry has increasingly turned to wooing the domestic market with a l l · inc lusive packages. (Span ish charter opens new market for tourism in Goa , D H . B, 24.06.05 , POO)

Goa Deputy Ch ief M i n i ster Wi l f red D Souza says the state i s set for a 1 0 % i ncrease in fore ign charters operat ions i s be ing h i ndered by defence restr ict ions. "We had 690 charters f ly i n here l ast season a nd a re expect ing 750 th is year. U nfortunately, there a re a l ready d ifficu lt ies with t he Navy i n the number of l and ing s lots bei ng given to i nternationa l chartered f l ights at Dabol im . "

Opposition to a i rport: Tou ri sm stakeholders i n south Goa are opposed to the new a i rport and have received the unsti nted support of MPs and M LA s representing southern con stituencies .

De Souza too says Dabol im shou ld be reta ined for the state's use. I nternational f l ights to Dabo l im a re a l lowed l a nd i ng on ly over t he weekends becau se of defence operat ions . No n ight l a n d i ngs have been permitted , despite a ssura nces for such c leara nces i n the past. (Touri sm h a mpered i n Goa by defence cu rbs , DH .B , 1 9 .09.05 , POO)

It cou ld not have been a worse end to a year of partying for the globa l tra nce tri ppers, who have col lected on Goa's famed Anj u n a beach for the f i rst t i me i n 25 yea rs , the adm in i strat ion has come down heavy on the revel lers and ba nned rave parties i n the trance c i rcu it of Anjuna·Vagator·Shapora , i n North Goa. The s i lence i s so spooky it 's a lmost spectra l from D isco Val ley to H i l ltop, Shiva Va l ley to Temple P lace , Bamboo Forest to Monkey Va l l ey it 's a dead·end zone . Hote l iers a re nervous , t he re wi l l he a near r iot i f the thousands , have nowhere to go. The avowed a nd notable reason for rave ban bei ng the drug menace at rave parties, the i l l i c it

I Documenta t ion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

na rcoti cs trade a n d hard d rugs l i ke ecsta sy, coca i ne, hero i n , a n d other substance a buse. The pol i ce , loca l admin i strat ion , pol i t ic ia n s , even the c hurch and some sect ions of the med i a have a l l whi pped u p rave rage, with obvious consequences of cu ltura l pol ic ing and mora l brigades sta l ki ng the l andscape. For the loca ls , who depend on the tour ists t rade from the dozens of cheap rooms rented to trave l l ers , to cafes , b ike h i res , even the cha i shop run at rave pa rt ies , the l oss is huge. (Rave rage h i ts Goa before New Year, Vri nda Gop inath , I E . 3 1 . 1 2 .05 , POO)

Coasta l Tou ri sm

A ' Ba i n a ' a p pears to be s l owly bei ng rep l i cated here i n a fester ing envi ronment with 1 50 i l legal hutments erected i n violation of Coastal Regu lations Zone (CRZ) and Court orders fears a re being ra i sed about prostitution and other shady act iv it ies. A few of the 1 50 huts which have mushroomed over a per iod of t i me a long the beac h stretch , north of the tou r i st i c hub at Colva a re be ing s l ow ly converted i nto pucca structure s with Mangalore t i les . And what was once a green patch and a coconut grove with swayi ng pa l m trees for people to rel ax, has been converted i nto a s l um and more huts a re sprout ing every week .

I ncidenta l ly the authorities had moved here w i th bul ldozers a nd labourers to clear the land on three occasions but pu l l ed back due to pol it ica l pressure. D i rector of Tou rism, Elvis Comes sa id that the department is aware of the prob lem a n d that the matter has been taken u p at the h ighest leve l .

Court order flouted Colva : An order of the Bombay H igh Court at Goa dated 29 June 02 (Writ Peti t ion 1 26 / 1 996) to demo l i sh the i l l ega l construct ions at Colva and f i l e a compl iance report every fortn ight has been blatant ly f louted. I n the pet i t ion f i l ed by Goa Fou ndat ion , the d ivis ion bench h a d d i rected the tour ism department through the mamlatdar, deputy col lector and the d istr ict col lector to keep a watch to ensure that there i s no CRZ violat ion and demol i sh structures bu i lt therei n . Sadly the order is not bei ng i m plemented in sp i ri t by the a uthorit ies, who a re bow i ng to pol i t i ca l p ressu re and tu rn i ng a Ne l son's eye to the hutments. (Another B a i n a is in the making at Colva beach , Goa , 1 5 .04.05 , POO)

Heritage Tour ism

Thi s i s the second a ttempt Lady H a m lyn trust and I ntach a re mak i ng to take u p restorat ion of the fort. I n 2002, the t ru st had offered a gen erous £300, 000 sterl i ng endowment to restore the c ru mbl i ng fort. An a rchitect had mapped the a rea and d rawn u p i n it i a l p lans which were then i n act ive consideration . The offer though was turned down by a previous Goa regime, when objections surfaced to a c lause that u pper rooms of the for t be leased for 1 5 yea rs as a private res idence.

As a regula r Goa vis itor, the widow of publ i sh ing tycoon Pau l Hamlyn is keen to take up the fort's restoration as a goodwi l l gesture, says the representat ive. Though l i s ted as one of 42 a nc ient h i stori c monuments deservi ng protect ion , the government budgets a re i n adequate to ma i nta i n the h i l l top Reis Magos fort that was bui l t by Portuguese colon i sers i n 1 550 at a strategic h i l l top a t the mouth of the Mandovi River. With i ts panoramic views of the ocean and riverfront, at least three major hotel groups in I nd ia and one from Singapore were i n terested i n convert i ng the fort i nto a her i tage hote l , before a court order shot down proposa l to convert the publ i c heritage monu ment i nto pr ivate space. The a mended restorat ion proposa l how has no condit ions of a ny sort . (Lady He len trust to restore Goa fort , Pamela D ' Me l lo , AA. D, 24.02.06, POO)

Hea l th Tour ism

The I ndustries M in i ster, Mr Luizinho Fale i ro, has sa id Goa's posit ion as a tour ist dest ination cou ld be exploited further by add ing state·of·art medica l faci l it ies to promote it as a prime global hea lth tour ism destination. The pr ivate sector has a role i n th i s d i rect ion , he added.

Address ing the i naugura l session of the seminar on ' Health·care : the Goa Scenar io' organ i sed by the health committee of the Goa Chambe r of Commerce a nd I ndustry, Mr Fa le i ro said that the government wou ld p lay the role of fac i l i tator and encourage priva te part ic i pa ti on i n i mp rovement of fac i l it ies i n the health sector. (Private sector can help promote Goa as health tou r ism spot : Luiz i n ho, NIG , 3 1 .07.05, POO)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I Socia l I mpacts

Goa has ga ined a reputation far worse than Bangkok, wh ich is cons idered the sex cap i ta l of the wor ld . With no contro l s on its borders a n d no checks on people v is i t ing the state, a nyone a n d everyone i s com i ng i nto Goa to have a good t i me. And i t i s th i s lack of controls a n d checks that a re witness ing the state acqu i re a d i rty, sea my reputat ion as global gangs target Goa .

Accord i ng to pol i ce sources, global gangs have divided Goa's territory i nto d ifferent gang zones. A long the Cando l im-Ca l angute stretch the N igerians and Br it ish a re dominant who dea l i n narcotics. At Anjuna·Vagator it is the I srae l i s , Germans and I ta l i ans. At Ara m bol Russ ians and Germans ca l l the shots and i n Pa lo lem the Russ i ans and I srae l i s have set up base.

Apart from dea l ing with these globa l gangs, the la test problem that the Goa pol i ce have on their hands is the growing sex trade that is flourish ing on the coasta l belts, in the form of dance bar gir ls who have fled Mumba i t o the sunny shores of Goa .

A lso with the Mumba i pol ice closing down'over 300 dance bars , 75 ,000 dance bar gir ls are seeki ng a lternative employment. The recent ar rest of five g i r l s who were i nvolved in a ca l l g i rl racket i s a testimony to th is fact that many of them a re attempti ng to make Goa their base.

Now the Goa pol i ce's l a test h igh tech war is the i nternet, w here t here a re numerous websi tes spr ing ing u p promising women i n Goa , i n particu l a r a long the north Goa coasta l belt. Hosted o n servers, which a re housed in the US, UK and Tha i l and , websites such as www.goaescorts.com which i s part of the a ppoi ntment date and t ime to meet a 'Goan' gi rl or for that matter even a foreign gi rl a nywhere i n Goa. Paedophi l ia a l so contin ues to haunt Goa Pol i ce as the n um be r one sex cr i me i n the state. The rece nt b reak th rough i n the Swed i s h pornograph ic n ng was broken on a n ema i l t ip t o the Goa Pol ice. (Globa l sex, drug gangs target Goa, Sukumar Shastri , HE .G , 08.05 .05 , POO)

After the hedon ism of h ipp iedom, now it is the paedoph i l i a ·driven tourism that is becoming a growing menace i n Goa. The government to a certa i n extent acknowledges the problem but the foreign paedoph i les have l i tt le to worry, for when they a re caught, they escape eas i ly from the state a nd the country without a ny punishment.

P robably, M ichael Jackson case holds an important lesson for the on ly state in I nd i a , which has a Ch i ldren's Act as wel l as a Ch i ldren's Court. The speedy manner in wh ich the tri a l was conducted cou ld be a revelat ion to many a nd w hat i s of utmost i m portance is that even a ce lebr ity l i ke Michael Jackson couldn ' t avoid the t ri a l . However, ch i l d act ivi sts i n Goa bel ieve that the s i tuat ion i s a bsol ute ly the reverse in Goa a nd the paedophi les escape scot·free.

Whatever, the reason, one thing is absol utely clear. There i s a n u rgent need for the state and judic ia l authorities - be it the pol i ce , the p rosecutors or the jud ic i a ry - to address the i ssue of paedoph i l i a in a determi ned and decis ive manner.

Apart from Freddy Peats who had been convicted and ja i led , a numbe r of paedoph i les have been ident ified a n d even a p prehended by pol ice have escaped scot·free. Recent ly, t he deta i l s of the modus opera nd i of a German paedophi le suspect, Jorg Harry Ringelmann came to l ight. H i s I nd ian wife and 'adopted daughter' -both teenagers · were barely a few yea rs apart i n age. R ingelman n used the H i ndu Adoption and Ma intenance Act , 1 956, a pp l icabl e on ly to H i ndus , to legi t imise h i s relat ionship with a 15 ·year·o ld fema le ch i l d who had been i n h i s custody from age of eight . I nstead of being pun ished he was served a deportat ion notice a s there was a problem with h i s busi ness v isa .

He vo l unteered to leave the country on h i s own and was permi tted to do so on 14 August 2004. At present , I t a l i an G iorg io Laz i n i and German Gunter Bachman who were accused of rape of a m i nor a re sti l l mov i ng a round. I t i s certa i n , the recently enacted Goa Ch i ldren's Act, 2003 , has provis ions to deal with paedophi l i a more effect ive ly but t here a re loopholes i n the Act. (M ichael J ackson case h a s lessons for Goa , Preetu N a i r, GT.G, 22.06.05 , POO)

I Documentation Update I :: 0 0 5 - a 6

Starting some years ago on the fringes, sex trade has now become networked with the state tour ism i ndustry in a c lose fashion. I nqu i ries with i nsiders in the business as wel l as l aw-enforcers have brought to l ight the fact that e lements from v i rtua l ly every segment of the tour ist i ndustry from roads ide tourist touts to the room­boys i n the warm and hospita b le hote ls to the taxi dr ivers to the motorcycle pi l ot r iders have a s hare i n the i ncome from sex trade.

The women involved belong to a l l age groups from m inors for the paedoph i les to teenagers to married women . For some i t i s just keepi ng the l ife going on , for others it i s a more payi ng vocation , for sti l l others i t i s to keep a luxurious l ifestyle going on .

And not a l l these women come from other states . Qu ite a few of them are Goans , accord i ng to the ins iders. Technology i s only fuel l i ng the growth of the trade. Today when a hustler wants to market the gi r ls , he has their photos - which are sometimes topless or more revea I i ng-on his cel l phone to show to the potential customers. Once the customer has selected a g i r l , the network makes arrangement for the g i rl to reach h i s p lace or h i m t o reach a n appo i nted p lace.

Accord i ng to i nqu i ries , hust lers w i th photos of g i r ls on ce l l phones a re roa m i ng a round at popu l a r tou r i st spots, l i ke beaches, river cru ises and publ ic tra nsport stat ions. The trade has spread i ts network even to far­f lung vi l l ages. Severa l hote l s and lodges provide tempora ry to l onger lodgi ng to g ir ls to cater to the tour i sts or loca ls from different strata of the society.

Pol ice a lso have i nfor mation about ca l l g i r l busi ness goi ng on- i n five star hote ls . But often no act ion can be taken because of i nvolvement of big a nd powerful people. Both the gir ls and the customers come from wel l to do fam i l i es . Pol i ce a ct ion is a lso hampered by the fact that the gir ls , i f a rrested , usua l ly tend to make a statement that they were i ndu lg ing i n sex of thei r own free w i l l and not for t rade. With the surprise ra ids by the C I D\Crime Bra nch s leuths and pol ice parties, most of the hote l iers , hust lers and women engaged i n the trade have become more v igi l a nt and a re conducti ng the business very cauti ously_ Sometimes, the busi ness goes u nder the cover of other bus i nesses, l i ke massage par lours . (Sex i ntertw i nes w i th tour i sm i n Goa, Sha i kh Jamaludd i n , NT.G, 1 1 .08.05, POO)

The president of the Mumba i Bar G i rl s U nion Varsha Kal e, sa id that 1 0,000 bar gi r ls wou ld come to Goa th is tou r i st season. The Goa pol i ce , as u s u a l , appear c l ue less w i th DGP Katna sayi ng, "Gomata k T imes has i nformat ion a bout th is but we don ' t " . 7 5 , 000 ba r g ir ls have been rendered job less d ue to the c losure of dance bars i n Mumba i . The gi r l , who swayed to the music and mesmerized patrons in the dance bars t i l l the recent past , used to earn Rs 1 0,000 to Rs 1 5,000 a month. Traffickers a re a l ready l ur ing many bar gi r l s i nto the f lesh trade and some gir ls have been a l ready brought to Goa. "Gross in just i ce has been done to us a nd we wi l l now sel l our body to earn a l ivi ng and no moral guard ian has any right to crit ic ize us, " said Rekha. (We a re ready to pa i nt Goa ' red' Mumba i bar g i r l s , P reetu Na i r, GT.G , 30.08.05, POO)

A pol ice-pub l ic i nteraction meet organ ised today at the Panj i m pol i ce station h igh l ighted the menace of the dance bar gi r ls frequenting the state and the precautions that cou ld be taken to curb this menace. The meet that was attended by 42 representatives of the hospita l i ty i n dustry w i th in the j u ri sd ict ion of the Panji m pol i ce stat ion , emphasised the need to ma i nta i n a proper register of the hotel employees a s wel l a s that of thei r guests who uti l ise the i r accommodation faci l ities, The pol ice requested the smal l group of representatives of hote l iers, lodge owners and guest house owners to mainta in a meticulous entry of the names and addresses of the i r guests on the i r guest register a nd that the mandatory provis ion of fi l l i ng the 'C' forms and submitting them to the Foreigners Regi strat ion Office (FRO) or the nearest pol i ce stat ion with i n 24 hou rs be comp l ied immediately. Another i ssue that was d iscussed at the i nteraction was that of harassment of tour ists by non­registered gu ides or touts with the pol ice suggesti ng that on ly those guides a pp roved by the Goa Tour ism Development Corporation be encouraged . I t i s l earnt that th is pol ice-pub l ic i nteract ion that has been revived w i l l be conducted on a regu l a r basi s with d i fferent groups of cit izens at least twice a month. ( Po l i ce-pub l ic i nteract ion ca l l s for steps to check ba r g i rl s menace, H E.G , 24.09.05, POO)

A longside the fis h men u s a nd water s k i i ng l eaflets p i n ned up i n the wooden beach shacks a l ong the Goa coast, tou r ists have been confronted th is season with l ess pa latab le posters warn ing them of the presence of paedophi les roaming the seafront. The poster campaign i s part of a widening effort by the local charities to hel p Goa shake off its emergi ng reputation as a centre for ch i ld sex touri sm . Fore igners arr ivi ng by charter f l i ghts from Europe a re given l eaflets deta i l i ng the pena lti es for ch i l d sex abuse. "We lcome to Goa, l and of

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I l ove ly beaches a n d friend ly people ," the pamph let begins , before dec la r i ng that paedophi l i a has become a "ser ious problem." Char i ty workers h ave set u p s urve i l l an ce stat ions on fou r of the state's most popu l a r northern beaches to help monitor suspic ious behaviour a mong fore igners; a tea m of workers i s p a i d to patrol the beaches to keep an eye on v is itors; a nd tou r ists are i nvited to ca l l hot l i ne num bers if they see a ny fel l ow vacationers engaging i n troubl i ng behaviour.

Goa's state Legis lative Assembly a pproved a l aw i n 2003 i ntended to make the prosecution of paedoph i les easier a nd i ntroducing a maximum 10 yea rs ' sentence. But activi sts sa i d no fore igners have been convicted under the a ct a n d expressed frustrat ion at what they regarded as a l ack of wi l l o n the part of the loca l a uthorities to tackle the problem. Goa 's d i rector·genera l of pol i ce , Neeraj Kumar, sa id that tack l i ng ch i ld sex tourism was a priority, but he added that he felt the problem was on the decl i ne. I n a report entitled Traffick ing in Women a nd Ch i ldren in I nd i a , publ i shed in January, the Nat iona l Human R ights Commiss ion warned that the s ituat ion had reached a cr i t ica l stage. " In I nd i a the a buse of both ma le and female ch i l d ren by tourists has acqui red serious d imensions, " i t sa id . "Un l i ke Sri Lanka and Tha i l and , this problem has not been seriously tackled . " (Goa tr ies hard to repa i r reputat ion , Amel i a Gent leman , AA. D, 1 9 .02.06, POO ! E40)

Cri me, Drugs

The sate l l ite town of Porvorim i s s lowly and gradua l ly becomi ng a hub for crim ina l activities. Thefts, burglaries and murders are i ncreas ing day·by·day and the Porvorim police have become i neffective in curb ing the cr ime rate. (Porvor im becoming a haven for cri m i na l s, H E.G , 28.06.05, POO)

Two N iger ians , c l a im i ng to be footba l lers p l ayi ng for a profess iona l c l u b i n Goa, were a rrested by the a nt i · na rcotics cel l (ANC) for pedd l ing coca i ne a cross the State. None of the profess iona l c l ubs i n Goa had taken respons ib i l i ty of those ostensible "footbal lers". Amman Chukwu U meh and Clement Tochi N nebedurn, both i n the i r twent ies , were arrested by the Goa pol i ce for possess ing d rugs. The A N C seized coca i ne worth R s 30 l a kh from the d uo. The hau l i s cons idered to one of the b iggest i n th i s coasta l State famous for its rave parties. ( N iger ians arrested for d rug peddl i ng i n Goa , Rupesh Samant, TP.D 28.09.05, POO)

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

• Q - NORTH EAST .

A D B has a nnounced a face· l i ft project for f ive cap i ta l towns of north·eastern I nd i a u nder North · Eastern Region U rban Deve lopment P l a n , schedu led to be completed by the next s ix yea rs. A h igh l evel ADB tea m came t o study the p rogress of the project a n d assured that the work on the new project wou ld begi n i n m id 2007 and i s l i kely to be completed by m id·20 1 1 . Along with Agarta l a , ADB i s goi ng to i mp lement the project i n fou r other state cap i ta l s of the region - Aizwa l (M izoram), Gangtok (S ikk im) , Koh i m a ( N aga land) a n d S h i I iong (Megha laya). The project i s a comp rehensive one to ensure overa l l development of the u rba n fad I it ies i nc l u d i ng water supp ly, sewera ge & san i tat ion , sol i d a n d b io ·med i ca l waste management , t raff i c a n d tra nsportation , e lectrif icat ion i n town a reas, f lood contro l and s lum u pgradat ion a n d heritage conservat ion . (Rs 900 crore ADB a i d for North·East, D H . B, 24.05.05, QOO)

The Centra l government has i ncreased the amount sanct ioned to promote 53 tour ism projects in the ent i re N ortheast region by a stagger ing 7 5 % to Rs 1 27 .53 crores for the period end i ng Feb 06. Accord i ng to an Assocham study, the M i n i st ry of Tour i sm a nd Cu l ture, i n the ent i re f i sca l of 2004·05 , had sa nct ioned Rs 72 .75 crores for 32 projects for a l l states it the northeast reg ion w i th a v iew to p romote va r ious tou r i st dest inat ions a nd spots. Accord i ng to the chamber, the government had rea l ised the potent ia l of economic a ct ivi t i es i n such states to pos it ively i m pact the growth of tou ri s m and tou r ism re lated a ct iv i t ies i n the country.

I n the case of Assam , the n umber of projects sanctioned for tour ism promotion i n 04·05 stood at 6 with the correspond i ng a l l ocat ion a mount of Rs 9 .56 crores , however, by Feb 06 the department had i ncreased the n u m ber of projects to 8, for wh ich sa nct ioned a mount was i nc reased to Rs 2 1 .25 crores . For Arunacha l Pradesh , Rs 22.40 c rores had been sanctioned for 1 0 projects wh i l e 9 p rojects had been given the green s igna l for each of the states of M izoram and Naga land , whi le 14 had been sanct ioned for S ikk im and only 3 Tri pura du r ing the Feb 06 period . The a mount a l l ocated for the states va r i ed between Rs. 22· 7 1 crores . (Northeast gets generous tour ism fund, AA. B, 1 6 .03.06, QOO)

Sikkim

Data on S ikk im cu l led over seven yea rs show a steady i ncrease in its popu la r ity aboard . In 1 998, the tota l number of fore ign tou r i sts v i s i t i ng the state was 689 1 , wh i l e , by Apr i l t h i s yea r, the state has a l ready regi stered 6281 tour i sts a nd the n umbers a re growi ng. The r i se of i n s u rgency i n Nepa l has apparently boosted foreign tou rist i nflow to the state, i nstructions i ssued to the i r c it izens by foreign governments aga i nst trave l l i ng in Nepal bei ng a prime reason for th is . I n 2003, the state recorded 1 0 ,956 tourists and the f igu res rested at 1 3 ,555 i nd ividua l s i n 2004. The i nc lus ion of the Nathu La corridor i n the Buddh ist touri sm c i rcu it a nd the ta l k a bout l i nk ing N athu La to T ibet's Lhasa i s expected to i ncrease tou ri st i nf low to Si kk im. Ka i l ash · Ma nsa rovar ; a popu l a r p i l grimage and tou r ism desti n at ion, i s expected to be a pr ime attract ion. A l so, with Nathu La open ing the route to T ibet, experts feel that a s ign if icant port ion of the over 500,000 tourists who vis it Tibet through mai nl and Ch ina wi l l prefer the Sikkim route. (Nepa l 's loss is S ikk im's ga i n , TS.D, 22.05.05, QOO)

Naga land

Al l types of hunt i ng, poach ing and trade of w i l d an ima ls have been ban ned throughout Naga land through a n order passed by t h e Deputy Commiss ioner of D i mapur. I n h e r order, t h e DC s a i d a ny i nd iv idua l o r group, i ndu lging i n a ny such activ ity sha l l be l i a ble to prosecuti on a nd penalt ies , i nc lud ing forfe iture of property or articles used in committing wi ldl ife offences. The punishment a lso would i nclude imprisonment and fine. (Nagaland bans hunt i ng, VIB, 07 .07 .05 , QOO)

Assam

The Assam government has adopted a cu ltural pol i cy to preserve and strengthen the cu ltura l mosa ic i n the state inhabi ted by a la rge number of ethn ic groups a nd indigenous communities with d iverse cu ltura l tradit ions and pract ices. The pol i cy i s a imed at packagi ng this north eastern state as a top· l i ne cu ltura l dest i nation on the strength of its colourfu l tribal trad it ions. The Centra l government has promised Rs 3 .60 c rore for sett i ng u p of two mult i · pu rpose cu ltura l complexes . (Cu l tu re pol i cy to preserve Assam, VI B, 04.01 . 06 , QOO)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I

• S - OTH ER STATES .

500 Sta tes

The smal ler states in the country a re becoming the hotbed of i nvestment. both overseas and domest ic, with a l a rge sha re of i nvestment enqu ir ies be i ng made for p rojects in these states.

I nvestment worth b i l l ions of do l l a r s have l i ned up for these states that have fast created opportun it i es outside the trad it iona l investment destinat ions.

Accordi ng to a study constituted by Associated Chambers of Commerce and I ndustry more than 300 enqu i ries have been generated in the past few months from i nvestors who a re look ing at smal ler states to set up their projects. A majority of these i nvestment enqu i r ies have come from overseas i nvestors who feel i t i s better to negoti ate a deal the sma l l states than deal with cumbersome procedure adopted by l a rger states. The study has found that sma l ler states of Utta rancha l , H i macha l P radesh, Chatt i sgarh , J ha rkhand a n d even Jammu and Kashmir have emerged as preferred destinations for i nvestment by both overseas and domest ic i nvestors because of opportun i ty cost these states offer i n terms of i ncent ives, ho l iday schemes a n d ava i l ab i l ity of raw materia l to i nvestors . (Smal l states now hotbed of big i nvestments , FE .B , 1 5 .06.05, SOO)

510 Eastern Ind ia

Orissa

The s ight of scattered r ice , broken pots and assorted ga rbage at Anand Bazar, the publ i c d i n i ng a rea of the world famous temple , have so far taken a heavy tol l on the a ppetite of hygiene·conscious d evotees. Such compla ints , however, may soon be a th i ng of the past i f the temple admin i strat ion is a l lowed a free hand i n executi ng i ts p l ans for the renovation o f the p lace wh ich is chock ·a -b lock with peop le i n the even i n g when thousands pa rtake of the Maha prasad (cooked food offered to Lord Jagan nath) in the open . The issue of giving Anand Bazar a face l ift was d iscussed at a top level meeti ng with a majority express i ng itself in favour of construct i ng sta l l s for the sa l e of Mahaparsad a nd sett i ng u p fac i l i t ies for i ts hygie n i c storage so that devotees cou ld even take i t home without a ny hesitat ion . However, execution of p l ans i n th is regard would depend u pon the consent o f the Archaeological Survey o f I nd i a wh i ch h as been entrusted w i th the t ask o f e n sur i ng the safety a n d secur i ty o f th i s 1 2th century sh ri ne wh ich a lso happens to be the biggest tour i st attraction of the State.

Obta i n ing the AS I 's consent may not be easy cons ider ing the age ncy, hav ing faced f l a k i n the past over mi shaps caused by d isp lacement of stones with i n the temple com plex , rema ins extremely sensit ive to any suggestions for a structura l change. Whi l e the ma in part of the temple i nc l ud i ng the sa nctu m sanctorum rem a i ns most vu l nerab le to stress and stra i n caused by the l oose n i ng of stones over hundreds of years , even the Anand Bazar boundary wa l l has begun showi ng signs of severe wear and tear. (Jaga nnath Temple's Anand Bazar to get a facel ift, Ashutosh M ishra , TP.D, 20.04.05 , S 1 0)

Ori ssa government's proposal for a beach h ighway • The 480 km beach h ighway wi l t connect Ta l asa ri i n Ba lasore, Orissa to Kaki nada i n Andhra P radesh • On the way, w i l l be a num ber of beaches l i ke Chand i pur, P u ri , Kon a rk , Gopa l p u r a n d Sonepur i n

Ori ssa and Ka l ingapatnam, Beemun ipatnam, Vishakhapatnam and Kak inada i n Andhra Pradesh . • Cottages, hote l s , parks, amusement parks w i l l be developed a long the route • The Asi a n Development Bank has been a pproached for funds.

(Baywatch, Sat yen Mohapatra , HID, 09.05.05, S 1 0)

A new wave of i ndustri a l i sation threatens to make the people of Orissa envi ronmental refugees i n thei r own l and . The State's a i r, water, w i ld l ife a nd people 's l ivel i hoods a re bei ng destroyed by the so-ca l led i ndustri a l b l itzkrieg, accord i ng to environmenta l i sts. Spurred by the sp i ra l l i ng demand for steel and a l um in i um i n the

I Documentation Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

i n ternat iona l market. severa l conglomerates have come forward to set u p meta l production u n its to exploit the m inera l resources of the State. I n stead of p l ann ing for meta l product ion spread over the next 1 00·200 years , the State Gove rnment has adopted a "myop ic and self·destructive" po l i cy of exhaust i ng the ent i re stock of 3, 1 2 0 m i l l i o n ton n es of i ron are and 1 ,626 mt of bauxite w i th i n 20·25 years, a ccord i ng to envi ronmenta l a ct iv ist Mr B i swaj i t Mohanty. The i n d ustri a l i sa t ion boom is expected to resu l t i n m a ss ive envi ron menta l degradat ion s ince the loc a l envi ron ment h a s a l im ited "carryi ng capa ci ty" to a bsorb and ass imi late eff luents and wastes produced due to such gigantic production faci l it i es being squeezed withi n a very short t ime. ( ' I ndustri a l i sat ion wi l l harm Orissa 's ecology' , P rafu l l a Das , BL .B , 07 .06.05, S1 0)

Nandita Das wi l l be the brand ambassador of Orissa Tou rism, accord ing to M r Surjya Narayan Patro, Ori ssa's Tourism Minister. The appointment of the brand ambassador, as the Min ister explained, was only one component of the mul t i · pronged strategy fi n a l i sed by the O ri ssa Govern ment to promote State 's touri sm , the other components being organ is ing road shows both with i n the country and outside, a ppoi nt ing consultants and experts in the field to decide on the right strategy and improvi ng i nfrastructure. The State Tourism Department, accord ing to h im, has empa nel led Leo Burnett a nd Rediffusion to promote the State a mong tourists, exist ing a nd p rospective. As for i nfrastructu re deve lopment, the M i n ister sa id the emphas is was on i mprovi ng the connectivity.

" I n past two yea rs we've spent near ly Rs 80 c ro re to i m prove the roads i n va r ious tour ist centres a n d p ropose t o spend a bout Rs 100 c rore i n the cur rent f isca l , " he sa id . A p a r t of the f u n d provided by the Centre for road development was being used to i mprove connectivity i n va rious p laces of tour ist attracti on . Part of the i nfrastructure development, a s i t was poi nted , wou ld a lso be through private ·pub l ic partnersh ip. Thus, l a nd was being offered by the State government to set u p hotels by private entrepreneurs .

For Dha l u l i , there wou l d be a n add i t i ona l a l locat ion of Rs 4 .5 cro re a nd the services of the Baroda-based a rchitect , Mr Karan Grover, were bei ng requ isit ioned. The sea beach in Puri too was being beautified at a cost of Rs 5 crore and the promenade was being extended by about 1 .5 kms. (Orissa to step up tourism promotion

Ropes in a ctress Nandita Das as brand a m bassador, B L.C, 20.08.05 , S 1 0)

The l a st t ime we vi s ited the Orissa seas ide resort of Pur i was i n 1 98 1 when a par t from one o ld hotel which had by then become a seven -storey monstros ity and a couple of new estab l i shments which had come up on the southern side of the temple town the town had barely changed its character from what i t had a lways been for decades past. I n fact, the fi rst th i ng that strikes the eye in Puri today, specia l ly to someone who is v is it ing it after q u ite some t ime, i s its development as a tour ist centre. I n ear l ier t imes , the seaside front of the town extended on ly t i l l the poi nt known as Swargodwar, adjacent to the burn ing ghat.

It was rather surpris ing to be told that even today, with a l l i ts materi a l deve lopment. Puri continues to attract tour ists ma in ly from West Benga l a n d Ca lcutta , who form more than 90 % of the vi s i tors . N ot on ly th i s , a very SUbstant i a l pa r t of the i nvestment t hat has been poured i nto the resort has a lso come from Benga l , which suggests that the Benga l i connection with Pu ri has become even stronger than before. I n a nutshe l l , i t can safely be sa i d t hat Pu ri i s booming as a tour i st resort . spec i a l l y that part of i t that extends southward a long the coast. The northern part , genera l ly, sti l l reta ins its o ld-worl d , qu i te a mbience. (Sea-change i n Puri , Ra nab i r Ray Choudhury, B L . B, 14 .0l .06, S lO)

I s the Sun Temple at Konark crumbl i ng? Orissa Government th i nks so but the Archaeologica l Survey of I nd i a (ASI) here says no . The State Culture M inister Damodar Rout constituted a two-member committee to examine the Wor ld Heritage Site and submit a report with i n 24 hours fol l owing reports that a techn ica l committee of AS I s potted struct u ra l weaknesses . '

The eight-member committee, const i tuted by D i rector Genera l of ASI , v is i ted the structu re o n January 1 6 and held meeti·ng with ASI offic ia l s about the monument's conservation . The committee, s la ted to submit its report to the DG of AS I , is reported to have detected two th i ngs - one, a c rack i n the cant i l ever i n the southern side of the 1 3th century monument and two depressions i n sand-fi l l i ng. The committee is bel ieved to have suggested ASI to i nit iate u rgent steps for rectifying a ny structural weakness. (Is Sun temple crumbl i ng? , I E . B, 20 .0 1 .06 , S 1 0)

With reports of the f i rst b i rd f l u cases i n I nd ia hitt ing head l i nes, the authorit ies a t Chi l i ka Lake a favoured dest i nat ion of avi a n s from co lder c l imes gea red u p to p re -empt a n outbreak of the H 5 N l v i rus a mong

, 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentat io1l Update I

h u ma ns . As part of the fi re.f ight ing meas u res , a ba n has been i m posed on the entry of v i s i tors i nto the Ch i l i ka (Na l aba n a) sanctuary to sh ie ld them from migratory b i rds . Near ly three l akh m igratory b i rds from Centra l As ia , China and the Fa r East are sti l l a t Ch i l i ka prepa ri ng for thei r return journey with wi nter on its way out. The authorities have a l so launched an awareness d rive i n vi l l ages in the vici n i ty of the l ake. Last month , 1 ,685 migratory b irds d ied at Ch i l i ka ra i sing spectres of b i rd f lu . Sa mples were col l ected from the carcasses a nd sent to various laboratories. (Ch i l i ka out of bunds for guests, Soumyaj i t Pattna i k, HTD, 2 1 .02.05, S 10)

West Bengal

The West Benga l Government has decided to start the concept of tea tourism i n the state. A deta i l ed project report on t h i s has a l ready been prepared by the tou r ism department a n d a tota l of Rs 80 c rore has been sanctioned. We a re p l a n n ing to bu i l d golf courses in tea gardens and a l so some nat iona l w i ld l i fe parks for tourists with a penchant for adventure. Once we do that we a re sure that a huge number of touri sts w i l l f lock i nto West Benga l . P l a n s were afoot to deve lop the Sunderbans as an eco·tour ism spot. The 1 2th F i na nce Commission has a l ready sanctioned Rs 1 00 crore for the project. Efforts a re on to rope in the Asian Development Ba n k a n d U N ESCO for the p roject. (West Benga l tea gardens tu rn i ng i n to tour ist spots , I E .C , 1 7 .08.05 , S 1 0)

The Centre a nnounced S ixth Schedu le status to the G NLF· led Darjee l i ng Gorkha H i l l Counci l , which wou ld ensure greater autonomy to the governing body i n the H i l l D istrict of West Benga l . A tri pa rtite Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) was signed here between the Centre, West Bengal Government and the Subhas Ghis ing· led Gorkha Nat iona l L i berat ion Front (GN LF) after two days of hectic del i berat ions. The Amendment B i l l to grant S ixth Schedu le status to the DGHC on the l i nes of such d istrict counc i ls in the North·east is l i ke ly to be introduced in the Budget session of Par l iament. U nder the Sixth Schedule, the d istri ct counc i l w i l l get more powers s imi l a r to those enjoyed by the Autonomous Distr ict Counc i l s of Assa m, Megha l aya , M izoram a n d Tripura . The Home Min ister sa id , 'With the s ign ing of the Memorandum, the DGHC wi l l have status of Districts of the Sixth Schedu l€l of the I nd i a n Constitution and w i l l have l eg is lative and executive powers a n d w i l l fu lfi l l t h e desi res of t h e peop l e. A B i l l t o a mend t h e Const itut ion wi l l b e i nt roduced i n Pa r l i ament . Once passed, e lections wi l l be held to . ile Counc i l . ' (Sixth Schedu le status for Darjeel i ng Gorkha H i l l Counc i l , TH .B, 07 . 12 .05 , S 1 0)

The toy tra i n of Darjee l i ng remains one of the main d raws for tourists a long with the Kanchenjunga . The snowy peaks rema in a stable feature for the Darjee l i ng·bou nd tourists, but the toy tra i n has become a problem i t keeps s l i pp ing off i ts tra c ks . I n the l a st fortn i ght a l one, the D a rjee l i ng toy tra i n has dera i l ed three t imes. A lthough no i njuries were reported from these dera i lments, l ithe heritage tra i n keeps goin g off track it cou ld have d isastrous consequences for passengers sooner or later. A lthough no offic ia l rea sons were given for the derai lments, one cause cou ld be the heavy traffic on the nationa l h ighway which runs para l le l to the tracks for a long d istan ce. (Toy tra i n , your s l i p i s showing, Anjana Pradhan , TOL B, 23.03.06 , S l O)

520 North I nd i a

Uttar P radesh

Hop ing to attract more foreigners and get them to extend their stay in Agra , the Utta r Pradesh Government wou l d a rrange l a ser shows a nd set up cas i nos in select hote l s . A sum of Rs. 1 5 . 60 crores , out of Rs . 1 10 crores sanctioned for the c i ty by State Government , wou ld be ut i l ised to p romote n ight tour ism, D iv is iona l Commissioner, Ashok Kumar. I t was proposed to keep open at n ight the art isans vi l l age i n Sh i lpagram, l -km east of the Taj Maha l , and the Sadar Bazaar, both favourite tou ri st haunts, he sa id . The Commissioner said Rs 26.4 crore wou l d be uti l i sed for managi ng sol i d waste one km a round the Taj and a comprehens ive p l a n cost ing Rs 1 0 2 crore had been drawn u p t o improve Agra 's dra i nage system. Land for a proposed internationa l a i rport would be made ava i lab le on the Agra Delh i road . (Cas inos coming up in Agra , TH . D, 30.09.05, S20)

I n an attempt to give further fi l l i p to tour ism in the State, the Uttar P radesh Government is embarki ng on a u n i q ue p lan of revivi ng the treasured Mahabharat period . Tour ism department sources sa id that a n action plan has been drawn to deve lop a Mahabharat Age Tour ist C i rcu i t i n the western part of the State, by trac ing the rema i n s of the prized period and a lso deve loping p laces mentioned i n the ep ic by Ved Vyas . As part of the act ion p l a n excavat ion w i l l be ca rr ied out by the A rchaeo logica l Su rvey of I nd i a (AS I ) i n the Baghpat d i str ict , which i s bel ieved to house the five vi l l ages demanded by Pandavas from Kaurav King Dhritrashtra .

I Documenta tion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

The other p l a ces associated with Mahabharat i n cl u d i n g Hasti napur and Par iksh itgarh i n Meerut d i str i'ct,

Shukrata l in M uzaffarnagar d i strict and Garhmukteshar i n Ghaziabad d istrict wi l l be developed further to be a part of the Maha bhara t C i rcu i t . ( U P Tour ism hopes to cash in on Mahabharat heritage , B L . B, 0 1 . 1 1 .05 , S20)

Delhi

The De lh i H igh court ordered the Chief Secretary of Delh i Government to form a permanent committee, with i n a week , to ensure the remova l o f encroachment i n a n d around the protected monuments i n the c ity. The committee sa id the court, must compri se representatives from the Archaeologica l Survey of I nd i a (AS I ), Delh i Pol i ce , Del h i Development Authority, N ew Delh i Mun ic ipa l Counci l , Mun ic ipa l Corporation of Delh i and De lh i Canton ment Board. The purpose beh i nd the formation of th is committee sa id the court, i s to prevent the "pass ing the buck" a pproach of var ious agencies. D isp leased over th is behaviour of the AS I a n d other civic agenc ies on the remova l of encroachments in and a round monuments , protected u nder the Ancient Monuments and Archaeologica l Sites and Remains Act, 1958, the bench ordered the formation of a committee. The view to form a committee came u p when ASI 's counse l Sanjay Ja in expressed, on behalf of h is c l ient , the i nab i l ity to remove encroachments from around a protected monument in Mehrau l i area . (HC asks for panel to rid monuments of encroachments, TO I . D, 2 1 .04.05, S20 / D20d)

The MCD's heritage wa lk around parts of old Delh i , which was supposed to be an enriching cultura l experience for the part i c i pa nts , ended i n a tense showdow n . The I ma m sa id that the MCD had n ot g iven a ny p rior i nt imation about the wa l k. The I ma m sa id that when he reached Jama Masj id , he saw that two partic ipants of the heritage wa l k had entered the complex with shoes, which had enraged the crowd further. ( MCD heritage wa l k stu mbles, HT, Del h i , 0 1 .05.05, S20)

Bungy jump ing and adventure parks i n east Del h i have taken a d ive in favour of deve lopmental projects on the Trans·Ya muna Development Boa rd's agenda . The Rs 1 . 1 5·crore proposa l for an adventure park i n Sanjay Lake, for i n sta nce, was a mong severa l p rojects turned down i n the Rs 78.4·crore budget a pproved by the board .

The proposed adventure pa rk at Sanjay Lake, one of its k ind i n east Del h i , has a l ready got a pprova l from DDA a n d i s a wa it ing sa nction of funds. Board chai rman Narendra N ath sa id it m ight be considered i n the revised est imate towards the end of the f i nanc i a l yea r. That wou l d i nc l ude the cost of constructi ng pathways , a boundary a n d setting u p of a power station . ( Pa rk p l ans wa it for Yamuna Board nod, I E. D, 04.05 .05, S20/ D20a)

The concept of coffee homes as a meeting p lace is fast losing its charm for the city's average cit izen . It is now a l l set to u ndergo a major change if p lans drawn up by Delh i Tou rism are anyth i ng to go by. The new concept of designer coffee homes is a imed at reta i n ing the coffee home nostalgia but at the same time re·estab l ish ing it a s a ' brand ' us i ng the bu i lt a m bience and mak ing it a mult ipurpose usa ble spa ce.

The f i rst of f ive such outlets i s schedu led to come up at Jana kpuri in West De lh i where work is expected to start th is year itself. The Del h i Tou rism and Tran sportat ion Development Corporation (DTTDC) has a l ready short· l i sted h a lf a dozen consu lta nts for the project a n d the process to obt a i n fi nanc ia I sancti on for the project has been set in motion . ( De l h i Tour ism to set up designer coffee homes , Sujay Mehdud i a , T H . D, 1 6.05 .05 , S20)

The Heritage va lue of Gole Market and the A l l I nd i a Rad io (A I R) bu i ld i ng at Sansad Marg has been dec lared to be on a par with that of Safadarjung Tomb a nd Parl iament House by the Union Urban Development Min istry. These a re a mong 2 1 heritage structures that have been l i sted i n Grade I , which requ i re "careful preservat ion" . The l i st i nc ludes Jantar M a ntar, I nd i a Gate, Gole Dak Khana , Pres ident ia l estate, North and south B locks, Baroda House and the Centra l Telegraph office.

E ighty·seven structu res f igure in the Grade I I l i st , which i nc ludes Conn aught P la ce, Parl i ament Street Pol i ce station, Nationa l Stadium, Lady Hardinge Medical Col lege (LHMC) and Teen Murti House. There are 39 structures i n Grade I I I , which incl udes Patia l a House, Modern School , Imperi a l Hote l , M into Bridge, Sunheri Masj id , Lady I rw in Col l ege and Sujan Si ngh Park. Structure i n grade I I and I I I requ i re " i ntel l igent conservation" . The rat ing

:.; 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Docwlleniution Updute I was fixed by the m in i stry after goi ng over a l ist of 1 47 herita ge bu i ld i ngs with i n the jur isd iction of the New Del h i Mun ic ipa l Counc i l (NDMC) . S im i l a r grad i ng w i l l be a ccorded to her itage bu i ld i ngsl prec incts in MCD a reas too. Once the grad ing is notif ied , the heritage committee constituted by the m i n i stry w i l l work w i th va rious c iv ic agenc ies to restore the structures to the ir or igi n a l glory. ( Heritage crown for Go le M kt , Vibha Sharma, H I D, 04.06.05, S20)

Del h i Metro and R ITES made the i r presentat ion on the controversi a l e l evated track near the Qutub M i na r. However, U N ESCO has warned that such a move cou l d have serious "vi sua l i mpact" on th is World Heritage s i te. The Hamp i group of monuments i n Karnata ka were dec l a red a n 'endangered ' s ite i n 1 999 after two bridges were bu i lt there. S imi larly, there was a threat of the same happening with the Taj had the controversia l corridor project materia l i sed .

Whi le the buffer zone is a much l a rger concept, ASI sources say the e levated track a nd station are proposed to be bu i l t i n the regu la ted zone of the Qutub complex - just beyond 1 0 0 metres. The AS I h a s a s ked the Metro team to get a v i brat ion study conducted , wh ich means , they f i rst want a study whether the ground below the Qutub or the structure itself wi l l be affected by the movement of tra ins and the massive construction work. The exact pos it ion of the p roposed stat ion a n d the i mpact of th i s with the h igh p i l l a rs requ i red for l ayi ng the e levated track w i l l be stud ied. (Metro near Qutu b : U N ESCO waves red f l ags , Saurabh S i n h a , TO I .M , 0 1 . 08.05, S20 I D20d)

Del h i i s witnessing a rapid growth of i nns; the reason a sc ri bed for this i s the space crunch in hote ls owing to l a rge n umber of tourists (both domestic a n d i nternat iona l ) who v is i t the c ity. At t i mes , however, touri sts prefer i nns over hote ls for the sake of privacy. They don't take a room i n hotel s (five star i nc l uded) to avoid seeing fami l i a r faces.

To open a n i n n requi res a l icence from the Mun ic ipa l Corporation of Del h i and the Del hi pol ice. T ime i n ns a re l i a bl e to pay 1 2 . 5 % of the ir revenue as l uxury tax. The l i cence i s renewed every year. Those who fa i l to renew their l i cences a re forced to shut shop by the authorities. Many bel ieve that the i n ns a lso serve as an affordable option for teenagers from r ich fam i l i es to i ndu lge escapades. Rakesh Kumar G u pta , a res ide nt of Sukhdev Vihar, who has been observi ng the peop le movi ng i n and out from a n i n n near h i s home, says, "The i nns a re v iab le option for wea lthy k ids to spend t i me i n the company of w ine and women . " There a re some i nns that have spec i a l offers to l u re youngsters. (Executives prefer i nns to hote ls , Nawaid Anjum, AA. D, 08.09 .05, S20 I C30)

The Archaeolog ica l Su rvey of I nd i a (ASI ) has endangered the Qutub M ina r as wel l as the l ives of thousands of a i r passengers by not o perati ng the twi n f l i ght warn ing l i ghts atop the 1 3th century h i stori ca l tower a t a t ime when dense c louds have sharply red uced vis i b i l i ty. A worried De lh i A i r Traffi c Control (ATC) has asked AS I to urgently do the needfu l for gett i ng at least one of the l i ghts operationa l , as the 72 .5 ·metre Qutub is a lmost on the f l ight path of the De lh i a i rport. With the return of the monsoon , v is ib i l ity particu lar ly at n ight, drops considerably. (Dark danger atop Qutub, Saurabh S i nha , TOLD, 1 5 .09.05, S20 I D20d)

Di l l i H a at w i l l soon get a b ra n d new l ook a n d des ign. The makeover of the Haat , spread over s ix a cres opposite the I NA Market, w i l l be done keep ing in m i nd the req u i rements of foreign tourists , who throng the venue i n l a rge numbers and look for a ' rich rura l touch" to the ent i re setti ng. The Haat wi l l get a new l i ght ing system a nd an a rt ga l lery. For the conven ience of foreigners, a money exchange bureau wi l l a l so be set u p, a long with an i nformation centre. The DTTDC a l so a i ms to deploy tra nslators for a l l major foreign l anguages.

The tour ism corporation i s a lso working out a p lan for the kitchen a rea . Authentic cuisi nes from various states a re one of the attractions at the Haat and th is wou ld be made a l l the more attractive. The enti re area wi l l be made d i sabled-friendly_ The Rs 5-crore project has been given the fi na l nod after a board meet ing compris ing off ic ia ls from the Delhi Tourism a nd Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC), the Un ion min i stries of text i l es and tour i sm a n d the N DMC. The tour ism m in istry a nd N D M C wi l l joi n tl y fund the p roject. (Rs 5-cr makeover for D i l l i Haat, Amitash Shukia , HT.D, 05 . 1 0.05, S20)

I Docllmentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Commonwealth Games Deve lopment of parks , her itage s ites a n d proper conservat ion of monuments i s a l l set to a cq u i re a new d imension with plans being drawn up now for a comprehensive project that wou ld make Delh i a "heritage c ity" i n t ime for the Common wea l th Games 2010 .

The concept of project ing Del h i as a heritage c ity i s not only about dec laring i t as such, but creat ing a un ique sel l i ng p ropos i tion ( USP) for i t ahead of the Commonwea lth Games to attract more and more tourists to i t .

P lan of act ion : Mr. Ja in sa id that though Delh i with over 1 ,200 l i sted monuments is as i t i s a heritage city, we a re viewing the Commonwea lth Games as a great opportun ity to complete some u nf in ished tasks in making it rea l ly l ive up to the reputat ion a nd th is i nvol ves deve lopment u p-keep and conservation of s i x d ifferent areas of h istorica l importance."

E l a borat i ng o n the p ropos a l s he sa id , "one of the major a reas of work wou l d be the deve lopment of a n a rchaeo logi ca l pa rk i n Mehrau l i a n d i n tegrat ion of the 2 6 acre Qutub comp lex with the 1 0 0 a cre J a ma l i Qamal i a rea which has around 5 0 monuments ."

The p lan a l so envisages development of the Tughlaqabad Fort area, and the N izamuddi n area with H umayun's Tomb bei ng the given utmost i m po rta nce. Another o ld part of Del h i , the Wa l led C i ty, i s a l so sought to be conserved u nder the p l an with special emphas is on Chandn i Chowk, Dari ba Ka l a n and Ki nari Baza r, where heritage wa l ks have a l so been i ntroduced .

A lso envisages deve lopment of Connaught P lace, Gol Dak Khana and Gol M arket i n tune with thei r h i storic i mportance. (P lan to make Del h i a "heritage c i ty" , Gaurav Vivek Bhatnaga r, T H . D, 28.04.05, S20)

At l east six p l a ces a long the Ya muna w i l l be selected in the next few weeks a n d developed as tour ist a n d cultu ra l hubs for the 201 0 Common wea l th Games. These centres would have eating p laces and entertainment venues for tourists, players and offic ia ls who wou ld visit Del hi d uri ng the games. The tourism department has appoi nted a consu ltant to suggest spots a long the riverfront and other p l aces in the city which may he taken UP for beautificat ion . Princi pa l secretary (UD), O.P. Kel kar, who has visited Me lbourne, the venue of the 2006 games, presented a b luepri nt of what the Austra l ia n c i ty was doing and what De lh i could lea rn . The vis it of the Del h i government officia ls was part of a scheme "transfer of knowledge" between the host country for the 2006 Games and Del h i . (Tourist hubs for C'weath Games, Amitabh Shuk la , HID, 05 .05.05 , S20)

The Government has decided to expedite the process of a l l ocati ng l and for 40 new five ·sta r hote ls in Delh i i n expectation o f huge tourist i nfl ux duri ng the 201 0 Commonwea lth Games.

Stati ng th is at a nationa l conference on ' I s Law Keeping Pace with Growth of Travel and Hospita l ity I ndustry and Tou rism · The Lega l Framework' organ i sed by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and I ndustry. The private sector should concentrate on constructing hotels instead of townships as these hotels wi l l add to the hospital ity i ndustry on a long·term basis . It was t ime for the travel i ndustry to be more proactive to promote I nd i a as a pri me tou ri st dest i nat ion . I t i s a pos it ive i nd i cator that many new a n d seasoned groups have committed i nvestments worth Rs 1 00,000 crore for thei r operat iona l and capacity expans ion. (Govt to a l lot l and for 40 f ive·sta r hote l s in Del h i , BL .C , 1 7 .07 .05 , S20)

A n umber of projects a re underway to make Del h i a tourist dest i nat ion by the 201 0 Commonwealth Games. These i nc lude an Eco·tourism complex i n Chawa la , a Heritage Park i n Mehrau l i , D i l l i Haats (under construction) i n P i ta mpu ra and Geeta Colony. Other p la ns i nc l ude specia l a i r condit i oned buses with GPS l i nk ing severa l tourist dest inations i n the c ity. The bus service to l i n k the tourist spots t o the Ai rport. Rai lway stat ions, and other services i s another tour ism i n it iat ive. The a i r cond it ioned buses w i th the GPS equ ipment sha l l tour the c i ty with poss ible t ie ups with major hote ls . Another project bei ng developed now i s the eco tourism complex i n Chawa l a . The a rea a l so sees a n um ber of m igratory b i rds and shou ld attract b i rd · watchers too. ( Eco· tou rism complex i n Chawa la by 20 10 : Govt, Gopa l Sathe, I E. D, 04. 1 0 .05 , S20/ D20i)

For ut i l isat ion of the Commonwea lth Games v i l l age after the 201 0 games a re over, the Del h i Deve lopment Authority has p roposed to auct ion the Commonwea lth Games p lot for bui l d i ng two l a rge five sta r hote l s and three guesthouses. "The idea beh ind auctioning the p lots as hotels and guesthouses is to make it commercia l ly

2 0 0 5 - a 6 I Documenta tion Update I viab l e once the games are over, " sa id a n offic i a l of the l and department . ( Five·sta r hotel s to come u p on Commonwealth Ga mes v i l l age, DDA proposes to auction p lots for 3 hote l s and 3 guesthouses once games a re over, Esha Roy, I E . D, 05 . 1 0 . 05 , S20)

The De lh i Tour i sm a nd Tran sport Deve lopment Corpora t ion ( DTTDC) i s a l l set to put i n p l ace a track for adventurous water sports l i ke canoe ing and kayak i ng. The corporat ion has identif ied the waste l a nds in the west Delhi · Kanganheri a nd Chhawla , which are surrounded by Najafgarh dra i n as the s i te for the project. The project is worth Rs 20 crore and DTTDC hopes to complete it on the eve of Commonwea lth Games 201 0. The deve lopment of these waste lands, accord ing to offic i a l s w i l l prove to be a major tour ist attract ion , especia l ly for youngsters. A lso, it wou ld be a nother avenue for revenue generation for the tour ism department. (DTTDC p lans water sports fac i l i ty in West Del h i , Rajat Guha , FE .D, 2 l .02 .06, S20 / D20a)

The De lh i Deve lopment Authority (DDA) raked in Rs 943 crore from an hotel p lot auct ion, its second h ighest take in a l and sale after the Rs 1 , 1 00 crore obta i ned for the Vasant Kunj Ma l l p lot two years ago. Seven of the n i ne p lots in Shahdara , Mot iakhan , Jaso la , Roh i ni and Okh la , l i sted for b ids exceeded the combined reserve price of Rs 530 c rore. Two plots were unsold .

Not surpris i ngly p lots i n South De lh i fetched the h ighest bids. The record b id of Rs 199 crore came from MGF a nd Duba i · based concern Emaar for 2.5 acre p lot in Jasola and another two·acre p lot a l so in Jaso la . D DA Commi ss ioner , La nd D i s posa l , R K S i ngh sa id the hotel p lots were a b ig draw for th ree ma i n reasons­increas ing l and rates, pend ing demand and the shortage of room space to meet the demand that wou ld he created by the 201 0 Commonwea lth Ga mes.

What they went for:

Jasola (2 .5 acre): Rs. 1 99 cr

J a so l a (2 acre): Rs. 1 89 cr

Mot i Khan ( l acre): Rs . 88 c r

Shahdara (5acre): Rs . 1 70 c r

Shahdara (2acre): Rs . 47 . 3 c r

Roh in i (5,000 sqm): Rs. 99 c r

Okh l a (2 a cre): Rs . 1 52 cr

(Hotel p lots auction nets Rs 943 crore, Dubai firm MGF consortiu m bags two p lots in Jasola for Rs 388 crore, I E. D, 04.03.06, S20)

UUaranchal

The State of Uttaranchal i s encouraging respons ib le tou rism a nd touris m development, wh ich encourages going back to natura l products i n every aspect of l ife; i t i s a l so the key to susta inab le ecologica l development. Uttara nchal right from i nception has pledged to emerge as a tourism power. The second year of operat ions witnessed tour ism activ it ies to highl ight the states d iverse attractions . I n the f i rst phase, the focus was on a consistent campaign to create a n identity. Whi le i n the second phase, the promotion was on specific products, such as adventure tourism, eco·tourism and spir itual tourism. During a meet ing of the National Committee on Eco Tourism and Mounta ins , the then Touri sm M in i ster had a nnounced that Uttaranchal woul d be deve loped as a key Eco·tourism destination in the country and in pursuance of this, the Government of I nd ia is developing four to f ive eco· tour ism centres to project the state as a n i dea l eco·dest i nat ion world over. To beg in with , Uttarancha l , Leh and Ladakh have been identif ied for th is purpose.

The stress on eco·tour ism ensures that Uttara ncha l i s a parad ise for adventure sports l i ke mounta i neeri ng, trekk i ng, sk i i ng, skat ing, water sports to aero·sports l i ke hand ·gl i d i ng and paragl i d i ng. The state has a l so prepared n umerous master p l ans for severa l new projects seeki ng pr ivate sector i nvestment. These eco · c i t ies i n Hempur near George Everest Park, development of a n eco·touri sm project on 200 acres of l and at George Everest Estate near Mussoorie and a trek master p lan. The other efforts woul d enta i l master p lans for deve lopment of new h i l l stat ions at Pau ri , Kh i rsu , Lansdowne, Munsyari a nd P ithoragarh.

I Documentation Update 1 2 a 0 5 - 0 6

A vi l l age near Ramnaga r i s being devel oped a s a centre for eco-tour ism. There a re a l so p l ans to t ie u p with Hyatt & Four Seasons Hotel s and C hescor Cap ita l of UK to d eve l op an eco-c ity near Rampur, which i s expected t o cost R s 500 crore. S im i la rly a master p lan for t rekking i s being deve loped a l ong with a project for trekk ing at Uttarkashi at a n a l t itude of 1 0000 feet, which wou ld enta i l a n i nvestment of Rs 60 crore. Besides, the property of George Everest in M usoori e i s be ing deve loped a s a heritage property on an a re a of 200 acres. There a re a l so p l a ns to have he l istr ip s in a l l 1 7 d i str icts of the state.

Expenditure on schemes for tourism development and promotion of tourism in Uttarancha l has progressively i ncreased over the yea rs . I n the current 5·yea r p l an , approxi mately Rs.8600 lakhs have been spent, which i s more t h a n ten t imes t h e a mount spent dur ing 80·85. Some idea of the addit iona l i nvestments that w i l l be requ i red is provided by the fact that , dur ing the yea r 2000, the nu mber of tour ists who v is i ted Utta ra nchal stood at over 1 1 1 l a khs, whereas the tota l popu lat ion of the State was mere ly 82 l a khs . (Utta rancha l , S imp ly Heaven , Eco-tour ism taki ng of i n Devbhoomi , FE.C, Apr-May 05 , S20/ D20i)

The Va l l ey of Flowers N ational Park in Uttaranchal cou ld soon f ind a p lace on the U nited N ations Educationa l , Scientif ic and Cultura l Organ i sat ion 's ( U NESCO) World Heritage L i st .

The Va l l ey of Flowers i s a mong the eight new sites recommended by the World Conservation U nion ( l UCN) to the World Heritage Com mittee for i nc l us ion in the World Heritage L i st .

I UCN has recommended the extension of I nd ia ' s N anda Devi N at iona l Pa rk a l ready a World Heritage s ite to i nc lude the Val l ey of Flowers. The World Heritage Committee, meet ing in Durban from Ju ly 1 0 to Ju ly 1 7 , w i l l consider the ' i n scri ption' of new sites on U NESCO's World Heritage List . This yea r, the committee w i l l review 28 cu l tura l s i tes , 1 0 natura l s ites a n d 4 m ixed s i tes a n d a l so exam i ne the extens ion of 9 Wor ld Her i tage sites. (Val l ey of Flowers recommended for Unesco World Heritage List, Sankar Radhakrishnan, BL.C, 1 1 .07 .05, S20)

Interview with Lt Gen. TPS Rawat (retd), PVSM, VSM, Minister of Tourism, Government of Uttaranchal

Q. Utta ra ncha l has i m mense touri sm potent ia l . How i s the state government p l a n n i ng to exploit that?

A . I t i s the state government 's endeavour to p l ace Utta rancha l on the tou r ism m a p of the world as one of the leading tourist desti nations, and to make the name of the State synonymous with tour i sm . To a c h ieve t h i s v i s ion , the govern ment is p l a n n i ng to d evelop the man ifold touri s m re l ated resources of the State i n an eco· fr iend ly manner and with t he active pa rt ic i pat ion of the private sector and the l oca l host communi t ies . The a i m i s to deve lop touri s m as a major sou rce of emp loyment and i ncome and revenue generat ion so that i t becomes a pivot of the economic and soc ia l deve lopment in the State. In fact , becau se of th i s forwa rd look ing and pragmatic tou r ism pol i cy, the state has won the N at iona l Tour ism Award for Best Practices.

Q. You mentioned eco-tour ism. In a H ima layan State l i ke Uttarancha l , i t i s qu i te i m portant. How do you p l an to promote eco-tourism?

A. Eco tour ism is at the heart of Uttarancha l ' s tourism pol i cy. The ecology of the H ima layas i s frag i l e a nd has to be preserved and Uttara ncha l , wh ich i s b lessed with nature 's bounty, p l a n s to go a head keep ing th i s i n m i n d . We p l a n to i nvolve private sector i n further i ng our cause. As far a s eco-tourism i s concerned , one of our focus a reas i s golf, a part from trekki ng, nature wal ks, etc. Golf has big potenti a l to not only to attract tour ists i nternat iona l ly in a big way but a lso to deve lop a region , at the same t ime keep ing it green . Golf combines ecology· fr iendly practices with le isure. The state thus , with private sector part ic ipation , i s embarki ng on an env ironmenta l ly-susta i na ble and fi nancia l ly feas ib le p l an . We are p l ann ing to open a nu mber of go l f courses i n var ious parts of the state, i n add it ion to the exi st ing ones. One such i n it i at ive i s bei ng taken near Kash ipur where requ i site l a nd is bei ng converted i nto a n 1 8·hole golf course. Not only wi l l i t keep the a rea green but w i l l a l so provide a n economic and soc ia l i mpetus to the region.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I

Q. I n what way?

A . A golf course cannot come up in i so lat ion . A number of fac i l it ies have to be there to make i t via bl e. A market has to be deve loped i n terms of tou r ist attractions a n d tour ist tra ffi c . On ly then , t he people wi l l come there . I f t he peop le a re coming, a n i nfrastructu re has to be d eve loped to house them a nd cater to the i r needs. I am t a l ki ng i n terms of fac i l i t ies l i ke connectivity, accommodat ion, a pa rt from phys ica l a nd soc ia l infrastructure. A l l th is mea ns work for the people and increase in fac i l i ties for the region too. A lso, loca l a ctors wi l l be kept i n m i nd wh i l e do ing th i s act iv i ty. We w i l l t ake i m mense care i n see i ng to it that a ny such fac i l ity i s in tune wi th eco log ica l b a lance so as the i mpact of the a ct iv i t ies i s pos i t ive a l l through.

Q. I n what k ind of p laces a re you p l ann ing such golf courses?

A. Wel l , the p laces w i l l be chosen keep ing in m ind the exist ing i nfrastructure services, such as surface, and loca l transportat ion , san i tat ion , med ica l faci l it ies , power, water supply and telecommunicat ion. The executors of the project wi l l a l so be expected to suggest measures for improvi ng the i r efficiency a nd adequacy with reference to the project. Also, we wi l l a scertai n a n d suggest l i n kages with rel evant tour ist c i rcu i ts i n t h e region .

Q. What a re the para meters defi ned by the government for these p rojects?

A . It is necessa ry that those tourism i nfrastructure fac i l i t ies requ i red a round the identif ied l a nd a re p resent for the project to be successfu l . These wou ld i nc l ude aspects l i ke mu l t i · modal access, wayside a menit ies , a r t and culture·related infrastructure, telecommunications, e lectric ity, package tour operat ions a nd guide services. etc. A lso, in each area , the potenti a l v i s i tor segments v is ·a ·v is tou ri s m resources of the ident if ied l a nd a nd tour ist a rriva l s a t nea rby tou r ist dest i nat ions w i l l b e a n a lysed , and t h e p roject executor wi l l have t o suggest strategy for mult inat ional marketing to attract domest ic and foreign tour ists .

(Tourism · Harness ing economic & soc ia l development i n Uttara ncha l , FE.B, 16 .05 .05, S20)

The Utta ranchal Tour ism Deve lopment Board is target i ng the south and west to drive domestic tour ism. On the i n ternationa l front, the focus is on a rriva l s from Germa ny. the UK a n d France.

Mr Arun Srivastava , D i rector (Market i ng and Pub l ic ity), Utta ra nchal Tour ism Deve lopment Board , sa id that the i nfrastructure faci l it ies , parti cu la rly a i r, ra i l and road connectivi ty are bei ng deve loped . A study on the feasibi l i ty of a mounta i n a i rl i ne i s being u ndertaken , he sa id . This a i rl i ne wi l l connect the H ima layan states of Jammu a nd Kashmir, H i machal Pradesh and Uttara ncha l . A i r Deccan has started da i ly f l ights between Del hi a nd Dehradun . He said that Pantnaga r, another key town i n the Kumaon d i str ict , wou ld be connected by A i r Deccan to New De lh i by the year·end . The work on the deve lopment of three more a i rstri ps at Na in i Sa i n i , Guacher a n d Ch inya l isaur i s o n . (Utta ra ncha l tourism targets South , B L.C , 30.07.05 , S20)

Bihar

Enthused with the new set up under Governor Buta Si ngh the B ihar State Tour ism Deve lopment Corporation (BSTDC) recently s igned an agreement with a Kera la based Ayurved ic a nd Naturopathy treatment centre. As per the agreement Hea l ing Veda , a renowned name in th is f ie ld w i l l set up two centres, one at Rajgi r a nd a nother at Bodh Gaya . These two Buddhist p i lgrimage centres d raw the l a rgest number of touri sts i n B ihar. The Ayurvedic treatment centre would provide rej uvenati ng massage and body purification ant i ·stress, beauty care, a nt i ·ageing, spine and neck care body and mind relaxation therapies to the foreign a s wel l as domestic tourists. (A massage from Kera la to spice up B ihar touri sm , Amarnath Tewary, T P. D, 1 6 .05 .05 , S20)

I Documenta t ion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

Jharkhand

After the recent s pate of l ooting of tour ists in J ha rkhand, part icu l a rly c l ose to Netarhat h i l l resort and Betla forests, J ha rkhand state tou r ism depa rtment a n d state pol i ce have f i n a l ly decided to form a n e l i te force mea nt exc lus ive ly for p rotection of tou ri sts v is it ing the state.

The s pecia l force would be ca l l ed State Tourist Protection Force (STPF) and the decision to form the force has been taken by the pol i ce brass , in pr inci ple. Efforts are on to give the proposa l def i nite shape. Three fam i l i es from Howrah were looted twice consecutive ly by armed miscreants, on their way to N etarhat h i l l resort from Bet la forests. The tou r ists were robbed of cash , va l uables a nd even thei r c lothes. A ban k employee and h i s fami ly were looted whi le tour ing Sita Fa l l s a rea , some t ime back. I n May, renowned Benga l i c inema artiste, Ms Rupa Gangu ly and her assoc i ates were looted by armed miscreants wh i l e retur n i ng from McLuskieganj . A sen ior pol i ce off i cer sa id that t he e l i te force wou l d be given spec i a l t ra i n i ng to exert extreme control a n d wou ld b e sens i ti ve t o needs o f "guests of t h e state" . (Spec i a l force for J ha rkhand tour ists, D i pankar Bose, TS.D, 23. 10 .05 , S20)

Haryana

The Haryana Government has constituted a six-member committee to work out the moda l it ies of setti ng u p ways ide modern u t i l i ty services a l ong t h e h ighways, s o a s t o faci l i tate those e ither vis i t i ng t h e State or pass ing through it . I t was decided that the wayside ut i l i ty services wou l d i nc lude petrol pumps, rest rooms , eat ing joints, cyber cafe and STD booths. (Haryana wayside servi ces p l an , BL . B, 05 .05 .05 , S20)

Twenty farmhouses i n Haryana (most of them located i n the vic in ity of Delhi) are offering a taste of the buco l ic l ife to c ity bre d . The recreat ion package i n c l u des pastoral a ct iv it ies l i ke catt le feed i ng , pottery c la sses, mu lch ing, fol k dances, puppet shows, r ides in tractors and bu l l ock carts. A tour ist who i s keen on gett ing an ethn ic experience, however, need not compromise on a ny of the modem amenities. The rooms and cottages, which a re ava i l a ble at a round Rs 2 ,000 per couple per day, a re equ ipped with a l l fac i l i t ies. The idea , wh ich was i nit iated a bout two yea rs ago, i s fi nd ing more a nd more takers. A l l the twenty fa rm-houses a re privately­owned and as per a senior tourism offic ia l , the government's job is "only that of a fac i l itator". Not only a re the fa rms do ing we l l for themse lves , but they a re a l so p rovid i n g employment opportun it ies to people i n the surround ing v i l l ages. More and more states a re trying to rep l icate the success. (Howzzat! Fa rmhouse tourism from Haryana , D i nker Vash isht & Rahu l Kumar, FE.C, 2 1 .05.05, S20)

The Cha i rman of the I nd ian Nationa l Trust for Art and Cultura l Heritage ( I ntach), Mr S .K . M ishra , pra i sed the H a ryana Government for show ing keen i nterest i n ho ld i ng her itage fest iva l s i n the State on the l i nes of neighbour ing Punja b. " I t was the success of the heritage festiva l s at Amritsa r, Ka purtha la a n d Pat ia la that Haryana Government has responded i n a positive manners to i n it iate s im i l a r festiva l s i n the State too ," M r M ishra sa id . He sa id a festiva l cou l d b e he ld either a t P i njore o r a t Surajga rh , add ing the heritage fest iva l s bei ng held i n Punjab had given a fi l l i p t o the cu ltura l i nfrastructure a nd a l so he lped i n promotion of tour ism. (Haryana keen on heritage fa i rs , BL . B, 1 7 . 02 .06, S20 / D l l )

Punjab

While U nion M in i stry for Civi l Aviat ion is engaged in preparing a blue-print to put the State on the i nternationa l f l ights c i rcu it , the Punjab government i s a l l set to cha l k out a road map to boost rel i gious tou r ism keepi ng i n view the tremendous potenti a l with in its boundaries as wel l i n the neighbouri ng states, which h a s remained u ntapped so fa r. P u nj ab Ch ief M i n i ster A m a ri nder S i ng h sa id that the state gover n me nt was ser ious ly contemplat ing to deve lop rel igious tour ism c i rcu it of S ikh shr ines, connect ing Anandpur Sah ib , Cham kaur Sah ib, Fatehgarh Sah ib, Takht S r i Damdama Sah ib with the holy Ha rmand i r Sah ib at Amritsar. Th i s wou l d enable the devotees, especia l ly those from abroad to undertake the i r pi lgrimage without wasting time, money a nd energy. The Chief M i n i ster sa id that though Punjab cou l d not compete with its ne ighbour ing H imacha l P radesh a nd Rajasthan to offer opportunit ies i n le isure tour ism, the state was explor ing ways and means to promote l ei su re tou rism, through t he publ i c·pr ivate partners h i ps . (Punj ab Govt a l l set to boost re l ig ious tourism, Sara bj it Pandher, TH .D, 16.05.05, S20 / D20e)

Whi l e the Un ion M i n i stry for Tour ism has given its consent to projects worth Rs. 23 crore submitted by the P u njab government for d eve l op ment of tour ist desti nat ions and re l ig ious c i rcu i ts , the state's Tou ris m

;; 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I depa rtment has decided to organ i se a conc lave i n the second week of Apr i l . Ambika Soni was q uoted a s d i rect i ng her e m phas is that i n v iew of the i n creas i ng t raff i c a t Raja San si A i rport a n d Wagah Border i n Amritsa r, specia l focus o n development of these sites be a rt iculated through establ ishing a Wagah development a uthority, which was u nder active consideration in the Government of I nd ia .

The ma i n poi nts a n d agenda for th i s un ique meet i ng, a i med at promot i ng i n terstate co·operat ion , wou l d i nc lude tax structure, l evies on tour ist transport veh ic les, existi ng c i rcuits, desti nations, v iab i l i ty of i nterstate c i rcuits , jo int overseas marketi ng and fund i ng, N R I part ic ipation in loca l projects, role of private and pub l ic sectors, publ icity and success stories from the pa rtici pating states. Mr. Kang sa id that the U n ion Government has a pp roved a dest ination project under which Rs. 5 ·crore each had been earma rked for deve lopment of A m ri tsar, Wagah a n d Pati a l a . Under the scheme a l l tou r ist spots with i n the rad ius of 25 k m s from the d i strict headquarters wou ld be renovated. (Punjab to organ i se tour ism conc lave of Northern States, TH . D, 06.03 .06, S20)

Himachal Pradesh

The PHD Chamber of Commerce and I ndustry has suggested that the H imachal Government shou ld i ncrease its budgeta ry a l l ocat ion for tour ism promot ion from the cu rrent Rs. 5 . 1 5 crores. The Chambe r has a l so proposed that the State Government should set u p a Committee to monitor ground l evel implementation of pol i cy dec isions taken for tou rism deve lopment. The Committee should function i n a t ime·bound manner and should be empowered to take major decis ions .

Need for better a i r l i n k: In order to i ncrease the n umber of i nternat iona l tou r ists to the State , P H DCCI spokesman Yashwinder Dogra has urged that termina l and ground support faci l ities be u pgraded to i nternationa l sta n d a rds a t S h i m l a , K u l l u a nd Dharamsha l a . A lso , Sundernagar be d eve loped as a major hub for a i r connectivity, the proposa ls for wh ich a re a l ready u nder cons iderat ion of the M in i stry of C ivi l Avi at ion.

Focus on new destinat ions: There i s an u rgent need to develop a master p ia n for tour ism in the State focus ing on u pgradation of exi st ing desti nat ions and identificat ion a nd deve lopment of new desti nat ions, keepi ng i n mind that the construction that takes p lace shou ld b e i n tune with the natura l environment of the h i l l s .

PHDCCI has u rged the State Government to col l aborate with t he U n ion M i n i st ry of Tour ism to i dentify h igh tourism potent ia l s ites a nd i n itiate an exercise for developing world·c lass i nfrastructure inc lud i ng c leanl i ness, l i n k roads, a pproach roads , toi lets and park ing. I nternational l evel s ignboards be put up on i mportant roads a nd h ighways for which fund ing may be sought from the U nion Min istry of Tour ism. H imachal Pradesh shou ld emulate the model s of Austria and Scotland , where the loca l popu lat ion has a major source of earni ng from the beauty of their mounta ins and envi ronment, it further suggested. (A roadmap for faster deve lopment of tourism in H ima cha l Pradesh , TH .D, 03.05.05 , S20)

I nd ia 's l a rgest tourism project, which enta i l s an investment of $500 mi l l i on a nd financed by the great grandson of Henry Ford is off the blocks. The H imachal Pradesh government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the H ima layan Sk i Vi l lage (HSV) Compa ny with HSV sayi ng the sk i vi l l age i n the Dhau ladhar mounta i n ra nges a bove Mana l i wou l d open business i n three yea rs . HSV is hoping that a l l permissions requ i red wou ld be sett l ed by the end of 2005 . The p roject's f i rst phase i nvolves a $ 1 55 m i l l ion i nvestment, i n wh ich the v i l l age a nd ski i ng fac i l it ies wou ld be completed with 250 hotel rooms and sk i · l ift equ i pment. I n the second phase, 350 more hotel rooms and addit ional v i l l as wou ld be added. The vi l l age w i l l be situated at an a lt itude of 9 ,200 feet, about 3000 feet above Shuru vi l l age, which i s 3 k i lometres from Mana l i . (H ima cha l sk i project off the b locks, I E . D, 28. 1 0 .05, S20)

At the heart of the conf l i ct is a $ 1 50 m i l l ion H i ma l ayan Ski Vi l l age ( HSV), s lated to come up on the outsk i rts of Shuru and Pri n i , two vi l lages in Mana l i . The resort has pitted the loca l oracles aga inst the maverick I skcon devotee. Representatives of nearly 300 Kul l u deities wi l l congregate for a "Badi Jagati Puch (grand convention)' to decide the fate of the $300 ·m i l lon venture. The ski b l i zzard has been ragi ng for a lmost two months now ever s i nce the dea l was i n ked. HSV demanded water r ights f rom the streams a n d graz ing l and , wh ich the v i l l agers res isted . Other contentious i ssues i nc lude e nvi ronmenta l degradat ion fel l i ng and fears that use of chemica ls to preserve snow on the s lo pes for longer period cou ld be haza rdous . The resort, which Ford has

I Documentatio1l Update I 2 a 0 5 - 0 6

promised w i l l give Swiss destinat ions a run for thei r money, wi l l be spread across 1 00 acres. (Gods to dec ide ski resort fate, Raveena Au lakh , HT. D, 16 .02 . 06, S20/H 1 2)

The "gods" have spoken . Alfred Ford ca nnot make h i s $500-mi l l ion H ima layan Ski Vi l l age.

Devis a nd devtas of Ku l l u va l ley gathered to pass a judgment on Ford and h i s ambit ious p lans for a ski resort i n th is scen i c reg ion . And they were c lear ly not impressed with either the Ford scion's gra nd venture or h i s frantic cla i ms of being a H i ndu . Ever si nce Ford announced h i s project for t h e a rea , propel led adequately by l oca l po l i ti c i ans, the region has been ravaged by a f ierce debate that has pitted profit aga i nst piety.

' I n the jagati (congregat ion of gods), we had i nvi ted the va rious devtas and devis of the va l l ey. Over 90% of the a bout 1 75 deit ies who had come here were a ga i n st the proposed sk i vi l l age , " Si ngh sa id triumphantly. S i ngh further remarked, "The gods of the region have given their view. There is no p latform above the jagati a n d at l east at the rel i gious l eve l the verd i ct is fi na l . " Go ing a step further, S i ngh sa id that "eac h of the deit ies" had been spoken to and the v iew on the project bei ng i n i m ica l to the i n terest of the peop le was u n a n imous . The de it ies apparent ly a l so sa id they wou l d l eave the p l a ce a nd the peop le w i l l have to l ive without their blessi ngs if the go-ahead was given for the ski p lan . The jagati was ca l l ed after a gap of 36 years, the l a st bei ng he ld i n 1 970 when the va l l ey was h i t by a fa mi ne. J agat is a re he ld on ly to decide i n case of exceptiona l situations. (Ku l l u 'gods' veto Ford's $500·mi l l ion ski vi l lage p lan , Jagadish Bhat, TOL D, 1 7 .02 .06, S20 I H 1 2)

An a cute water cr i s i s i s l i ke ly to gr ip Sh im la i n the months to come. For the fi rst t ime i n the h i story of the tow n , t here was no snowfa l l d u ri ng wi nter. There were no ra i n s as wel l . After long dry spel l , the ca p i ta l of H i macha l Pradesh seems to be head ing towards a major d r i nk i ng water c r i s i s . A l l the major sources of dr i nki n g water a re a l ready on the verge of dryi ng up . The impact of th i s has a l ready been fel t on the water supply to some of the a reas of Sh im la . These a reas receive water for just t h ree or somet imes fou r days a week. Thi s i s just the month of Februa ry and there i s concern as to what wou l d ha ppen i n peak summers. (Sh i mla to face a cute water cri s is , Ja i Sood , TP.D, 24.02.06, S20)

Shopping ma l l s a re to soon come up at two popu lar ha lt ing spots on the busy Ka l ka -Sh imla national h ighway a nd l ater at other p l aces a long the h ighways runn ing through H imachal Pradesh . P i l l a rs wi l l be ra ised on both s ides of the wind ing h ighway and the double-storied structures wi l l come up above the road . They w i l l have a shopping complex , restaurant and bar, a mong other fac i l it ies for t rave l l ers . ( Ma l ls set to l u re trave l l ers to H i machal h ighway, Ba ldev Chauhan , AA.D, 10 .03.06, S20)

Madhya Pradesh

A cont roversy seem s to be brewi ng between the Archaeol ogi ca l Society of I nd i a (AS I ) a n d the Mad hya Pradesh government over the systematic envi ronmenta l damage being done to the 2 ,300-year-old Buddh ist stupa at Sanchi (Ra i sen), a 90 m inute d rive from the state capita l . The world heritage site i s frequented by thousands of fore ign touri sts, ma in ly Buddhi sts, rou nd the yea r. State government offi ci a l s comp la i n that g l a r i ng cra c ks have a p pea red at the base of the stupa due to the ravages of weather over the decades. Much of th is has been the resu l t of leakage of ra i n water i nto the i n nards of the monument . The need for immediate measures to arrest the deterioration has been made i n an offici a l report submitted by the col lector of Raisen. The Archaeologica l Society of I nd ia , unfortunately, has chosen to make l ight of the matter on the p lea that the state government had no busi ness to make their f ind i ngs pub l ic without first d iscussi ng it with them. The col lector's fi nd i ngs, t hey c la i m , is a g ross exaggerat ion . I n rea l ity, there is no cau se for a l a rm . (Sanch i stupa base cracks, Sudh i r K Singh, AA . D, 30.09.05, S20 I D20d)

Chhattisgarh

Unable to check " i ntrusion " by tuskers i nto i ts territory from adjoi n i ng J harkhand State, the Chhatti sgarh Government p lans to make a n "elephant homeland" i n i ts forest areas for the migrants who have crossed over here i n search of food a nd a l so d ri n ki ng water. These e lepha nts have wrecked havoc i n many parts of the State. Over hundred migrant elephants have unleashed terror by destroying houses and crops i n many areas of Jaspur, Sarguja a nd Korba d i str icts of C hhatt isga rh . M i n ing and fel l i ng of t rees i n forests has forced the

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I elephants to move to other a reas for food. And i n the ir search , they enter even the res i dent ia l a reas, destroy mud houses, c rops a n d even someti mes pose threat to people's l ife.

The l oca l admin i strat ion often l a unches awareness d rives to educate the people on how they cou ld protect themselves from the e lephants . Bes ides , the vi l l agers chase away the tuskers by showi ng torch l ight a n d beat ing of d rums. People a re told t o watch elephant's movement, a rrange bonf i re a nd bu rst f ire crackers to keep them away.

The adm in i strat ion has to pay compensat ion to the people whose property gets destroyed by the tuskers. Authorities ear l ier requested J harkhand forest offic ia ls to make a rrangements for the retu rn of these tuskers. Now the Chhatt i sga rh Government wants to make elephant homeland for f ind i ng a permanent solution to the prob lem. The State Government had, ear l ier this yea r, written to the Centra l Government in th is regard. But, the offi c ia ls of the Centra l Government tu rned down the proposa l saying that the migrat ion of elephants was for a short t ime and therefore the proposa l for the homeland was not pract ica l . The State Government i s aga in goi ng to take up the i ssue w i th the Centre with some modif icat ion i n the propos a l . (Chhatt i sga rh p lans elephant homeland , Shivanand Shuk la , TP.D, 28.09.05, S20)

The Chhatt isga rh Government would shortly announce its new tourism pol icy, giving huge i ncentives to i nvestors that wi l l i nc lude complete waiver of stamp d uty on purchase of l and and sa les tax , besides wa iver of State levies, sa id Mr Brij Mohan Agarwa l , M i n i ster of Tourism.

He sa id the State's tour ism board wou ld create huge land banks and a l l ocate l and to i nvestors propos ing to come to Chhatt i sgarh on concess iona l rates that a tt ract zero sta mp d uty. The l a n d b a n ks Wi l l come i nto creat ion in the next 5·6 months as the State has received proposa l from va r ious segments of i nd u str ies to the tune of Rs 40 ,000 c rore . (Chhatt i sga rh to a n nounce tax wa iver to promote tou ri sm. B L . B, 1 0 .02 . 06 , S20)

521 Jammu & Kashmir

Tour ism i n Kashm i r, which i s on the path of reviva l , i s set t o get a boost. The Jammu and Kashm i r Cable Car Corporat ion (JKCCC) i s mak ing t he second phase of the 'Gu l marg Gondo la ' operat i ona l , tak i ng i t to the heights of the Afarwat peak . The second phase from Kangdoori to Afarwat came u p in record t ime. The State Government is hopi ng to attract skiers and a dventure tour ists from a round the world . The 2 .5 -km ropeway i s complete and the tri a l s a re through . I t wi l l connect the bowl -sha ped Kongdoori Va l l ey w i th the 4,390-metre Afarwat.

Jo int venture : The Gu lmarg Gondola , as the ropeway project is known , is a jo int venture between the State Government and a French company, Poma G l ask i . Engi neers from the State and the compa ny have been work ing i n huge drifts of snow to erect towers and lay cab les i n the a rea c lose to the Li ne of Contro l . The so­far deserted a rea overlooks Pak istan Occup ied Kashmir. The French com pa ny bui l t the only other cable car i n Kas h m i r, connecti ng the G u l m a rg sk i resort to Kongdoori at a he ight o f 3 ,930 m . Work on the G u l m a rg system was de layed by more than e ight years after it was abandoned i n 1 990 by French techn ic i ans when two engineers were briefly abducted by m i l i tants. It was completed in 1 998. The Afarwat project, due to be com pleted l ast yea r, was delayed owi ng to bad weather. (The Gu l marg Gondola a loft, Shujaat Bukhar i , BL.C, 0 1 .04.05 , S2 1 )

O n the shores of p icturesque Dal Lake, a host of i ntel lectua ls , bureaucrats and pol i cy-makers have converged to d i scuss future of a beautiful but fa r-f lung region - Ladakh . They rel eased a vision document ' Ladakh 2025 ' . The vision document a ims at d ispe l l i ng confusion and uncertai nty among the Ladakhi people who a re adopting new l ifestyles, pract ices a n d soci a l mores l eavi ng beh i nd the century's old t rad i tion s and cu l tu re. J i gmit Thakpa , who has authored the document adds , "Need of the hour i s to b ri ng an i mmed i a te stop to the shocki ng deter i orat ion of or r ich her itage by deve lop ing a n appropri ate set of p reventive measures . " The rap i d decl i ne of natura l resources such as water is a nother cause for concern for Ladakh i i nte l l i gentsia . ' Pol lut ion, scarc ity of natura l resources i s becoming common, even certa i n i nd igenous species of p lants and a n i ma l s a re a t the verge of exti ncti on , " Thakpa sa i d . (Vi s ion 2025: A Ladakh road m a p, Khu rsheed Wa n i , TP.D, 1 0.05 .05 , S2 1 )

I Documentatio1l Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

" I w i l l cont inue to l ive on water t i l l I d i e , " says Mohammad Altaf (65). Even as the a uthor it ies step u p thei r efforts to rehab i l i tate the peop le l iv ing on the wor ld ·famous Da l La ke by givi ng them free p lots of l and , the e lders of the Hanj i commun ity assert they wi l l l ive on ly on the water. The commun ity i s f ight i ng the most d i ff icu lt battle of its h istory, to save its i denti ty.

The Hanj i s a re one of the most i mportant features of state's l ife, a section of peop le l iv ing i n boats o n a n d a round t h e l akes, streams a n d rivers. They a re a l so found on t h e Wul a r a n d Anchar Lakes a nd t h e J he lum.

Max i mum sta ke: The sh ri n ki ng of the Da l Lake from 20 m i les to a pproxi mately 12 sq km in the l ast ha lf· centu ry has been a cause of concern . Wh i l e th i s has attracted much attent ion , not much has been heard about th i s un ique community, wh ich has the maximum stake i n savi ng the l a ke. Many blamed the Hanj is for po l l ut ing the l ake a n d a l so he ld it d i rectly respons ib le for the shr i nki ng l a ke a rea . The State G overnment worked out a rehab i l itat ion p l a n , wh ich i s expected to hel p save the l a ke too. Of the 6000 fami l i es l i v i ng on the Da l , 1 200 have a l ready been sh ifted and more a re to fol l ow though t hey want to cont i nue w i th the i r bus i ness l i ke rent ing houseboats o r p ly ing the s h ikara (tou r ist boats). But, for t h e proud H a nj i commun ity, the d isp lacement from the i r centuries-old habitat i s only the begi nn i ng of the i r troubles. I n the interiors of the Da l , a compl ete c u lture l i ves and thr ives on the famous water body. There a re l a rge·s ized houseboats for fam i ly funct ions . There i s economic self ·suffic iency. For i n stance, at Karpura , an i n ter ior pocket, there a re f loat ing vegetable gardens , wh ich feed not on ly the ent i re Hanj i commun ity but a l so the c it ies s i nce excess produce i s sol d . The people who grow vegetables, col lect water-nuts, col lect wood from water·bod ies a re the much-not iced sh ikara owners. Many consumer goods can a l so be bought from the "float ing bazaars". Thus, to a l a rge extent , l ife on the Dal is self·susta i n i ng_

Post· 1 989, the hou seboats have recorded l owest occupancy l eve l s whereas the hote l s a round the Dal a re fu l l . The outbreak of turmoi l i n the state, most of the hotels were taken on rent by the estates department to house government employees as the a rea was considered ris k free.

The State Government's proposa l for a proper sewage system by p rovi d i ng sept ic tanks to toi l ets of the houseboats fai l ed , a s there was no i n st itut ional back u p from the authorit ies. The system was d isconti nued because of repeated leaks from the tanks_ Thi s i ncreased pol lut ion i n the water body by ra i si ng the phosphoric content i n the lake , thereby encouragi ng weed growth . I n recent yea rs , concrete structures to sel l handicrafts or texti les have been bu i l t a round the l ake.

Dec l i n i ng tou r ism: Even though the commun ity elders a re l east enthusiast ic about movi ng out, the you nger lot feel otherwise. The tourist i ndustry has decl i ned and the years of m i l i tancy dealt a deathblow to the Hanj i community with fa l l i ng tourist i nflow even though the a rea with i n the Dal has been the most peacefu l . I n 2003, the State Government provided the Hanj i commun ity loans to re-bui l d the i r tourism-related i nfrastructure. The i nterest rate was f ixed and a mount was given a ccord i ng to the category of houseboats or sh i ka ras owned by the Hanj i community.

The State Government levies a 1 5% tax on the total a mount earned from each tourist who stays for a n ight on the houseboat Th is , a ccord i ng to houseboat owners, i s too h igh consider ing the tough t imes in recent years. The expenditure on mai ntenance of houseboats has a l so i nc reased given the h igh l eve ls of water pol l ut ion .

Need for hel p : Eco l ogi ca l changes a l so h ave a n i m pact on the commun i ty. Strong w i nds dur i ng the f i rst fortn ight of Apri l damaged a number of houseboats. There was l i tt le support from the authorities though the tour ist season was hard ly a month away. Commun ity members a lso worry that they may be l eft beh i nd i n terms of soc ia l a nd human ind icators. For i nstance l i teracy levels , espec ial ly among women, a re abysmal ( 1 2 %). A t the moment when a centu r ies-o ld l i festy le i s threatened d u e t o u n p l anned u rban isat ion , there i s a need for su itab le po l i cy i ntervent ion to sort out the problems of the community_ Civ i l soc iety a lso needs to he lp the communi ty save the i r cu ltu re a n d a l so he lp i t atta i n better human a nd soc i a l i n d i ca tors . (A l a ke enda ngered , Luv Pur i , T H . B, 1 5 .05 .05 , S21 )

Pr ime M in i ster Manmohan Si ngh on h i s f i rst v is it to Ladakh after assuming office, ca l l ed for developing the reg ion as a new tour ist h u b of Jammu a nd Kashm i r. Address ing a funct ion to rename Leh's a i rport after Kushok Baku la R i m poche, a Buddh ist monk considered the a rch i tect of modern Leh , Si ngh hoped that a i r connecti vity wou ld br ing more "tour ists, i nvestors a n d schola rs to th is remote corner of the wor ld" . The P M

, 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I DO�ll111entatioll Update I asserted that Jammu and Kashmi r and Ladakh would benefit greatly from this modernisation. "Our government i s committed to the modernisation of our i nfrastructure across the l ength and breadth of the vast subconti nent, S ingh sa i d , a d d i ng that th i s wou ld "ensure that the emot iona l a nd economic i ntegrat ion of the country i s better enab led . " H e s a i d t h a t the Lad a kh region would see better school s , hosp i ta l s a n d u rban fac i l i t ies soon . Respond i ng to Jammu and Kashmir ch ief m in i ster Mufti Mohammad Sayeed a nd h i s deputy Mangat Ram Sharma's demand for more f l ights to Ladakh, the PM sa id that a l l "obstacles" i n the path of connectivity to this mounta in · locked region would be removed so that its fu l l tourism potenti a l could be exploited . Expansion of health care and education were top pr ior ity for the government and Jammu & Kash m i r wou ld a lso benefit from th i s . (FM ca l l s for mak ing Ladakh a tou ri st hub, TOI . B, 1 1 .06.05, S21 )

To showcase Kashm i r a s a safe desti nat ion for touri sts a l l over the worl d , Un ion Tour ism M i n i ster Renuka Chowdary a nnounced a series of measures . Rs. 40 crores has been sanct ioned to boost the tour ism industry and rebu i l d the i nfrastructu re i n the State. Apart from Rs. 1 6 crores given as soft loan to houseboat , hotel and horse owners, the Government has sa nctioned Rs. 8 .58 crores for revamp i ng the I nst itute of Ski i ng a t Gu lmarg. Another Rs . 20 crores has been earmarked for rura l tou ri sm , development a uthori t ies and new c i rcu its.

The Amarnath Yatra c i rcu i t wou l d be deve loped exc lus ive ly by the Centre. The other c i rcu its wou ld come at the banks of J helum and Shivkhodi in Jammu. Stating that the Centre wou ld take up a comprehensive campaign throughout the world to present Kashmir as "a safe desti nation ," (Putt ing Kashmi r back on the tour ist map, Shujaat Bukhar i , TH .C , 1 1 .07 .05 , S2 1 )

A lthough tou ri sts a re stream i ng i n from d i fferent parts of the world , the cu l tura l a n d a ncient s i tes here a re cry ing for funds . Many of them a re decay i ng a n d cru m b l i ng desp i te l oca l efforts . The c i ty's cynosure, a crumbled n i ne·storey pa lace of the 1 6th century that towers over the Leh o ld qua rters - i tself poi nts to the threat faced by s i m i l a r structures i n th is co ld desert . There a re new construct ions in the tow n , which a re turn i ng i nto tou ri st a ttract ions. The Shanti Stupa bu i l t by the Japanese has become the most famous tou rist attract ion; i ts a rch i tectu re i s d i fferent from the Ladakh i style. (Ladakh monuments cry for ren ovat ion , Luv Puri , T H . B, 2 1 .08.0 5 , S2 1 )

A Rs. 298 crore p l an t o c lea n u p the Da l l ake has been c lea red by the Envi ronment a n d Forests M in i stry a nd now awaits the Union Cabi net's nod . The project i s the biggest ever l ake conservation p l a n to be taken u p by the m i n i stry a nd the fi rst major package to boost tour ism i n J&K. I t i s to be completed with in five years from the day of commencement. U n l i ke the m in i s try's other l a ke conservati on programmes where the Centre provides 70 % of the funds , the Da l l a ke project w i l l be ful ly·funded by the Centre. The sh ikaras , a n i n tegra l part of the Da l l a ke, wi l l a l so get a makeover. They wi l l be redesigned, made eco-friendly and "a new sanitation system deve loped by I I T· Rourkee w i l l be i nsta l led" . The project a l so env isages the deve lopment of the a rea a round the l a ke, on the l i nes of river front i mprovement in London and N ew York. (Rs 298 cr for Dal c lean-up, Chetan Chau ha n , H I D, 03.09.05, S21 )

After a gap of over three yea rs, French hel i -sk i i ng expert Syl va i n Saudan i s back i n Jammu a n d Kashmi r to revive the adventure sport during the comi ng winter. Sources i n tour ism department sa i d that Mr Saudan i s worki ng out arra ngements i n consultation with the concerned offic ia ls . H e p lans to start operations i n February next year. He a lso met Chief M in ister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed to a pprise h im of the p lan to revive hel i -ski i ng that attracted hund reds of tourists from Europe and other countries. (Try hel i - sk i i ng i n Va l l ey, Yusuf Jameel , AA.D, 24. 1 0 .05 , S2 1 )

The sh i karas may stay, but D a l Lake's famous f lowers a nd vegetab les may soon become a memory. The showp iece of Sr i nagar may soon be l i sted among U NESCO's l i st of wor ld heritage s ites i f Water Resources Min ister Saifudd in Soz has h is way. But a m ajor hurd le that could acqu i re pol i t ica l overtones is the 6,000-odd fam i l ies who grow vegetables and f lowers on the ban ks who w i l l have to be relocated. P ick ing up from where he left off d u ri ng h i s st i nt a s envi ronment m i n i ster i n 1 997 at c lean i ng up a n d conserv ing the best· known l andmark in the Va l l ey, Soz says rehabi l i tat ion p lans for i nhab i ta nts on the l ake have a l so been worked out. The peop le h ave a lso been sounded out about evacuat ing the l a ke and a re not averse to the idea , says Soz. (Sa ifudd in Soz pl ans to put Da l Lake on U nesco map, Mohua Chatterjee, TOI . D, 2 1 .02.06, S2 1 )

I Docllmentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

530 Western Ind ia

Maharashtra

The 1 8th century Sion Fort has d ivided the protectors of heritage i nto two camps. The Archaeologica l Survey of I n d i a (AS I ) is pos i t ioned on one s ide a nd the M umba i Her itage Conservat ion Committee (MHCC) on the other. Two years after the M HCC c leared a s lum rehabi l itation scheme at the footh i l l s of the S ion Fort, the ASI is c ryi ng fou l . I t has fi n a l ly woken up to the fact that the Sion Fort is a G rade I heritage structu re that needs to be protected . Th i s is after two bu i ld i ngs a re a l ready up and rea dy for occupat ion wh i l e a th i rd is u nder constructi on . In a recent l etter to the MHCC, the ASI has sought a stay on the construct ion . The AS I says that s i nce the fort is a 1 929 not if ied heritage mon ument, no construction can be a l l owed with i n 300 metres of i t . Apart from the bu i ld i ngs, i t has a l so objected to a proposed garden , mun ic ipa l market and pr imary school i n the vic i n i ty of the fort.

In 1 999, when the state government, who owns the fort , asked the MHCC for c learance for the s lum project, the committee a pproved s i nce the fort was a l ready overru n by 30·year·o ld s l ums a nd had degenerated i nto a huge open·a i r toi let . An AS I offi c ia l in charge of the her itage monuments in Mumbai sa i d that the fort had esca ped attent ion so fa r because Mumba i was part of the Aura ngabad c i rc l e. It was on ly i n December l ast yea r that Mumba i , a long with e ight other d i str icts i n Maharash tra , was b ifu rcated i nto a new ASI centre. (Heritage Vs Heritage At Sion Fort; Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee, ASI Clash Over Rehab Scheme, C la ra Lewis , TOI . M , 27 .04.05, S30 I D20d)

In 1 998, Maharashtra decided to compete with Goa , a celebrated non·corporate i nternat ional tour ism brand as i t was felt that the l atter was unab le to effectively manage the huge i nf low of tou rist a rriva ls . Maharashtra strategy was to l ook at its own coasta l Konkan d i strict of S indhud urg, just north of Goa. I t was just l i ke Goa

p icturesque, abounded in c lean beaches, where , because of phosphorescence, waves glow on a fu l l moon n ight, and prov ided a sense of t ranqu i l l i ty. So, why has S indhudurg, wh ich was offic ia l ly given the "Tour ism On ly" status (bann ing a ny other activity) remained starved of money·spi nn ing tou rism? Why does i t cont inue to be backward with a per ca p i ta i n come of under Rs . 3 ,000? (Even th is economy i s susta i ned by money orders from its migrants work i ng in Mumba i . ) A lso why a re tour ism fac i l i t ies vi rtua l ly frozen at the pre· 1 988 l evels? Goa, on the othe r hand , cont inues with its tour ist a rriva l s of two mi l l ion per yea r, h igher than the loca l popu l at ion of 1 .24 m i l l ion .

Na rayan Rane , who ha i led from S i ndhudurg a nd aware of i ts true touri sm potent i a l when he became Ch ief M i n i ster i n 1988, formu lated t he pol icy, but it was not i mplemented by the next Government with the vigour i t deserved.

But th ings cou ld be l ooki ng u p soon as th is "Tour ism On ly" pol icy wi l l be given a boost, accord i ng to M in i ster of State for Tourism, Suresh Shetty. A 'new tour ism pol icy on the anv i l wou ld i ntensify work on a l l fronts' and 'the l ost opportun i t ies rega i ned ' . The ' Deccan Odyssey' is bei ng better marketed i nternat iona l ly so that the Konkan gets more attent ion.

Obstac les : Lack of movement on t he tour ism pol i cy a nd stri ngent coasta l zone regulat ions (CRZ) have kept away l ea d i ng five·star hotel groups. I n fact they have opted out of p lans i n spite of deposit i ng Rs . 2 crores for t he 60 to 80 acre seas ide plots i n S h i roda , M idbav and Mochemad v i l l ages for the i r resorts. Offi c i a l s a re beh i n d t hem to revive the i r p l ans but CRZ l aws a re a barr ier.

An a i rport near Parole h a s rema ined a non ·starter and so h a s a subs id ia ry to the M a h a ra shtra Tou ri sm Deve lopment Corporation (MTDC) to focus on Sindhudurg. Now, only a desu ltory committee with t he col lector over looks l oca l perspectives . wh ich does not a mount to much . But some loca l efforts a re on , one bei n g a touri sm co·operative which provides beds i n tents and lately, a "bed and breakfast" scheme i n l oca l homes. Another is a "Backwaters Festiva l " to popu l a ri se three c reeks as backwaters. I nterest ingly, pol i t i c i ans ru n both.

In 1 999, an interesti ng experiment was k icked off. Bus loads of people were taken to S indhudurg and people asked to host them. The idea was to help them u nderstand the huge potent ia l of tour ism, wh ich can create at least two lakh jobs. Soon enough, some 80 households reg istered themselves as hosts to offer i nexpens ive beds and c lean toi l ets to v is i tors on a regu l a r bas i s, but then a problem emerged . They were asked to pay

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I "commercia l " rates for e lectricity consumed, i nstead of the cheaper domest ic ta riff, wh ich ended u p d i l ut i ng the hosts' enthus iasm. S ixteen pa i rs of tra i n s on the Konkan Ra i lway, snak ing through the region have not signif icantly boosted tourist a rriva l s as the i nfrastructure/faci l it ies a re i nadequate. Hopeful loca ls who i nvested i n the ra i lways' bonds and parted with l a n d to m a ke the ra i lway poss ib le now a cknowledge that expected growth has n ot come in its wake. (Whither S indhudurg? Mahesh Vijapurkar, TH . B, 29.05.05, S30)

The Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) has come up with some excit i ng offers a imed at corporate under the Deposit Scheme package. Any organ ization that t ies u p with MTDC can ava i l of d iscounts on a l l MTDC propert ies . Emp loyees can c hoose from a range of dest i nat ions - the pr ist ine beaches of Tarka rl i , Ganpat ipu le and Harl ha reshwar o r heritage s i tes such a s Aja nta , E l lora , Kar l a and Lonar crater Or sanctuar ies such a s Pench and Tadoba to forts at Ratnagir i and S indhudurg. ( I t's ra i n i ng packages, T H . C, 24.09.05, S30)

Attempts by an advert i s ing Company to de l i st Maha laxmi preci ncts in Mumba i from the l i st of heritage s ites fa i led as the Supreme Court has ruled that there cou ld not be a ny doubt that It fa l l s i n the grade· 1 I 1 heri tage s ite c lassif icat ion, proh ibi t ing erect ion of a ny hoard i ng there.

Despite anomal ies i n the l i st prepared by the Maharashtra government a Bench compri s i ng Justice Ruma Pal a n d J ust ice AR Lakshma n a n sa id on October 2 1 that "Maha l axm i preci ncts is i nd eed a l i sted her itage p rec i nct . " Th i s order was passed by the Bench w h i le d i sm iss ing a pet i t ion fi l ed by Mass Hold i ngs Pvt Ltd cha l lenging a Bombay H igh Court order a l lowi ng M u n i ci pa l Corporat ion of G reater M u mba i to remove its hoard i ng from the a rea . However, after the pronouncement of the order, counsel for the a ppel lant mentioned before the Court that i t has a pproached Maharashtra Heritage Conservat ion Committee (MHCC), which has agreed to consider its representat ion to obta i n a ' no object ion certif icate to the i r hoa rd i ng' . (SC: Maha l axmi preci ncts a heritage s ite, Dhananj ay Mahapatra , TOI . D, 26. 1 0.05, S30 / D20d)

Maharashtra Touri sm Development Corporation (MTDC) started its services of the open·deck tour ism buses l ast week. The bus takes tou ri sts through Mumba i in the ca lm of n ight. The adva ntage is that Mumba i 's busy business d istr icts through wh ich the bus w inds i ts way a re empty dur i ng the even ing. The two open·decked buses, N i lamba ri a nd Vibhavar i , have attracted the i nterest of not j ust i nternationa l but a l so domest ic tourists who q ueue u p to watch some of the popu l a r her itage p laces. ( N ightsee i ng i n Mumba i ; MTDC's open-deck buses take tou ri sts a round M u mba i , Su lekha N a i r, FE .C, 1 3 . 1 2 .05 , S30)

The restoration of Ajanta and E l lora i s bei ng funded jointly by the Japanese Ban k for I nternational Cooperation (J B IC) and the government of Ma harashtra . "The J a pa nese Bank has p rovided a soft loan of Rs 81 crore i n the f i rst phase of the Aja nta E l lora project and R s 300 crore i n the second phase," says Abhay Yaval ka r, jo int MD, Maharashtra Tou ri sm Development Corporat ion. Besides caves in and around Aura ngabad, the Bank i s a lso fund ing an i rrigat ion project i n Bhandardhara and Elepanta Caves i n Mumba i , e t a l . (Breathing l ife i nto frescoes, FE .D, 1 9.02.06, S30 / D20d)

There seems to be a rush of hea lthcare prov iders f lock i ng to Mumba i to set u p super·specia l ity hospita l s . Work has sta rted on a 1 ,000-bed mult i ·spec ia l ity hospita l l ocated close to the Saha r I nternat ional A i rport on the outer fri nges of Mumba i . The estimated Ps 360 crore hospita l i s coming up on the BMC's (Brihanmumba i Mun ic ipa l Corporation) u nfi n ished cancer project bei ng developed by the Vizag based Seven H i l l s Hea lthca re Ltd . The hospita l i s schedu l ed to be completed by l ate 2007 . O n ly l a st month, the Apol l o Hospita l s G roup commi tted Rs 400 c rore toward s estab l i sh i ng two tert ia ry hosp ita l s . A proposed hea rt hospita l , the pet project of cardiac surgeon late Dr N itu Mandke and currently under the aegis of Mr An i ! Amban i was schedu led to be completed th is yea r. With a three-and-a-ha lf yea r-o ld hosp ita l i n Mumba i , Wockhardt Hospita l s G roup i s a lso looking for a n opportunity to set up i ts second hospital in the c ity. (For hospital groups, it 's Desti nation Mumba i , P T Jyothi Datta , B L.B, 2 1 .03.06, S30 / D20f)

Rajasthan

Rajasthan has ca l led up on the Centre to sanction at the ear l iest proposa ls worth Rs. 60 crores for l aunch ing tour ism projects d u ring 05-06 to enable the State Government to take u p the works at the begi n n i ng of the yea r. The projects i nc lude renovat ion of p laces of tou rist i nterest and extension of 1 2 a i rstri ps. The M i ni ster

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

of State for Tou r i sm , U sh a P u n i a , w h i l e ra i s i ng the demand a t a revi ew meet i ng. (Centre asked to c l ea r proposa l s, TH .D, 08.05.05, S30)

The NCR P l ann i ng Boa rd w i l l soon be sett ing up its first c lass townsh i p in the region. It w i l l be developed at Neemra na i n Rajasthan , 1 10 km west of Delh i , on the Neemrana·Shahjahanabad highway. Member Secretary of the hoard Dr P.K. M ishra says that the Neemra na Townsh ip is a p i lot project to k ick·start the board's move to deve lop at l east one wor ld c l a ss town i n each of the const i tuent states. 'The bas ic i deas beh i n d the project i s to try and ease the populat ion and economic pressure on Del h i and d i spe rse i t to the neighbouri ng states , " says Dr M i sh ra .

Rajasthan was the f i rst state to come up with a project recommendation and has even identified the s ite whi le H a rya n a and UP w i l l be next in l i ne. Neemra n a was the cho ice because i t is on the h ighway a nd has easy access. (Neemrana town wi l l ease capita l burden, Esha Roy, I E.D, 2 1 .05.05, S30)

There has a l ways been a cur ious i nert ia on the pa r t of the Vasundhara Raje govern ment when it came to address ing the i ssue of Sati with the rigour that the law demanded . Whether th is was prompted by pol it ica l expediency or the persona l bel ief of its Ch ief M in i ster i s d ifficu lt to say. I n January 2004, when a lower court acqu i tted a l l the accused for glorifying the Roop Kanwar Sati i n 1 987 , the state government was expected to cha l I enge the verd i ct . I t responded with s i lence. More recent ly, the Ja i pur Development Autho�ity actu a l ly named a new townsh ip as Shree Ran i Sati N agar, right under the nose of the government. Nobody i n Ja ipur's corr idors of power d i scerned a nyth i ng a miss . Now comes the b ra i nwave from the Rajastha n Tou ri sm Deve lopment Authority a pparently with the fu l l encouragement of the state's tour ism m in i stry of packagi ng Rajasthan's Sati s ites as tou rist desti nations. The Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1 987, is unambiguous i n recogn i s i ng a s a cr ime not just Sat i , but the g lori f i cat ion of i t . It bans "the support i ng, j ust i fy i ng o r propagat i ng" of t he practi ce of Sa t i " i n a ny manner" . Aga i nst th i s legal backdrop, you have a publ icat ion b rought out by a Raj a sth a n state govern ment author i ty gus h i ng: "There is not a spot in the state where women had not committed Sati " . This actua l ly amounts to the state·sponsored promotion of the cult. ( Incredible Raj asth a n , Packaging Sati s i tes as tou r ist spots a mounts to s tate'sponsored promot ion of the cu l t , I E . D, 0 1 .06.05 , S30)

On Apri l 1 5 , peop le l iv i ng near Roopsagar Lake in Uda ipur were shocked to see bu l ldozers ri pp ing a par t its d ry bed . "When I a sked the contractor, I was told a 80·feet (about 24 metres) w ide road was to be carved out i n the peta (bed) of the l a ke ," says Ram l a l Va i s hnav, ex·counc i l l o r of Pahada a rea , where the l a ke is s i tuated . The news spread l i ke w i ldf i re th rough the a rea . An i ra te crowd assembled a t the s i te and got the work stopped . "Th is ta laab is very i m portant for us because when there i s water in i t , our wel l s a re ful l . If a ny construct ion takes p lace here , our hand pumps wi l l d ry up , " says Naresh Va ishnav, a resident. On Apri l 1 8, the res idents gathered aga i n a nd took to t he streets a nd vowed to stop a ny construct ion i n Roopsagar. I t then came t o l ight that construct ion w a s tak i ng p l a ce i n a l most every water· body that h a d d ried u p i n Uda ipur. S im i l a r to the case of Roopsagar was that of Na i l a ta l aab whose embankment was cut to make way for a road . B ut what was gla r ing about these two inc i dents was that not only d id the 'deve lopment activit ies' v io late the ci ty's master p lan but also an order of the Rajasthan H igh Court (RHC). On August 2 , 2004, RHC had d i rected the state govern ment to make a p lan to restore the catchment a reas of a l l the water bod ies i n Rajasthan . The d i rect ions were further passed to a l l the d i str icts.

Why then did the U rban I mprovement Trust (U IT) of Uda i pu r a long with the d i str ict adm in i strat i on proceed with an a ctivity that ran contra ry to RHC's d i rect ions? "On Apri l 16 , I came to know that roads were constructed i n the l ow· ly ing a rea a n d I ordered for the remova l of whatever construct ion was goi ng o n , " says d i str ict magist rate Abhay Kumar, who i s a lso the U IT cha i rperson . He says the roads were be ing constructed as part of the As ian Development Bank-funded Vasundhara Road Network project. But even the master p lan doesn ' t show the l a ke can be bu i l t over. Further, th is l and u se of the a rea (from l a ke to p layground) a ppears to be a recent change i nc l uded i n the Land Use P l an 2022. As l ate as 1997 , these two were shown as water· bod ies. Why the change? Expla i n s ch ief town p l anne r H S Sanchet i , "These water·bodi es a re d ry for yea rs and have no va l ue now." But Kumar h i mself had ordered the i rr igation department to restore Roopsagar under the Aka l Rahat Ka rya (d rought rel ief) sche me j u st 2 ·3 years a go . The whole affa i r po in ts to a nexus between the a uthorit ies and bu i lders, says Tej Rajdan of the 'Jheel Sanrakshan Samiti ' , a non·governmenta l organ i sation in Udaipur.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I Why a re Uda ipu r 's l a kes d ryi ng up? "Among the ma in reasons a re over extract ion of water a n d choki ng of i n lets by bu i l d i ng co lon ies , " op i nes J C Du bey, a hydrologi st , who has a l so worked wi th the Raja stha n government. But for government off ic ia ls , there i s only one: "Low ra i nfa l l during the last decade i s the biggest reason for the l akes d ryi ng up , " c l a i m s J N Gol a n i , add i t iona l ch ief e ng ineer, Pub l i c Hea l th E ngineer ing Department ( P HED). Dubey counters sayi ng the ra i nfa l l in Uda i p u r dur ing the period has never been less than 40 % of the average of 660 mi l l imetre I year. In some years, i t has been more tha n the average but sti l l the water d id not reach the l akes. Dubey b lames the PH ED, which i s responsible for supp lyi ng water t o the city. "After exploi t i ng the lakes up to thei r bas in , the PHED have now put borewel l s in the bed of these l akes," he says. Eve n i n dustries such as the H i ndustan Z i nc Li m ited (HZL) have put nearly 20 bore we l l s i n the bed of Udai sagar Lake to meet its huge water demand . As a resu lt , the hand pumps i n the surroundi ng vi l l ages d ried u p. On Apri l 27 , the vi l l agers surround ing the l ake agitated agai nst groundwater extract ion from the lake bed. "The tube wel l s dr i l led i n the bed of these lakes have become permanent conduits for rap id seepage and a re resu lt ing i n faster l osses of surface water storage whenever the l akes a re f i l l ed with ra inwa ter, " says Dubey.

What's the way out? If even just P i chol a , Fatehsagar and Badi l akes were fu l l , there would be enough water to meet the demand for a 1 Y2 years, he says. After the Roopsagar i ncident, Sancheti has identified 39 waterbodies i n a nd around the city. The formula for keepi ng the l akes ful l is not d ifficu l t to fi nd: it is located just 5 k i lometres from Udaipur i n the form of Jogi ka Talaab. Thi s talaab, which is in the same terra in , and gets the same a mount of ra i nfa l l as Uda ipur, i s bri m m i ng with water a nd laugh i ng s i l ent ly t h rough i ts lotus f lowers. None of the v i l l agers l iv ing a round it use its water for i rrigation . Its i n lets a nd outlets a re not suffocated with construct ion . On top of that , no government body has rea ched here yet , i t i s sti l l bei ng managed by the local people , who u nderstand i ts i mportance. (Lake Assau l t , Down to Earth Feature, I E.C , 05 .06.05, S30)

A new i n tegrated tou r ism pol i cy, w h i ch w i l l a ccommodate a more active role for the pr ivate sector i n i nfrastructu re deve lopment, i s o n the a nvi l i n Rajasthan . The pol i cy would ensure that the State , now a l most on top of the heap in tou r ism in the country, stays put there by d iversifyi ng and developing more a reas a nd newer themes other than the "eterna l " desert i t offers n ow. The new pol i cy wou ld i n corporate p l ans for i ncrease i n number of hotel rooms through sett i ng up land banks, de·classif ication of land for hotels from the commerc ia l to the industria l category and by creation of a d i str ict·wise i nventory of tour ism c i rcu its. There would be specia l desert tour ism projects and health·tour ism. (Rajasthan mul ls over new tourism pol icy, TH .D, 04.09.05 , S30)

The Rajasthan government p l ans to c reate rural tou r ism resorts in t r iba l bases , eco-rura l c i rcu i ts , desert experience projects and hea lth tourism projects to step up foreign tour ist a r riva ls . The decis ion comes in the wake of the state l os i ng out to states l i ke Kera l a .

The i n i ti a t i ve i s i n tune w i th the recent F ICC I · C R I S I L study wh ich had warned that " Rajasthan needs to serious ly look at recent trends which revea l that the state's share of i nternationa l tourists i s on the decl ine" . "The M in i stry of Tour ism has accepted the proposa l s recommended by the study i n i ts e ight·poi nt strategy to the government and wi l l go for i ntense campa igns i n days to come. Promotion of medical tourism, i ntegration of a l l the rela ted p rojects i nto the exist ing c i rcu i ts , review of the pol i cy fra mework a n d p roactive steps to attract private i nvestment would put the desert state's tour ism sector on a higher p latform," State Tourism M ini ster Usha Pun ia said. The average period of stay for a foreign tour ist i n I nd i a i s 3 1 .2 days, whi le i t i s only a round 2 .5 days i n Rajasthan a s aga i nst more than five days i n states l i ke Goa a n d Kera l a . Per·day spends by i nternat ional a nd domestic tourists i n Rajasthan a re Rs 800 and Rs 400 respectively, l ess than half of the average tourists spend in I nd i a . ( Rajasthan to step up tour ism offeri ngs, I E .C , 06.09.05, S30)

Tou ri sts can once aga i n enjoy elephant rides at the Amber Fort i n the P i n k C i ty with the Government l ifti ng a ban that was imposed after a rogue elephant ki l led one person and i njured two tourists. The decision to l ift the ban was taken at a meet i ng of sen ior off ici a l s . It was decided that 6 1 e lephants , who were found to be i n sound menta l a n d phys ica l health , wou ld b e a l l owed t o ferry tou r ists t o the fort . Accord ing to sources, the decis ion was taken after a committee of e lephant owners agreed to fol l ow safety norms i ssued by the State Government. The tou rism department had I mposed a n i ndefi n ite ban on elephant rides after a rogue elephant tra mpled to death a tou r escort and injured two Belgian tourists on September 1 5 . U nder the new guidel i nes, the Forest Department wi l l i ssue identity cards to a l l mahouts who must have at l east three years experience of hand l i ng e lephants in the Amber premises . ( Rajasthan l i fts ba n on e lephant r ide, T P. D, 1 2 . 1 0 .05 , S301 D20d)

I Docll111cntution Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 , Rajasthan i s p layi ng host to a 14 day- long I nternationa l Hot A i r Ba l loon i ng Fiesta . Produced a nd organ i sed by 'Wi l d i n The Woods ' and ' E- Fa ctor ' , i t i s the f i rst of i ts k i nd be ing held i n I nd i a . Over 20 ba l l oon i sts from 1 1 countries w i l l navigate from Barmer to Jod hpur a nd Ja i pur dur ing the festiva l . To popu la ri se the sport , free f l ights, n i ght·glow events and hot a i r ba l l oon compet i t ions have a lso been organ i sed . C lea rly, the idea i s to populari se adventure sports a nd boost tourism. The diverse terrai n of Rajasthan with the A rava I Ii and Vindhayan h i l l s , the open desert t racts, the vast l akes and r ivers, a nd the w i l d l ife parks a re i dea l for a dventure s ports . L itt le wonder then that i t offers exhaustive opt ions - boat ing i n the Chamba l r iver, b i k i ng i n Shekhawati and Mount Abu , t rekking i n Sar iska·Alwar Amber belt, campi ng i n Pushkar, ba l loon ing i n Ja i pur, parasa i l i ng i n the sandy countrys ide and even water sports in the l arge l akes. An aerosport project in col l aborat ion with Delh i Tour ism Deve lopment Corporat ion and Aerosport C lub i s underway. And with a n I nternat iona l Desert Sport fest iva l i n the p i pe l i ne trave l lers can l ook forward to desert sk i i ng and desert moto r i ng as wel l . (S i m ply Adventurous, K i ra n Yadav, FE. D, 1 9.02 .06, S201 D20a)

A l ong-cher i shed d ream of Rajasthan has come t rue with the M in i stry of C iv i l Aviat ion notify ing the exi st ing domest ic a i rport a t Sanganer as an i nternat iona l a i rport. The Sanganer a i rport , granted the status of an i nternat iona l a i rport on December 29 , 2005 , i s one of the 1 2 modern a i rports in the country and 1 4th i nternat iona l a i rport where passenger-fr iendly fac i l i t ies have been u pgraded and modern ized by the A i rport Author ity of I n d i a . The ter m i n a l bu i l d i ng, ren ovated to g ive a n ethn i c Raj ast h a n i a rc h i tectu ra l l ook , can a ccommodate 500 passengers at a t i me a n d i s equ i pped with a l l modern passenger amen i t i es i nc l ud i ng customs and i mmigrat ion fac i l i t ies to handle i nternational chartered f l ights. The a uthori ties at the a i rport sa id that there was a p lan to construct a new i nternationa l termina l bu i l d i ng, which would cater to 1 000 passengers a n hour. (Sanganer a i rport goes i nternat iona l , TH .D, 22.02.06 , S30)

The opulence and grandeur of Rajasthan have a lways fasci nated foreign tour i sts. Now the desert state has a new, heady concoct ion to attract v is itors - her itage l i quor from the royal households . Roya l Jagmohan and Roya l Kesa r Kastu ri , the two brands of v i ntage l iq uor that have been launched so fa r, have caught the fancy of v is i tors from a broad who a re even carry i ng them for futu re consum pt ion . See i ng the popu la rity of these dri n ks that were trad i t iona l ly brewed i n the roya l households, three new bra nds - Roya l Chand ra has, Roya l Saunf a n d Roya l Mava l i w i l l soon h it the market. ( Roya l Rajasthan l iq uor h i t with tou r ists , A n i l Sharma , AA. D, 09.03.06 , S30)

Gujarat

In l i ne with the it's decis i on to celebrate yea r 2006 as Tou ri sm Development Year, the Gujara t government i s p lann ing t o form Gujarat Tour ism Promotion Counc i l (GTPC) for the deve lopment of much neglected tourism sector in the state. The basic objective of the counci l wou ld be to showcase Gujarat as major tou ri st destination for i nternat iona l as well as domest i c tour ism and to help state government for the necessary i nfrastructura l development to promote the tour ism i ndustry a long with proper marketi ng strategies. (Guja rat to promote tour i sm i n a big way, N ayan Dave, FE .C , 14.07 .05 , S30)

The res idents of modern Champaner·Pavagadh i n Panchmaha ls d i st rict of G ujarat a re probably u naware of the h i stor ica l i m portance of the i r town . A l i tt le over a yea r ago, Champaner·Pavagadh was given the status of World Heritage S ite by U N ESCO. Accord i ng to Ka ran G rover, the a rch itect who has been work ing for t he l a st 30 yea rs push ing Champaner· Pavagadh on to the global heritage l i st . t here a re 1 1 k inds of bui l d i ngs, some of them being mosques, granaries, tombs, he l ica l wel l s , fort wa l l s and viewing terraces. The tourist t ra i l takes one through the Gebanshah's Vav or step wel l that i s 80 feet deep, Mehdi ta lao , Vada Ta lao , water chan nels , va r ious forti f icat ions , i nc lud i ng the Atak Fort , wh ich t i l l today has 83 catapults structures . (On a heritage tra i l , Latha Venkatra man , T H . B, 25.09.05, S30)

Gujarat tour ism w i l l no longer be a l l a bout the temple c i rcu i t. In 2006, the Yea r of Tour ism, the state i t inerary w i l l i nvolve a m i x of h i stor i ca l s pots perta i n i ng to var ious rel ig ions . Lea d i ng the packages i s the famou s C h ampaner Fort , a Wor ld Her i tage s i te , a sett lement put up by the f i rst Mus l i m ru lers i n G uj a ra t . Of the tour ist c i rcu its being envisaged is the "Kr ishna C i rcu it" with Dwarka at the forefront . Then there i s the "Gandh i c i rcu i t" i nc l ud i ng Porbandar, Sabarmat i Ashram and Rajkot. Other p l ans on the a nvi l , offic i a l s sa id , i nc lude sea crui ses from Mumbai to Mandvi . (Modi takes h istory lessons for tourism, S iddhartha Sarma, l ED, 05. 1 0.05, S30)

2 � 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I The Gujara t Government has a ppea led to the Centre to extend the tax hol i days i t offers to the Kutch d i strict for another two yea rs i n order to p rovide further i mpetus to the i n dustria l a ctivi t ies i n the d i str ict . "We have put forward a proposal before the Centra l Government to extend the tax ho l i days to the Kutch d i str ict and tha t the i ndustri a l act iv ity of the State gets further momentum," t he Gujarat Ch ief M i n i ster, M r N a rendra Mod i , sa id here wh i le i naugurating the Welspun C ity. The U n ion Government i n the pub l ic i nterest exempted certa i n i ndustr ia l sector in the d i str ict from paying excise duty t i l l December 3 1 , 2005. G ujarat has secured a lmost 88 percent of the tota l i nvestment i n the country, M r Mod i c l a i med add i ng, the Kutch d i str ict , has become the epicentre of the i ndustr ia l activity of the state after the 2001 earthquake. (Gujarat seeks further tax·hol i d ay for Kutch d istr ict , BL .B, 29. 1 1 .05 , S30)

In a b id to further explore tour ism potenti a l of Gujarat, the Junagadh d i str ict admin istration has cha l ked out an action p lan worth a bout Rs 20 crore to lure domest ic and foreign tourists. The Junagadh D istr ict Col lector, Mr B ip in Kumar Srima l i , sa id the local admin istration has made efforts to prov ide hel i copter services connect ing Pa l itana , Somnath and Junagadh .

Besides, w i l dl ife eco·tour ism activi t ies have been p l anned at Sakka rbag and nature t ra i l s at G i rn a r. Dur ing Heritage tour ism programme in Ju ly, the admin i st ration has decided to set up a theme pav i l ion at Uperkot, seminar on protection and development of a rchaeologica l memoria l i n Junagadh, Mr Sri ma l i sa i d . Mr Sr ima l i s a i d that of t h e esti mated Rs 20-cro re p roject a bout Rs 7 crore wou l d be as a ss i sta nce by t h e Centra l Government, equ a l a mount wou ld be g iven by the State Government a n d the rest wou l d be ra i sed through publ i c part ic i pation . (Ju nagadh cha l ks out action plan to woo tour ism, BL .B , 2 1 .02 .06, S30)

540 Un ion Territor ies

Andaman a nd N icobar Is lands

For years, cora l reefs and marine l ife have he lped def ine the Andaman and N i cobar I sl ands as an i nternat iona l tour ist dest i nat ion . But when the tsu na m i struck on December 26 l a st yea r, cora l s were farthest f rom the minds of the civi l i a n a uthorit ies and the defence services engaged in rescue and rehab i l i tat ion . As the h uge sei sm ic sea waves left vast stretches of destruct ion on the l a n d , n o one had the t i me or the resources to study the effect of the tsunami on the reefs . Now, however, with the civ i l i a n adm in i strat ion and the defence estab l i shment restori ng nea r· norma l i ty to the i s l a nds after a t ry ing per iod , the cora l s a re getti ng a l ook · i n aga i n . I n a ny case, without tour ism, the i s l ands cannot atta i n the pre·tsunami normal i ty.

Sara ng Kul karn i of Reef Watch Mar ine Conservat ion, with help from the admin i strat ion , undertook a su rvey of the coral reefs, nea rly two months after the tsunami . I n severa l a reas , mostly those not badly affected by the tsunam i , the coral reefs were i ntact. Ne i l a nd Have lock showed u p a breathtak i ng ra nge of cora l s . But Jol ly Buoy, ord i n a ri ly the biggest attract ion for cora l lovers, appeared h it .

I n a reworki ng of the tour ism strategy, Lieutenant Governor Ram Ka pse dec ided to put the glass·bottomed boats at the Jo l ly Buoy i n the service of the Ne i l a n d Have l oc k i s l ands . Thus , cora l reefs w i l l rema i n a n attract ion , i f not Jo l ly Buoy. Most of t h e i s l a nds that were da maged by t h e sea were those t h a t cou ld be d i rectly a pproached from the south-east, a nd Have lock was not in th i s category. Whi le recognis ing that some of the popu la r dest inat ions have, a t least for the moment, lost the i r tour i sm potenti a l , the admin i st rat ion i s open ing u p new dest i nat ions, a n d new avenues at o ld dest i nat ions.

Thus, Have lock , a l ready famed for i ts wh i te sand beaches, wou l d now offer cora l reefs too for the tour i sts. Baratang I sl a nd , which is a bout 1 00 km by road from Port B la i r, wi l l be promoted more for i ts mud vol ca noes and l imestone caves and l ess for i ts beaches. (Reefs get a relook, Suresh N a m bath , TH . B, 1 7 .04.05, S40)

The Andaman and N i cobar I s l ands a re now about th ree metres closer to the ma i n l and coast than it was pre­tsunami . Some a reas of the I sl ands have gone down by up to one metre.

D iscussi ng the topograph ica l changes due to the December 26 tsunami , Department of Ocean Deve lopment Secreta ry Harsh Gu pta sa i d that the tsunami cau sed the I nd i an P l a te to go under the Burmese P late. The Bu rmese coast a l so moved c loser to the Andaman coast by a bout three metres .

I Documenta tion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 .

Post-tsunami , c lay and s i l ica particles had got deposited on cora l s i n the Andamans, which had got considerably damaged. It wou ld take a longer t ime to sett le. Thus, there was a need for l ong-term monitoring of the cora l s i n m idd le and South Andamans. There was no signif icant l oss of corals i n the Gu lf o f Mannar. Sa l i n i ty o n the Tam i l Nadu coast had i ncreased and it wou ld take about two rai ny seasons for it to subside. (Andaman and N icobar now 3 metres c loser, T H . B, 1 0 .05 .05, S40)

The act ion p lan for the post·tsunam i deve lopment of the Andaman and N icobar I s l ands, submitted to the Centre by the M.S . Swami nathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), has strategies for both ecologica l and l ivelihood security. The p lan for a "New Andamans" deta i l s p lans for redesign i ng t he farm ing and f ish ing systems that a re best su ited for the i s l and ecosystem . The MSSRF team vis ited North Andaman , M idd le Andaman , South Andaman , L itt le Andaman , Car N i cobar, N ancowrie a n d Great N icobar group of i s l ands and assessed the nature and extent of d amage.

As Prof_ M.S . Swaminathan poi nted out (The H indu , January 1 7 , 2005), med ium and long-term rehabi l i tat ion demands three th ings: strengthen ing the ecological foundations of susta inabl e human security; rehabi l itating l ivel i hoods a nd foster ing susta i nable l ive l ihood secur ity; putting in place a network of rura l knowledge centres.

Each region i n the i s l a n d s was foun d to req u i re a s pec i f ic set of so lut ions . For i n stance , the ri se of the l andmass i n North Andamans (D igl ipur) has led to a fa l l i n the water table. The l i ttora l and mangrove swamps have d ried up. Fresh water for paddy and hort i cu ltu ra l crops has become scanty. So, the a d m i n i strat ion should i m mediately set up 'community water banks' with ra i nwater harvest i ng and conservat ion. Women's se l f- he l p groups shou ld be formed and tra i ned to manage water ban ks. Paddy shou l d be cu l t ivated on ly where i t i s a choice, both from the ecological and economica l poi nts of view.

I n contrast, South Andaman has been i n undated by seawater, espec i a l ly the agricu l ture f ie lds . The com i ng monsoon cou ld d i srupt commu n icat ions , l ead ing to t ra n s ient h u nger s pots ; even sta rvat ion deaths. The MSSRF has suggested the i mmedi ate sett ing up of community food banks. Thi s a lso provides a food-for-work system. There i s a l so g reat potenti a l to estab l i sh mangrove b io -sh ie lds , tak ing advantage of the excel lent nursery ava i lable i n Yerrata , and i ntegrate them with susta i nab le aquaculture. T iger prawns and mud cra bs can be read i ly cultured and these have great demand in both nat iona l and i nternat iona l markets .

L i tt le Andaman has suffered tota l d i s ru ption of communication and therefore i t i s a potentia l hunger hotspot. I m mediate act ion i s necessary to set up community food banks. S i nce the Revenue Department contro ls the severely damaged beach forest i t should help the Forest Department in eco logi ca l restorat ion and bio-shie ld erect ion.

The major cha l lenge caused by the tsunam i in the N ancowrie group of i s l ands is the extens ive damage to mangroves a nd the coconut forests. The bio-degradable debris should be used to make compost. The coconut trunks and the wood of the fa l len trees coul d be used for construction of houses and a l so for furniture making.

I n a nutshel l , the Andaman and N icobar I sl ands should use the forest and mangrove resources in a susta inable manner for the l ivel i hood security of the loca l community. Agricu lture should not be on the conventional l i nes of the ma in land .

The Andaman a n d N icobar is lands are fortunate i n having several tribal communit ies whose col lective tradit ional w isdom is formidab le. P l ann i ng and development shou ld be based on a bottom-up a pproach i nvolv i ng the local e lected representat ives, capta i n s a n d members of the tr i ba l counc i l s. With over 85 % of forest cover, these i s l ands a re excel lent 'green ' factories that consume carbon and produce oxygen . (An opportun i ty for the devastated i sl ands, PC_ Kesavan and K .Ba lasubraman i an , TH .B , 27.05.05, S40)

An agreement between Port B la i r, capita l of Andaman and N icoha r I slands, and Phuket in Thai land for promotion of touri sm wi l l be signed i n Phuket on June 30. It w i l l i nclude education a nd culture , u rban development, sol id waste management, commerce and i nvestments. The pact wi l l rema in i n force for five yea rs. The i nk ing of the agreement is expected to boost tour ism on the i s l ands devastated by the tsunami l a st yea r-end , a ccord i ng to an offic i a l press rel ease. (Port B l a i r, Phuket to sign agreement, TO I . B, 30.06 .05 , S40)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I I srael i back· packers have i nvaded remote i s lands i n the Andaman and N i cobar a rch ipelago, th reaten ing its f ragi le ecologi ca l ba l ance. At sta ke is a beach crowned As i a 's best. For the l a st coup l e of yea rs , l ow·cost I srae l i tour i sts have swamped the pr ist ine beaches of Havelock (voted the best beach in Asia by T ime magaz ine i n N ovembe r 2004), Long and Ne i l i s l a nds between December and Apr i l , ra i s i ng eco and socio concerns. "These tou r i sts t itter beaches and defeca te a l ong it . If remed i a l measures a re not take n , the damage cou ld be i rreparable, ' wa rned Pacif ic Asia Travel association · l nd ia chapter (environment, eco·tou ri sm & heritage committee) cha i rman Mand ip Singh Soi n . Mari ne bio logists have a l ready d iscovered a sh ift in the nesti ng pattern of turt les . Beach bonf i res l i t by shoe·str i ng budget tour ists have sca red them away. There a re a lso fea rs of forest cover denudat ion i n the i s la nds . I t i sn ' t just the ecology, the backpackers have a l so assaulted the sensit ivity of native N icobarese with beach nudity. "The ch i l d ren were bun ki ng school to ogle at the beaches. Though n ud ity i s banned , these tourists don't ca re , " Soi n poi nted out. The tour ism trade has u rged the U n ion Tour ism M in istry and the A&N admin i stration to take steps to weed out the problem before Andamans turns i nto a n other D igha . ( I s ra e l i s i nvade Anda ma n s ' remote i s l ands , Subhro N iyogi , TO I . B, 2 7 . 07 .05 , S40)

Are the Andamans fast on the roa d to becoming the next best a lternat ive to Phuket's sex i n dustry? Some l ead i ng Ind ian envi ronmenta l i sts have slammed the tourism deal by I nd ia 's tsunami ·h i t Andaman and N icobar I s l ands with Tha i land , saying such a move wou ld destroy its fragi le ecology and encourage the sex trade. In a move to breathe new l ife i nto the shattered economy i n the i s l ands , the authorit ies signed a five·yea r dea l i n June with the resort town of Phuket i n Thai l and , famous for i ts beaches but a lso for a bu rgeon i ng sex trade. The dea l wou l d a l l ow tou r i sts v i s i t i ng P h u ket to ta ke a short f l ight to the Andamans . Accord i ng to the environmentaEsts, who have now written to U PA cha i rperson Sonia Gandh i , seeking her i mmediate i ntervention , the Andaman and N icobar I s l ands admin i stration i s us i ng t he tsunami as a garb to l u re Phuket's tour ists to the Anda mans . ( 'Don ' t turn Andamans i nto Phuket' , TOI .D, 08.08.05, S40)

From a l l across the I nd ian mai n l and , tourists a re pour ing i nto the Andamans . 'Hundreds of busi nesspeople a nd professi ona ls , even midd le c lass I nd ia ns , a re rushi ng to the Andamans for a hol i day with a d ifference," says local touri sm offic i a l Rana Mathew. "The curiosity generated by the tsunami is getti ng the better of the fear. " Mr. Mathew sa id that before the tsunami Benga l i s made up the bul k of domestic tourists coming to the i s l and s but people from southern I nd i a have exceeded them so far th is yea r. In wi nter, though the Benga l i s, who make u p the bu l k of I nd i a ' s domest ic tour ists , a re comi ng i n d roves . So a re tour i sts from u p north . Hote l s and f l ights a re fu l ly booked for the next two months. I n the ear ly 1 990s , the Anda m a ns used to get a round 1 0 ,000 to 1 2 ,000 tourists a year. By 2000 tour ist traff ic had grown 1 0·fo ld . But after the tsunami the monthly average fel l to about 500. Now the Centra l Government i s encouraging i ts employees to travel to the is lands on hol iday and offer ing them free a ir fares.

The is lands need to i m prove thei r i nfrastructure l i ke i nter· i s l and sh i ppi ng and better hote l s and connect ions to the main land to exploit the i r tou rism potenti a l . Even foreign tour a nd travel compan ies have begun i nvesti ng i n resorts he re. Sr i La n ka ' s top hospita l i ty cha i n , Atki ns Spence has t ied u p with the Andamans ' Ba refoot group to develop a resort in Havelock Is land and a few more el sewhere. (Tourism t ime i n the Andamans, Sub i r Bhaumik , TH .B, 04.01 .06 , S40)

Apart from the destruction caused by the tsunami , the Andaman and N icoba r I sl ands a re witnessing a nother problem , a d ivide between the local triba l population a nd the main land settlers. The tr iba ls want the main landers to leave. The tr ibal heads have given a written peti t ion to the Pr ime M in i ster, Manmohan S i ngh. The issue a l so came u p duri ng the three·day tr ip of the Un ion Home M in i ster, Shivraj Pati ! . M r. Pat i l , however, d ismissed it a s temporary fear of exploitation by the non·tri ba ls . "Someti mes the loca l tr ibal people feel that they would have to share the i r natural resources a nd land with the main l anders. They have a lso compla ined of i nd i scri minate fel l ing of t rees but they wi l l have to get over i t " .

Ayesha Begum, cha i rperson of the Tri bal Counc i l of the N ancowrie group of i s l ands , a l l eged that the non · tr iba ls were "eat i ng" i nto the i r resources and even explo i t ing the loca l popu lat ion . She sa id they wa nted t he Defence personne l and the Government employees to stay and the bus i nessmen and the ret i red peop le to leave. Ayesha Begum expressed unha pp i ness with the Centra l Government for its fa i l u re in helpi ng the triba l s to start afresh after the tsunami . "We a re dependent on Government re l ief, wh ich i s not coming. If we were given tools to c lear the debris and construction materi a l l i ke bamboo, we wou ld have bu i l t houses i n our own way, " she sa i d .

I Documenta t ion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

On the other hand , a l a rge number of S i kh fam i l i es , mai n ly ret i red servi cemen who settl ed i n the N icobar I s lands i n 1 969 under a Government scheme, have expressed the i r des i re to go back to the mai n land . The Government scheme envisaged sett l i ng 500 reti red Defence person ne l on the I sland by givi ng them incentives such as free land for farming. However, the project was abandoned m idway. Of the 1 00 Sikh fami l ies brought here, 70 made the is land the i r home. (Andaman tr iba ls want main landers to leave, Aarti Dhar, TH .B, 1 7 .02 .05, S40)

Andaman I s lands have received the top rank ing i n the selection of 1 0 top beaches of the world . The U n ion M i n i ster of Tour ism and Cu l ture, Amb ika Son i , told the Rajya Sabha a German tou r operator De Ruiter had selected the world's best 1 0 beaches. Top rank i ng was given to Andaman I s lands fol lowed by Lakshadweep, Ma ld ives and Seyche l l es . H i s assessment was based on veri f i ab le factors such as sand qua l i ty, d epth of water, etc. T I M E magaz ine had ea rl ier dec lared beach No .7 , Havelock I s land i n the Andamans as the "Best beach in As ia . " (To p rank ing for Andaman beach , TH .D, 24.02.06, S40)

I n an attempt to turn Andaman & N icobar I s land i nto a major tour ism hub, the government is cons ider ing a s l ew of measures i nc l ud ing t u rn i ng the domest i c a i rport i n the u n ion terr i tory ( UT) i nto an i nternationa l a i rport, open i ng 15 new i s lands to tour ists and develop i ng 50 new s i tes for h igh-end tour ism. The P l ann i ng Commiss ion , approved a sum of Rs 235 crore for the UT under the Raj iv Gandh i Rehab i l i tat ion Package i n addi t i on t o the p lan s i ze of R s 1 1 20 crore. Accord i ng t o sources, d raft terms and cond it ions for leas i ng the 50 ident i f ied l ocat ions for eco-fr i end ly promotion has been c leared by the M i n i stry of Tour is m . ( 1 5 new i s l ands i n Andaman to be opened to touri sts, Amit i Sen , FE .B, 1 8.03.06, S40)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documcntat ion Upda te I

• T - FOREIGN COUNTR I ES . TOO Internationa l Tour ism Vol u mes and Patterns

World tour i sm revenue rose 10 % to a record $622 b i l l ion i n 2004 a s North Amer ican tour i s t rece i pts i ncreased for the f i rst t i me s ince 2001 , the World Tourism Orga n izat ion sa i d . The US had the most revenue from touri sm as recei pts rose 16 percent to $75 b i l l ion . Spa i n was the second - l a rgest tou ri sm ma rket with $45 .2 b i l l ion in revenue, and France was th i rd at $40.8 b i l l ion . Tourist a rriva ls rose 1 1 percent to 760 m i l l ion last yea r, the fastest rate of growth in 20 yea rs , a s tou rism p icked u p in the wake of the war in I raq a nd the conta i nment of severe acute respi ratory syndrome. ( 'World tou ri sm revenue rose to a record in 2004' , FE .C, 2 l .07 .05 , TOO)

Ja pa nese and Ch i nese t rave l l ers a re to set to cha l l enge the dom i na nce of the Germans over the next 1 5 yea rs for the t i t le of wor ld 's most prol if ic g lobe-trotters, accord i ng to a su rvey. Resea rch compa ny M I NTEL sa id Japa n and Ch ina wi l l generate a round fou r t i mes as many outbound tr ips i n 2020 as they d id last yea r, making them number two and three respectively beh ind Germany M INTEL's Richard Cope sa id both countries wou ld be d riven by growth in the i r bus i ness and l e i su re ma rkets . (Asi a n s to cha l l enge German tou ri s m record , says study, FE .B, 2 l .0 l .06, TOO)

I nternat iona l tou rist a rr iva l s a re expected to grow by between 4 % a n d 5 %, says the U n i ted Nat ion World Tour ism Orga n isat ion (U NWTO). In i ts qua rterly 'World Tour ism Barometer' report, rel eased recently, the UNWTO says that Asia - Pac i f ic and West Asia a re forecast to exh ib it strong growth of a round 9 % and 8 % respectively, wh i le more moderate growth i n i nternational tou ri st a rriva l s i s expected in Europe, the Americas and Afr ica . The report a l so revea ls that i nternat iona l tou rist a rriva l s in 2005 grew by 5 . 5 %, conti n u i ng the u pwa rd trend witnessed in 2004. Last yea r, there were an estimated 808 m i l l ion i nternationa l tourist a rriva ls , u p from 766 m i l l ion i n 2004. I n 2005 , the highest growth rate i n i nte rnat iona l tou rist a rr iva l s was i n Africa esti mated to be 1 0 %. Duri ng the same period, Asi a -Pacif ic regi stered an estimated growth rate of 7 %, the Amer icas 6 %, West Asia 7 % and Eu rope 4 %, the report adds. Wh i le l e i sure tou ri sm is be l ieved to have outperformed busi ness tour ism, the globa l M ICE (meeti ngs, i ncentives, conferences and exh i bit ions) market has p i cked u p last yea r, the report says. However, th i s ma rket has seen changes with i ncentive meeti ngs i n crea si ngly be ing combi ned with bus i ness meeti ngs to just i fy costs , save on tax and maxi mise employee motivation . (Global tou r ist a rr iva l s l i kely to grow 4-5 pc, Sankar Radhakr ishnan , BL .B, 28.0 1 .06, TOO)

T10 South Asi a

The emergency a nd fea r of i nsurgency have cast a shadow over touri sm. There a re no buyers for souven i rs of d i sp lay at Kathma n d u 's Tha mel , Du rba r Square, Ki ng's Way a nd N ew Roa d , cons idered to be shopp ing pa rad i ses. Shops sel l i ng a rtefacts, hand icrafts, mounta i neeri ng gea rs a nd e lectron ic goods look empty, so a re hote ls a nd restau ra nts. The steep decl i ne i n tou r ism becomes gla ri ngly vi s i b le when you move outs ide Kathma ndu . There, one can a l so see the effect of long-drawn battle between the Maoists a nd the Government. "Bus i ness is down a l most 70 percent . We get a major share of our tou r ists from I nd i a _ And we've only t i l l May-end t o catch u p, " says Kri shna Katwa l , manager of a hote l i n Naga rkot . I t 's not t h a t t h e Maoi sts a re everywhere. I n fact, there 's no sign of them a nywhere at major touri st dest inat ions l i ke Pokhara, Bha ktapur, Nagarkot , Jomosom etc. Though a bit uncomfortable under the loomi ng presence of army men who z ip past a nd stop by to ta ke a close look, tou ri sts feel re lat ive ly safe at many of the tour ism hotspots. I t 's only the fea r that is stopping them from f locki ng i n . But aga i n , the s ituat ion may be d i fferent in far-f lung a reas of the country that a re beyond the reach of the Kathma ndu's rul i ng class. (Kathmandu breathes easy under King; But fea r factor leaves Nepa l 's tou r ism i ndustry gaspi ng for breath , Ki ra n Pra kash , I E. B, 1 3 .04.05, nO)

Ta rgeting rel igious tourists of South Ind ia , Nepal ; s hold i ng road shows to woo them with specia l packages to the Pasupath i nath temple, be s ides offer ing trad i t iona l fare such as t rekk ing and l e i su re ho l idays. After a presentat ion a nd i nteraction with tour operators of the state the Nepa l tou r ism Boa rd (NTB) Ma nager, M r. Ujjwala Da l i , sa id the H imalayan Ki ngdom witnessed a boom i n i nflow of I nd ian tourists, prompti ng it to launch

I Documentation Update 1 2005 -0 6

a focused market ing strategy for South I nd ia . The NTB has cha l ked out spec ia l package for a Pashu pat inath temple for the forthcoming Sh ivratri festiva l on February 26. Other a reas of in terest inc luded l eisure hol idays, adventu re , trekki ng a nd honeymoon destinations, board offic ia ls sa id . (Nepal woos tourists from South I nd ia . , BL .C , 2 7 . 0 1 .06, n O)

Despite being haun ted by extremism and i ts vu l nera b i l ity to repeated natura l ca l am it ies that affected i ts tour i st dest i nat ions , S ri Lanka i s spar i ng n o efforts to keep i t s r ich tou ri sm potent ia l a l ive. Severa l new i n i ti at ives a re being contemplated to attract more tourists from I nd i a , part icu l ar ly, Karnata ka . Sri Lankan tou r ism m in i ster Anura Bandarana i ke, who was here i n connection with open ing of a n office of h is country's board of i nvestments (BOI) , sa id that h i s government was tryi ng to attract both software professiona l s a nd tourists from I nd ia as they, un l i ke European tourists whose interest i s ma i n ly cu ltural and educationa l , knew his country's potent ia l for i nvestment in both the a reas. Sri Lanka 's BOI a l so wou ld embark on ' I nd ia speci f ic tour ism promotion campa ign' to encourage I nd i ans to vis i t the is land. The present a rrangement of 'v isa on a rriva l ' wou l d conti nue s i nce the system was expected to bri ng more v is i tors to h is country, Bandara n a i ke sa id .

The h i ghest number of tou r ists (5 , 56 ,202) to Sri Lanka was in 2004 fetch i n g a record revenue of $ 4 1 6 m i l l ion. Thi s yea r's revenue i s expected to reach $ 600 m i l l ion . The tourist f low was unabated despite tsunami devastat ion; he sa id and expected thei r number to i n crease by 1 .30 l a kh . I t was i n ant ic i pat ion of th is that Sri Lankan government was taking a number of i n it iat ives to make the tourists' stay safe and comfortable, he s a i d . Bandara n a i ke was ha ppy to d isc lose that the tou r i sm sector had generated a bout 1 . 1 2 l akh jobs, d i rectly or i nd i rectly, i n h is country. The Sri Lan ka n government was a l so cons ider i ng br inging in a new law soon provid i ng for sett i ng up of bu reaus , even by private enterpri ses, to professiona l i se tou r ism. The BO I a l so wou ld be u pgraded to 'tou r ism deve lopment a uthority' and a rmed with more powers, backed by due l egis l at ions, to develop tour ism, Bandarana i ke sai d . Sr i Lan ka wou l d a lso embark on ' I nd ia specif ic tourism promotion campaign' to encou rage I nd i ans to visit the I sl and . The present a rrangement of 'v isa on a rriva l ' wou l d conti nue s i nce the system was expected t o br ing more v isitors (Lanka wants t o attract touri sts from State, VT.B , 26.05.05 , n O)

Sr i Lanka n A i r l i nes has t ied u p wi th the M a l ays i a n Tour i sm Promot ion Board for a jo int promotion of the tour ism destinat ions of thei r respective countries in Kera l a . Sr i Lan ka is currently promoting travel to the Far East from South I nd i a . The a i rl i ne has annou nced attract ive fa res fo r travel to S i ngapore, Kua l a Lu mpur, Bei j i ng, Bangkok and Hong Kong. The fares a re a n attractive 30% l ower than normal fares . A rou nd 22 top agents a n d tou r operators f rom T i ruva nanthapura m a n d Kozh i kode wou l d be fa m i l a ri sed with the top dest inat ions of the two countries in a 5 ·night tr i p cover i ng Colombo, Ma lacca and Kua l a Lumpur. (Sri La nkan t ies up with Ma l aysi a n tour ism, ET.B, 1 5 .02.06, n O)

Trave l l i ng from I nd ia to Southeast As ia by road or ra i l cou ld soon become a rea l ity, with the concl us ion of a fea s i bi l i ty report on a ra i l l i nk between I nd ia and Mya nmar, wh i l e another study exam ines prospects for a n I nd i a ·V ietnam l i nk . The Pr ime M i n i ster, D r M a n mohan S i ngh , a nd Asean leaders felt t h e need t o enhance connectiv ity between the two reg ions a nd sa id that the f i rst stage of the De lh i -Hanoi fea s i b i l ity study was u nder way. D r S i ngh a l so d iscussed the tr i lateral road project between I nd ia -Myanmar-Tha i l and . A successfu l car ra l ly was held from Guwahat i to Vient i ane in Laos a few years ago, a proof of the geographica l prox imity between I nd ia a nd South East Asia . (Push for ra i l , road l i nks p lan with Mya n mar, BL .B, 1 4. 1 2 .05 , n O)

T20 South East Asi a

I nd ian cou ples c a n now look forward to solemn is ing thei r marr iages i n Ma lays i a . A s part of a n effort t o woo I nd ians p l ann ing to get married , Tour ism Ma laysia has sent a g roup of eight wedd ing p lanners from I nd i a to M a l ays i a to show them f i rst h a nd what the country has to offer for those seek i ng to t i e the knot. Bes ides , there wi l l a l so be a b lend of I nd i a ness a s M a la ys i a has 2 .2 m i l l i on I nd i ans and a l l materia l s re la ted to an I nd i a n marr iage a re eas i ly ava i l ab le there . However, a s in the case of other exotic desti nat ions , the target aud ience is l i ke ly to he aff l uent I nd ians looking for a va l ue-for-money proposit ion. The promoters of the new concept a re hopi ng that with each wedding party havi ng about 1 00- 1 50 people, it would be a win-w in situation for Ma l ays i a a nd the bride and groom. (Ma lays ia courts I nd i an couples, B L . B, 04.09.05, T20)

With i ncreased tou r i st a rr iva l s in M a l ays i a from I nd i a , part icu la r ly f ro m Chenna i , Ba nga l ore, Koc h i a nd Hyderabad , Ma l ays ia i s work ing out moda l i t ies to i ssue e lectron i c v isa (e-vi sa).

2 005 - 0 6 1 DoclI1Hel l ia l ioll llpc/ule 1 Author i sed t ravel agents i n Banga lore a n d other c i t ies w i l l be a bl e to provide the e-visa . At p resent , v i sa app l i cati ons a re routed to the Chenna i Consu late. E-vi sa i s bei ng p l anned to i ncrease the num be r of tourist a rriva ls from I nd ia , for which Tourism Malays ia has embarked on a Rs. 1 2·crore campaign. I nd ia has moved to the 9th posit ion a mong the countries that recorded maximum tourist a rr iva l s . I n 2005 , the number of I nd ian a rr iva l s i n M a l ays ia exceeded 2 . 1 0 l akhs a n d the country i s ta rgeti ng 3 .5 l a kh v i s i tors next yea r, when Ma laysi a celebrates i t s golden jub i l ee. (Ma l ays i a p lans e·visa for I nd i an tour ists, T H . B, 03.03.06, T20)

S inga pore scrapped a four decade ban on casinos to boost tour ism, clear ing the way for compan ies i nc lud ing Las Vegas Sands Corp a nd MGM mi rage to compete for the right to bu i l d a n enterta i nment complex i n the c ity. The government may a l l ow two casinos, i n downtown S i ngapore and on the is land of Sentosa. It wi l l seek deta i led p l a n s from deve lopers, hav ing received 1 9 p roposa l s a l ready. Lee sa id two cas i no resorts may create as many as 3 5 , 000 jobs. They may a l so l u re tour i sts to a c i ty to expand th is yea r at h a lf the 8.4% pace of 2004. The Chi nese c i ty of Macau , where 1 7 cas i nos operate, had three t imes the economic growth and twi ce as many v isitors a s S i ngapore i n 2004.

The project faces opposi t ion i n a nat ion where f i l ms a re censored and drug dealers a re executed . Rel igious and soc ia l groups such as Focus on the Fami ly say cas inos may lead to more loan sharking and prost itut ion , and l u re peop le i nto dept . To a l l eviate concern , the government proposed a S$1 00 da i ly l evy on cit izens and permanent res idents enteri ng the cas ino . (S i nga pore to a l l ow cas i nos to boost tou ri sm , add jobs , FE . B , 1 9 .04.05, T20)

With I nd ians emerging as the top spenders a mong tour ists vis it i ng S i ngapore , the southeast As ian cou nt ry i s now wooing the nouveau r iche from smal l er towns a n d c it ies . I nd ians on a n average stay for s ix days and the i r spen d i ng i s near ly $ 300. Ja panese spend h igher than them, but the i r a verage stay i s just fo r three days. Si ngapore received a record 47 1 ,000 I nd ian vis i tors in 2004, mak ing it sixth l a rgest vis i tor generati ng market . Tr i s represents a 25% growth over the p revious record of 375 ,000 I nd i a ns i n 2002. (Si ngapore tou r ism eyes towns , metros i n I nd i a , FE .B , 07.05.05, T20)

The S i ngapore Government is now focusing on the hospital tourism and education sectors. Service i ndustries a rc a l s o be i ng encouraged to set up base . I nternat ion a l U n ivers it ies i nc l ud i ng M assachusetts I nsti tute of Technology (M IT) and Stanford have col l aborated with l oca l ones to offer degrees i n the country. Currently there a re a round 4,000 students i n S i ngapore. l i T M u m ba i has a l so t i ed up with NTU, S i nga pore to offer courses. The country i s a l so i nv i t ing entrepreneurs. Accord i ng to the Wor ld Bank Report , S ingapore i s t he second eas iest p l ace to set u p bus i ness. (S i nga pore sh ifts foc u s to hospita l tou ri sm, educat ion , B L . B , 1 7 . 1 2 .05 , T20)

A local government campa ign to attract more bathers to a South Korea n beach resort by offer ing i ncentives to swimmers wearing b ik in is has upset women's rights activi sts. Ahead of the peak summer bath ing season , Buan County admin i stra t ion south·west of Seou l ren amed its Byeonsan Beach B i k i n i Beach and promised wearers of sk impy swi msuits a 1 0 % d iscount on b i l l s for hote ls , mea l s and beach equ ipment renta ls . The county put u p wa l l posters with pictu res of b ik i n i ·c lad bea uties a nd the i n scr i pt ion : "Show off your beauty and get a 1 0 % d i scount ." Women's groups denounced the campaign as exploitat ion. "Th i s i s a n outrageous attempt to stimulate the regional economy by exploiting the female sex," said a statement from the association of women activists of North Jeol l a Province.

A campaign to a ttract more vis i tors should focus on pub l icis ing the county's "natura l beauty i n stead of the n a ked fema le body, " i t sa id . But officia l s at the Bua n county off ice were u n repentant and sa id by telephone that they had no plan to stop the campaign. " I don't understand why they a re so angry. Thi s i s just part of a pub l i c i ty campa ign a i med a t promot i ng the name of the B i k i n i Beach . We have no i ntention to exp lo i t o r commerc ia l ise the female sex, " sa id a n offi c i a l . (B ik in i Beach angers women's group, BL. B, 09.07.05, T20)

T30 East As ia

Chi na's rap id economic growth has fostered a tourist boom a mong the ma in l and Ch i nese, with South·east Asia the favourite dest in at ion , at least for now. The surge in package tou r groups f rom Ch ina , an i mportant source of i ncome for the region , is a l so givi ng r ise to an u nfla tter ing stereotype: the loud, rude a nd cultu ra l ly na ive Chi nese tourist.

I DO(,WllCll tu tion Update 1 2 0 05 - 0 6

The t ide of t rave l lers from Ch ina m i rrors the emergence of v i rtua l ly every group of overseas tourists s ince the Romans, from Br itons behaving badly in the Victor ian era and ugly A mericans in post·war Europe to the snap shot·happy Japanese of the 1 980's.

So it is not much of a surpr i se that touri sts from ma in l and Ch ina , often goi ng a broad for the f i rst t i me, a re l eaving s im i l a r compl a i nts i n their wake. But Ch ina i s a l so manufactu ri ng i ts own twist on the age·o ld ta le , a s became a pparent i n Ju ly when a group of more than 300 from Ch ina took umbrage a t i l l u strations of a p ig's face on the i r check· i n vouchers at a cas ino resort i n predominant ly Mus l im Ma laysia .

So far; on ly a n estimated 2 % of Ch i na 's popu l at ion ventures abroad each yea r, a ccord i ng to a recent report on Chi n a tour i sm by ClSA Emerging Markets in Hong Kong. But the Wor ld Tour ism Organ ization pred i cts that Ch ina w i l l become the world 's fourth· l a rgest source of overseas tour ists by 2020. Groups from Ch ina began trave l l i ng to Euro pe l a st yea r. And i f the Un i ted States agrees to grant v isas to Ch ina 's tou ri sts, ana lysts say it w i l l u ndoubted ly be a top dest i nat ion .

Clean and safe, S ingapore, with its l a rge Mandari n ·speak ing popu lat ion, attracts more Chi nese tourists than a ny of i ts Southeast Asi a n ne ighbours. The typ ica l v is i t to Si ngapore i s just three days. The average i n come i s st i l l below $2,000 a year, and most tour ists from Ch ina s ign u p for $250 package tours that wh isk them through as many as f ive cou ntries in a week .

Many of these tours a re what the i ndustry ca l l s zero·do l l a r tou rs, provid i ng no profit m a rgi n . I nstead, the a gents make thei r money by divert ing the i r groups to jewel l ers or restau ra nts that give them a commiss ion on sa les .

Whi l e some a n a lysts say Ch i na 's touri sts have dub ious benefits to regiona l tour ism, others a rgue that they have a broader economic i mpact . U n l i ke Wester ners or Japanese who sp l u rge on expens ive resorts and spend thei r ent i re vacat ion sunbathi ng, they say, the Ch inese devote a g reater pro- port ion o f the i r ho l iday t ime to s ight· see ing and shopping.

C h i n a 's tou r ists stand apar t from other tour ists i n other ways, say members of S i ngapore 's hosp i ta l i ty i nd u stry. "They ' re more demand ing , " sa id Johnson L i m , who hand les g roups from C h i na for a loca l t ravel agency. Boon Sang Li p, a souven i r stand operator, put it more bl untly: "They l i ke to ta l k i n a loud and not very pol ite way." When they check i nto hote ls , for i nstance, many tourists from Ch ina demand the top floors. Some feel e nt i tled to take souven irs l i ke hotel p i l lows. But much of the behaviour stems from i nexperience. Chi nese cit izens may travel only to countries on a government·approved l i st . I ndividua l travels , whi Ie possi ble, requ i res onerous paperwork, so most Chi nese t ravel in l a rge groups. For a l l the cha l lenges, Ch i na 's tour ist m igrations represent a l ucrative source of i ncome that countr ies l i ke S i ngapore a re vyi n g to attract. Cas i nos a re one case i n poi nt . With cas i nos i l l ega l in C h i n a , v i rtu a l ly every tr i p a broad i nc ludes such a v i s i t . (We l comi ng Ch inese, But Not The i r Style, Wayne Arnold , AA. D, 29 . 10 .05 , T30)

T40 Middle East/West ICentra l Asia

Russ ia says l i be ra l i s i ng its visa reg ime w i l l be a major po int on i ts agenda with I nd i a i n the coming yea r. I t hopes t o settle a l l outstanding issues concern i ng " immigration" and "re·admission" and conclude an agreement. The move fol lows pers istent demands by I nd i an busi nessmen and i ndustry a l i ke for eas ing the v isa regu l at ions in order to give a much·needed fi l l i p to the I n do· Russi an b i l ateral trade and a l so boost I ndian i nvestments in Russ i a . Concerns had a l so been expressed after I nd i a came to be associated with countr ies of potenti a l i mmigrants w h o made the i r w ay i nto E u rope v ia Russ i a . (Russ ia w a nts t o e a s e v isa ru les , Ramesh Ramachandra n , AA. B, 26. 1 2 .05 , T40)

T50 Afr ica

Kenya tour i sm has dec ided to step up i ts ca mpa ign in I nd i a w i th a focus on the FIT (free i nd iv idua l travel) m arket . Over 32 ,000 I nd i ans l ast yea r v is i ted the African republ i c , known wor ld over for its w i ld l i fe safar is . The n umber of I nd i a n v isi tors has been r is i ng s i nce 2001 when on ly a modest 9,000 people v is i ted Kenya . The tou r i s m board offic i a l s sa id I nd i a n a rriva l s were u p 3 1 % l a st yea r. Th i s yea r the ta rget was a 3 5%

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I i ncrease i n traff ic over the '05 base. I nd i an v is i tor spends was a lso on the r ise spend ing $200/300 a day, the durat ion of stay in Kenya had gone u p from 4/5 days to 9/ 1 0 days now.

Tour ism recei pts for Kenya were i n the region of $550/560 m i l l ion l ast ca lendar. I nternat iona l a rr iva ls were about 1 .6 mi l l ion , spl i t equa l ly between cross· border tou r ists a n d v is i tors from outside the conti nent . The l argest contingent of tourists was from Europe and the US, wh i le I nd ia was the biggest contri butor from Asi a , offic ia l s . (Kenya Tour ism to Focus On F I T Ma rket, 1 8.02.06, T50)

T60 Europe

An I nd i an trave l ler to Europe now need never worry how to explore the continent. Ra i l Europe, a joi nt venture of the French a n d Swiss nat iona l ra i lways, w i l l ta rget trave l l ers t h rough i ts newly·opened l i a i son off ice i n Bangalore. Ra i l Europe, based i n Pa r is , i s i n charge of promot ion a n d sa le of Europea n ra i l t i ckets i n Asi a , Austri a , Afr ica and South America. I t h a s a lso opened a l i a ison off ice i n Mumba i . Ra i l Europe does n ot sel l t ickets d i rect ly to the end-consumer, but promotes and sel l s through a network of 70 genera l sa les agents throughout the world. Ra i l Eu rope offers Eura i l passes that enables one to v is it 17 countries i nc lud ing Austria , Belgi u m , Denmark , F i n l a n d , Fra nce, Germa ny, Greece, Hu ngary, I ta ly, Luxemburg, N etherla nds , Norway, Portuga l , Repub l ic of I re land , Spa i n , Sweden and Switzer land. I t a l so offers poi nt-to-po int t ickets and t ra i n journey reservat ions o n t h e Channe l tunne l t ra i n Eurosta r a n d t h e h igh·speed tra i n from Par is t o Brussels , Amsterd a m a nd Cologne. The Eu ra i l passes ent it le one to free o r d i scou nt fare travel on ferries and buses. The pr ices range from $588 to $ 1 ,654. (Ra i l Europe opens office in !3angalore , I E .C , 26.08.05, T60)

I Documentat ion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

• U - I NTERNATIONAL ECONOMY .

U 30 GATT/World Trade Organ isat ion

To wrest benef ic ia l reci procity from the developed world , New Del h i set to rob itself of the freedom to reverse FDI pol ic ies once they a re l i bera l i sed autonomously. I n i ts revi sed offer on serv ices to be made shortly under WTO's Doha round , I nd i a is l i kely to effect substant ia l qua l i tative improvements in 'Modes' and the n umber of services. ( Fresh services offer may b i nd I nd i a to sectora l FDI caps , K G N a rendra nath , FE .B, 2 5 .05 .05 , U30)

The European Un ion offered ' improved' access for foreign companies to its service i ndustries such as banki ng, energy and tour ism, a key step in negotiat ions for a globa l free t rade pact. The EU's revised offer comes a mid in tense debate over how far too open u p the service sector across 25-nation bloc itself, with western European countr ies a nxious a bout the prospects of low-cost competit ion from new members to the east. Sent by the European Com miss ion to the Geneva -based Wor ld 'Trad e Organ i sat ion (WTO), the offer exempts f rom i nternat iona l competi t ion sens i t ive sectors that provide publ ic services. (EU widens access to services for WTO dea l , FE .B, 03 .06 .05 , U30)

I nd i a has sa id that the 'env i ronment project a p proach' ( E PA) i t sugge sted for identi fyi ng envi ron menta l goods for preferenti a l tariff treatment cannot be complementa ry to the ' l i st approach' bei ng promoted by deve loped countr ies l i ke the US and the EU. Stat ing that it was a sta nd a lone approach , I nd i a i nv i ted Wor ld Trade Organ isati on (WTO) members to del i berate on the structu ral and substantive d i mensions of the E PA. C urrent ly, d i scuss ions a re on at the WTO committee on t rade a n d env i ro nment (CTE) on ways to ident ify envi ron menta l goods that should be given preferenti a l ta riff treatment by members. The Doha dec la rat ion (whi ch is the bas i s for the on-going round) had mandated the e l i m i nat ion of ta riff and non·ta riff barr iers to trade in envi ronmenta l goods and services.

As per the l i st a pproach , members a re supposed to agree on a l i st of env i ronmental products which wou ld be given preferenti a l tar i ff t reatment . I nd i a , however, fee l s that the a pproach i s com p l i cated as i t i s very d ifficu lt to a rrive at a consensus on what products shou ld qua l i ty as environment products. I nstead , I nd ia i s advocat i n g t h e E PA , u nder wh ich p referenti a l ta riff treatment wou ld b e on ly given to t h e products used i n identif ied envi ronmenta l projects.

Many deve lop ing countr ies have expressed the i r i nab i l ity to contri bute effect ively to the debate and have a perception that the ' l i st a pproach' only succeeds i n expanding market access for developed country products without concomitant benefits to developing countries .

Accord ing to Ind ia 's p lans , a l l countries should put i n place a Designated Nat ional Authority (DNA) to identify envi ronmental projects. The WTO CTE would formulate late the criteria to be a ppl ied by the DNA in determ in ing if a n envi ronmenta l project qua l if ies for tariff concessions on envi ronmental goods and services. The D NA's role wou ld be that of examin i ng a pp l i cations i n l ight of those cri teria . (I nd ia pushes for eco p roject a pproach for ta riff benefits , Amit i Sen , FE. B, 07.07.05, U30)

I nd i a has stepped up i ts efforts to strengthen its a l l i a nce with G-33 countr ies a n d h a s a l so become a n aggressive pa rtner i n the A B I group (Argent i na , B raz i l and I nd ia) t o ta ke on t h e U S , EU and other nat ions at the proposed WTO m i n i ster ia l meeti ng. As a part of i ts strategy, I nd i a , amid renewed bonhomie w i th the US and EU, has p l a n ned to a ggressive ly seek a com mitment from t hese countr ies on cross border serv ices, specif ica l ly trade reform that wou l d ensure outsourc i ng to I nd i a i s not p roh ibited. I nd i a has put forwa rd a services offer which makes fresh commitments on Mode 3 (a l lowing establ ishment of commercia l presence) and Model 1 (cover i ng crossborder supply of services). I t has a l so ca l l ed u pon the US and other nat ions to lower custom duties. I nd ia has a l ready communicated to WTO members i ts stand on further i mprovement on Mode4 (services a n d trade) . M ode 4 addressed the movement of natura l persons and rel ates to v isa regu l at ions. ( I nd i a to see k commitments on outsourc ing at WTO meet, Sanjay Jog, FE .B, 1 6.09.05, U30)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Docmnentatioll Update I Undoubted ly the outcome of the S ixth M i n i steria l Conference of the World Trade Orga n i sat ion (WTO) that conc luded i n Hong Kong on December 25 was modest . The biggest ach ievement is that the Min i steri a l d id not flop. A second col l apse after Cancun would have been real ly disastrous for the mult i latera l trad ing system . Whi le a fa i led M in i steri a l puts the agenda i n a reverse gea r, a successfu l one at lea st sends a posit ive s igna l . The second important result i s, for the second t ime i n a row, countries of the South not on ly rema ined un ited, but reinforced their un i ty, tel l i ng the North that enough is enough.

Ca ncun to Hong Kong: After the Cancun f iasco, i t took three-four months for the negot iators to come to the negotiat ing ta ble and resume the d ia logue. Th is resu lted in the "July Package" , wh ich once aga in ra i sed the e�pectat ions of the deve lop ing countr ies . A las , the euphor ia created by the J u ly Fra mework Agreement proved short- l ived . Back home, WTO members succumbed to the rea l pol i t ic a nd started s inging in d ifferent tunes. The result : The Doha Round once aga i n p l unged i nto serious cris is . Thi s is evident from the fact that in the run up to the Hong Kong M in i steria l , the draft decla ration was supposed to be released after the Genera l Counc i l (GC) meet i ng of J u ly 05, i n what was ca l led "Ju ly Approxi mat ions" . But the GC meet ing fa i led to evol ve a consensus.

What happened at Hong Kong? The Hong Kong Min ister ia l Meeti ng began on a pessim ist ic note. I t turned i nto a fou r·corner contest, w i th the G·20 a n d the G·33 on one s ide, a nd the EU, the US a nd the l ea st deve loped cou ntries (LDCs) on the other. As usua l . deve loped countr ies started sheddi ng crocod i l e tears for LDCs. A p lethora of ho l low promises i n the form "a i d for trade" , duty- and quota ·free market a ccess and many more were served to the LDCs. The main objective was to shift the focus from the core agenda of trade l i bera l isat ion. The G·20 a n d the G·33, on the i r pa rt, tr ied to be practica l . They rea l i sed that i t wou ld be foo l i sh to expect any ambitious resu l t from Hong Kong, given the preva i l i ng d ivergence of opinions on agriculture. They deman ded that on export subsid ies, as per the " Ju ly Fra mework" Agreement, the WTO members had to agree only on the end date of the ir e l im i nat ion , which wou l d have been the easiest th ing to implement .

Unfortunately, i n stead of d i scuss ing th is , the two major t rad ing giants , the EU and the US, got enta ngled i n a dog a nd cat fight over givi ng food a i d to poor countr ies. Fi na l ly, on December 1 6 , the f i rst·ever jo int G-20 and G ·90 M i n i steri a l · leve l meet ing took p l ace. The Commerce M i n i ster, Mr Kama l Nath, and his Brazi l i a n counterpart, Mr Celso Amorin , were both i nstrumental i n bui ld ing this grand a l l i ance of 1 10 countries covering four·fifth of the humanity. Thi s thwarted and ca l led the bluff of the r ich countries to l u re the LDCs and d ivide the u n ity of the South.

End res u lt of Hong Kong: The outcome of Hong Kong was modest, wh ich was not u n expected . The ma i n demand of the G·20 t o e l iminate export subsidies by 2010 was not accepted by the EU; i nstead , a compromise date of 2 0 1 3 was agreed with some fron t loa d i ng. Th is a l so cu lm inates w i th the EU Common Agricu l tu ra l Pol i cy reform . What i s most u nfortu nate i s that the l anguage on export subs id ies has been made more complex. The G·20 can no more say that th is wi l l be easy to i mp lement. On provid i ng duty a n d quota-free market access to LDCs, the demand of i nc lud ing a l l products has not been accepted unequ ivoca l ly. However, the text on non-agr icu ltura l market access (NAMA) gives a sense of comfort to some extent a s ta riff peaks a n d e sca lat ion wou l d be reduced or a ppropr iate ly e l i m i nated by u s i ng the Swiss Form u l a w i th mu l t i p l e coeff ic ients. P reference eros ion , wh ich is one o f the major fea rs o f LDCs, has been recogn i sed i n the text.

Lessons from Hong Kong: Develop ing countries need to deve lop a n a l ternative to Northern markets. Thi s i s only poss ible through greater South·South cooperation o n trade a nd economic i ssues. Th is shou ld a lso cover the larger issues of techn ica l assistance and capacity-bui ld ing. Greater South·South trade wi l l further strengthen d i fferent South a l l i a n ces i n the WTO wh ich , at present , a re more pol i t i ca l i n nature. Over the l as t decade ( 1 990·2001 ), developi ng economies have grown much faster than deve loped ones and transit ion countries a nd a re expected to conti nue to do so in the coming yea rs. (Another show of South sol i da r i ty, Pradeep S. Mehta & Pranav Kumar, B L . B, 29. 12 .05 , U30)

U31 GATS

As trade ta l ks gather force towards the S ixth M in i steria l Meet at Hong Kong, the Genera l Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) cont inues to stump negotiators. With on ly 50 countries (counti ng the 25 EU members as one) maki ng 'offers' so far, services, a long with agricu lture, i s expected to be a key a rea of contention at the December summit .

I Documentation Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

GATS continues to be 'worki ng progress' : A mong the 1 2 services sectors u nder the GATS, tou r ism has seen the most act ion . At l a st count , 1 25 of its 1 48 members had made commitments to open the i r tou r i sm sectors. The i m p l i cat ion of th i s i s that most WTO members cons ider free trade ru les i n touri s m a s good pol i cy. I nd i a a l ready has a h ighly l i bera l i sed tou ri sm pol icy and i n a submission to the WTO in January 2004, i t s igna l led its i ntention to further open up.

Tourism is a very complex sector, c losely l i n ked to abroad range of economic, soc ia l and cultura l pol i cies a nd has spi l l -over i mpacts i nto many other sectors of a n economy. U nfortunate ly, pol i cymakers seem obl ivious to these concerns , reflected by the fact that tour i sm pol i cy i n the country i s character i sed by lack of p roper laws a nd violat ions of those in p lace.

Recent a n a lys is by EQUAT I O N S, a po l i cy resea rch NGO·based i n Banga lore , shows it is p reci sely th i s envi ronment of u nderdeve loped pol i cy and poor implementation, combined with the pressure to make Gats commit me nts that creates a rea l threat to the a dvancement of a susta i n ab le tour i sm po l i cy. G iven the d i ve rsity that exists in terms of tou r ist dest i nat ions i n I nd i a a n d correspond i n g pol i cy req u i rements, it i s opt imal that the representative governments of the area effectively enforce p lann ing, regu l ation and monitoring of tourism projects. ' It i s wel l recogni sed that GATS wi l l i ntrude i nto these democratic spa ces, as commitments made by the commerce mi n istry wi l l a pply to a l l regional and local gove rnment authorit ies , ' says K T Suresh of Equat ions. Ta ke the case of the recently passed Kera l a Tou rism (Conservation and P reservat ion of Areas) Act , 2005 . The Act a l l ows the Kera l a government to dec l a re a ny a rea i n the state a s a tou r i sm zone a nd empowers a committee to regulate activities i nside such zones. Equations says such l egis lat ion, that recognise the need for susta i nab le p l a n n i ng a n d decentra l i sed po l i cy, w i l l run a fou l of GATS. I n Janua ry 2004, I nd i a s ignal led its i ntention t o have n o q ua ntitative l imitations o n foreign enterprises i n the hotel s a n d tour operator category. Says Equations, th is means that the national and , more i mportantly, regional and loca l governments w i l l not be ab le to restr ict the act iv it ies of fore ign touri s m providers i n eco logica l l y-fragi l e tou ris m a reas . 'Added to a freeze on susta i nab le po l i cy th is h i ts a t the heart of democrat i c dec is ion m a ki ng, ' says Mr Suresh . (Tourism: sunset for susta inable pol i cy? Local governments need to be kept in the loop before maki ng commitments, Benny Kuruvi l l a , FE .C, 1 5 .06.05, U 3 1 )

The I nd i an delegation a t t h e Wor ld Trade Organ i sa tion h a s submitted a Revised Offer i n August 2005 i n the ongoing negotiations u nder the Genera l Agreement on Trade i n Services (GATS) of the WTO. The revised offer i s condit ional on other WTO membe rs.

The background of t he revised offer i s as fol l ows. As part of the ongo i ng negot iat ions , offers were i n i t i a l ly made i n the Doha Round i n sectors/ sub·sectors covered in the com mitments made i n the Uruguay Round . The seven sectors covered were:

• Busi ness services • Communication services • Construct ion and related engineeri ng services • Financ ia l services • Health re lated and soc ia l services • Tour ism a nd t ravel rel ated services • Transport services

Expanded offer : The revised offer i nc ludes fou r other sectors in which either i ni t ia l offers were not made in the Doha Rou nd or commitments were not taken in the Uruguay Round. These a re d istribution services, education services, enviro n menta l services, a n d recreat ion a l , cu l tura l a n d s port ing services. I n a l l , the revi sed offer covers 1 1 sectors.

Supply modes: I nd i a is more i nterested in Modes 1 a nd 4. The Mode 4 in terest a ri ses from the presence of a l a rge sk i l l ed a nd competit ive workforce. O n the other hand , core competence i n IT enab led services w i l l enab l e I nd i a to take advantage o f Mode 1 or cross·border supply o f services. T i l l now, I nd i a had been very conservative i n its overa l l a pproach . I n fact, i n areas such as f inanci a l services, commitments l agged beh i nd even a utonomous l i be ra l isati on . I t i s hearte n i ng to note that , given the success that I nd i a has ach ieved in respect of services export and the bu rgeon ing fore ign excha nge reserves, there i s now more confidence whi le conduct i ng i nternat ional trade negotiations.

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I List of sectors: As mentioned earl ier, I nd ia has offered extens ive commitments i n a number of new sectors/ sub-sectors. I mprovements have a l so been made in the existi ng commitments i n a number of sectors.

I nd i a had a l ready made a substanti a l Mode 4 i n it ia l offer by i nc lud ing a l l categories of natura l person s such as i ntra-corporate transferees, busi ness visitors, contractua l service suppl iers and i ndependent professiona l s.

Sectors/ sub·sectors offered i nc lude the fol lowing:

1 . Busi ness services: Professiona l services; accounting & book·keep ing serv ices (exc lud ing aud it ing services); a rchitectural services; i ntegrated engineering services; and urban plann ing and l andscape architectural services.

Medical a nd dental services: Veterinary services; and services provided by midwives, nurses, physiotherapists and pa ra ·medica l serv ices.

R&D services : R&D in agri cultural sciences; and R&D in soc ia l sciences and human i ties.

Rea l estate services: On a fee or contract bas is .

Renta l / leas ing services (without operators)

Other busi ness services: Management consult ing services; services inc idental to f ish i ng; services i ncidenta l to energy d i str i but ion (excl ud i ng energy trad i ng a n d load d i s pa tch functions) ; p l acement a n d supp ly of personne l ; ma i ntenance and repa i r of equ ipme nt (not i nc lud i ng maritime vessels, a i rcraft or other transport equipment); bu i ldi ng clean ing services; packaging services; convention services; and specia l ty design services.

2. D istr ibution services (exc lud ing l ive an ima l s)

- Commiss ion agents' services coveri ng sa les on a fee or contract basi s of: agricultura l raw materia l s; food products exclud ing beverages and tobacco; machinery, i ndustri a l equipment and veh icles; furniture, household goods, hardware and i ronmongery.

- Wholesa le trad e services: agr icu ltura l raw materi a l s ; food p roducts exc lud ing beverages and tobacco; texti les , c loth i ng, and footwear ; household app l i ances, a rt ic les a n d equ ipment; m iscel l a neous consumer goods; mach inery, equ ipment and supp l ies

3 . Education services : H igher education services

4. Environmenta l services: Refuse d isposal services ; and san i tat ion and s im i l a r services

5 . I n surance and i nsurance rel ated serv ices : L i fe i nsu ra nce; and serv ices a uxi l i a ry to i n su ra nce such a s conSUltancy, actuari a l , r isk a ssessment.

6 . Bank ing and other f inanc ia l services (exc lud ing insurance) : Asset management such as cash or portfol io management, a l l forms of collective i nvestment management, pension fund management, custodia l , depository a n d other trust services.

7. Tourism a nd travel rel ated services : Tou rist gu ides services.

8 . Recreat ion a l , cu l tura l and s port ing services (other than aud io-vi sua l services): Enterta i n ment services ( i ncl ud i ng theatre, l ive bands a n d c i rcus services); and sporting a nd other recreat iona l servi ces (exc lud ing l ottery, gam bl i ng and bett ing services)

9. Transport servi ces : Marit ime t ra ns port services.

I Documenta tion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

Marit ime auxi l i a ry services: marit ime cargo hand l ing services; storage and warehousing services i n ports; customs c leara nce services; conta i ner station and depot services; maritime agency services; mar iti me freight forwardi ng services; i nternational renta l ! charter of vesse ls with crew or on bareboat basis (exc luding cabotage a nd offshore transport); ma i ntenance a n d repa i rs of seagoing vessel s ; sh ip broking service

- A i r transport services: mai ntenance a nd repa i r of a i rcraft.

( I nd i a expands access offer u nder GATS, Abhi j i t Roy, T H . B, 03. 1 0 .05, U 3 1 )

U41 Worl d Ban k

O n h i s f i rst v is i t t o I nd i a after t ak i ng charge , World B a n k P res ident Pau l Wolfowitz , w a s confronted w ith voc i ferous protests aga i n st "the Ban k's pol ic ies and condit iona l it ies of water privat isat ion th rough the back door." The message of the agitators to the Wor ld Ban k ch ief was: " H a nds Off Water. " I n his meet i ng here with three representatives of the protesti ng envi ronmenta l i sts, water and women's groups under the banner of Citizen's Front for Water Democracy, Mr. Wolfowitz i s understood to have sa i d that he was not aware of the i ssue. "Then stop giv ing loans for water pr ivat isat ion. We w i l l decide what to do; the Ba nk does not have to i m pose its f i nanc i a l musc le to hand over our water supply a n d water services to g loba l corporat ions ," the three rep re sentatives - Vanda na Sh iva of the Research Foundat ion for Science, Technology a nd Ecology; S.A. N aqvi of the Water Workers' A l l i ance ; a nd Amarjeet Kaur of the Nat iona l Federation of I nd ian Women told Mr. Wolfowitz.

Memorandum submitted: Dr. Shiva said that the representatives impressed u pon the Bank ch ief that "water was sacred i n I nd i a and we wi l l not a l l ow its commodificati on ." The Bank bel i eves i n p rovid i ng "a l l water for some (through privat isat ion and h igh ta riffs) and no water for most, whereas we bel ieve in some for a i L " The people 's rep resentatives submitted a memora ndum to M r. Wol fowitz . The memora ndum poi nted out that over the yea rs the Bank gave l oa ns to I nd i a to bui ld la rge dams and d ri l l deep tube wel l s mak ing the rivers and aqu ifers d ry.

The memora ndum sa id : "F i rstly, the ban k is us ing its loans as cond it iona l ity for privati sat ion. Secondly, i t i s reduc ing the u n iversal a ccess system o f publ i c uti l it ies to a privi leged access t o industry a n d 24x7 suppl ies for r ich u rban a reas . Thi rd ly, i t i s d ivert ing l i m i ted and sca rce water from rura l a reas to u rban a reas , thus undermin i ng the M i l lenn ium Deve lopment Goal to reduce by half the proportion of people without susta inable access to safe d ri nk ing water. Fourth ly, the Worl d Bank is forci ng governments a nd publ ic uti l i ties to i ncrease water tariffs and to commodify water, undermi n i ng people's fundamental right to wate r as pa rt of the right to l ife.

Fifth ly, s ince i ts projects a re based on non-susta i na bl e water use, World Ban k projects a re fa i l i ng as i s c lear i n the case of Soni a V ihar p lant i n Delh i and Veeranam project in Tami l Nadu. (Hands off water, protesters tel l World Bank president; Demonstrat ions aga inst bank's Pol ic ies, condit ional ity; Wolfowitz says he i s not aware of i ssue, T H. B, 3 1 .08.05 , U41 )

U43 Asia n Development Bank

The Asia n Deve lopment Bank (ADB) i s l i ke ly to fund a deve lopment p roject i n north Ka rnataka costi ng around $400 mi l l ion. The Karnataka Urban I nfrastructure Development Finance Corporation (KUIDFC) Managing Director, M r K .P. Kr ish n a n , sa id that a n ADB team w i l l soon v is i t the State to d iscuss the i ssue with off ici a l s from t h e State Govern ment. Add ress i ng a workshop on "Shari ng best pract i ses on u rban sector projects i n I nd ia , " said the eight·year project would need the Centre's a pprova l before implementation. Mr Krishnan sa id a bout 25 towns w i l l benef i t from the project. The ADB has recently funded p rojects l i ke the $ 1 45 -m i l l ion project i n 1 0 towns i n coastal Karnataka a nd a $ 1 07·mi l l ion project i n Mysore, Mandya, Maddur, Channapatna ; Ramnagaram and Tumkur. M r Krishnan sa id the ADB is tryi ng to streaml ine i ts project processi ng norms to reduce the lead time from conception to loan a pprova ls . (ADB may fund development project i n north Karnataka, BL . B, 1 4.05.05, U43)

" 2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documcntation Updatc I The As ian Development Bank (ADB) i s to spend nearly $ 1 b i l l ion over the next three years on projects a imed at developing closer regional cooperation . The $952-mi l l ion is part of the bank's Centra l Asia Regional Economic Cooperat ion (CAREC) programme, which was approved ear l ier th is month_ CAR EC w i l l focus on transport. energy and trade in the 2006-2008 programme, which i ncl udes 16 major projects tota l l i ng $943 mi l l ion and 1 3 technical assistance projects tota l l ing $9 mi l l ion . The programme is an a l l iance compris ing eight countries - Afgh a n i sta n , Azerba i jan , Ch i n a , Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzsta n , Mongol i a , Taj i k istan a nd Uzbekistan a nd s ix mult i l atera l i nstitutions: ADB, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, I nternationa l Monetary Fund, I slamic Development Bank , Un ited Nations Development Program me and World Bank. (ADB to push $ 1 bn programme for regional cooperat ion , FE. B, 25 . 1 1 .05, U43)

Non-governmenta l organ isations ( NGOs) and socia l groups across Asia and I nd ia are a l l set to come together to protest against the As ian Development Bank (ADB) schedu led to hold its 39th Annua l Governors' Meet i ng (AGM) in Hyderabad from May 3-6. The Governors a re the h ighest l evel of decis ion makers i n the ADB and the current Cha i r of the AGM i s U nion F inance M in ister P. Chidambaram.

Over 60 projects: The ADB i s the th i rd l a rgest source of development fi nance i n the Asia -Pa cif ic region, next to the Wor ld Bank a n d the Japanese Government. I n 2004, the ADB 's tota l lend ing was $ 5 . 3 b i l l ion which was used to promote 64 projects in the pub l i c po l icy sectors. Pr ivate sector ass i stance was to the tune of $ 807 .2 m i l l i o n . The ADB 's l a rgest borrowers i n 2004 were Ch i n a a n d I nd i a , each rece iv ing $ 1 .3 b i l l io n , a bout 2 4 % of t h e total lend ing .

Net i mpact : Descri bi ng the Hyderabad AGM as an opportu nity to work with the groups in Andhra Pradesh, the People's Forum Aga i nst ADB has ca l led movements, commun it ies , organ i sat ions a nd act iv ists in I nd i a a n d ac ross As ia to r ise u p aga i nst neo- l i bera l i s m . Whether through Wor ld Ban k or A D B projects, t he net impacts on communities and societies are the same, espec ia l ly on the rural and urban poor, workers, agrarian commun ities, Dal its, tri ba ls , women , peasants, f i sh workers, hawkers and s lum dwel lers, the Forum sa id . The ADB i s a secretive, non-transparent and u naccountable i nstitution , the Forum has pointed out. The ADB does not faci l itate publ i c participation in development p lann ing and access to i nformation. I ts projects conti nue to d isp lace hundreds of thousands of people across the region with l i tt le or no compensation , it sa id . (Ca l l for protests agai nst ADB, Aarti Dhar, TH .B, 26.03.06, U43)

The Asian Development Bank p lans to l aunch several types of a theoretical Asian currency un it (ACU) comprising a basket of As ian currenc ies , and w i l l a nnounce deta i l s by the end of J u ne. Masah i ro Kawa i , head of the ADB's office of regional economic integration, dec l ined to say what types of u nits the Man i l a-based i nstitution p lans to i ni ti a l ly l aunch a long with an a l ready p lanned ACU, us ing the ASEAN+ currencies which it hopes w i l l event ua l ly lead to ACU -denominated bond issuance. But he sa id the ADB cou l d consider compi l i ng other u n its that i nc l ude the Ho"ng Kong a nd Ta iwa n dol l a rs , the I nd i a n rupee, a nd currencies of other members. ASEAN+ 3 compr ise ASEA N 's 10 members p l us Ch i n a , Japan and South Korea . ASEAN gro u ps Brune i , Cambod i a , I ndonesi a , Laos, Ma l aysia , Mya nmar, the P h i l i pp i nes , S i ngapore, Tha i l a n d a nd Vietnam. (ADB pla ns to l aunch 'theoret ica l ' common currency for ASEAN p l us 3 , B L. B, 28.03.06, U43)

I Docwnen tatiol1 Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

• X - CULTURE AN D SOCI ETY .

Xll Soc ia l and Pol it ica l Systems

B i n a kadatti became the fi rst gram pan chayat i n the Karnata ka , where the newly e lected members of the gram panchayat commenced the i r work w i th a lot of admin istrative and f inanc ia l powers that Panchayat Raj I nst itut ions i n the cou ntry never enjoyed before. B i nkadakatti Gram Panchayat, wh ich covers the nea rby H i rehand i go l v i l l age too , a rranged i ts fi rst gram sabha to d i sc u ss the formu lat ion of the f ive·year p l a n i n genera l and its first a n n u a l p l a n for 2005-2006.

Acco u ntab i l i ty: U nder the Ka rnataka Panchayat Raj Act, gram sabhas have been conceived as bod ies to wh ich the gram panchayats a re a ccountab le a nd to whom the panchayats shou l d present a ccounts , a n d consu l t them on the formu lat ion o f p l a ns . The A c t a l so has a prov is ion for ward sabhas t o ensure g reater part ic i pat ion of the people in the run n i ng of the lowest of the three-tier Panchayat Raj I nst itut ions.

Deci s ions: The gra m sabha i s at l i berty to return governments schemes that a re of no relevance or ut i l i ty to them and prepare their own plan for the a l l ·round welfare of the people of that particu lar area . They (members) shou ld ensure that no person s lept hungry a nd no ch i l d i s out of schoo l .

Vis ion: Mr. Ba l iga r ( Pr inc ipa l Secretary, Dept o f Rura l Development & Panchayat Raj) u nvei led a v is ion u nder wh ich the v i l l age panchayat cou l d go in for p l a n n i ng, meet the needs of i nfrastructure , secure economic ema nc i pat ion by givi ng work to every pa i r of h a nds , and prov id i ng a purposefu l ro le for the Stree Sha kti group s. The panchayat cou ld cons ider identify ing the agricu l tura l l a bourers a n d a rra nge to get them five guntas of l a nd so that they cou ld go in for cul tivation of vegetables and fruits which should make them sta nd on the i r feet. (A h i storic day in pa nchayat raj h istory, Madan Mohan , T H . B, 05 .04.05, X I I )

State governments and U n ion territories have been a sked to com plete the mappi ng for d ifferent t iers of the Panchayat Raj I nst itut ions ( P R l s) i n the next three months. The mapp i ng was to be completed by the end of the l ast fi nanc ia l yea r. The 1 1th five-year P l an wou ld be based on the p l ans prepared by the D i strict P l ann ing Committees, which woul d consol idate the p lans prepared by panchayats and munic ipa l ities. The 1 2th F inance Commi ssion has recommended a provi sion of Rs 20,000 crore for panchayats for five yea rs, accord i ng to a n off ic ia l release. The meet ing, chai red by Wajahat Habibu l l ah, Secretary, M in i stry of Panchayat i Raj , was held to review the progress of the implementation of the 1 50 recommendations of the seven round table conferences of state Panchayati Raj min isters held l ast year. The process was to be undertaken on the bas is of identification of a ctivit ies relat ing to the devolved functions of P R l s through the pr inc i p le of subsid i a ry. (Ea rly mapp ing of panchayats sought , FE. B, 1 3 .04.05, X I I )

The U n ion M in i ster of Law and Justice, K . R . Bhardwaj, sa id that the Government was draft ing a separate law on panchayat courts (gram nyaya layas) wh ich wou ld be i ntegrated i nto the exist i ng Panchayati Raj system but not at the cost of d i l ut ing the qua l ity of j ustice. Stat ing that he had a l ready sta rted i nteractions with the M in i stry of Panchayati Raj , and the National Advisory Counci l (NAC), Mr. Bhardwaj sa id he would consult non· governmenta l organ i sat ions that had worked in th is f ie ld before draft ing the law.

Poi nt i ng out that the exist ing panchayat system had become pol i t ici sed i n many states, Mr. Bhardwaj sa id that people i n rural areas should not feel that their rights wou ld he s natched away by the proposed panchayat courts . Mr. Bhardwaj sa i d that the p l a n for panchayat courts wou ld i nvolve at least 2000 courts and more than 4000 j udges. He sa id that he woul d l i ke to i nvolve more women j udges a n d that the Government wou l d i ntroduce t h e element o f legal a i d by paying for lega l a i d l awyers t o a ss i st t h e courts. (Panchayat courts l a w bei n g drafted , Rura l people w i l l be protected : Bhardwaj , S iddharth Narra i n , T H . B, 2 1 .08.05 , X I I )

The Centre a sked state governments not t o d ivert funds meant for Panchayats, sayi ng such " intervent ions" d i srupt the effective functi on ing of the loca l bodies. "I a m of the strong view that the funds sanctioned by the government s hou l d d i rectly go to the p a n chayats a n d there s ha l l be no i nterrupt ion and i n terve nt ion by

.? 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentation Update I a nybody, " M in i ster of State for External Affa irs E Ahmed sa id . I n such a scenario "panchayats f ind i t d i fficu l t to fulf i l the i r ro les due to pauci ty of funds . " (Centre asks states n ot to d ivert funds of loca l bod ies , FE .B, 2 5 . 0 1 .06, X l ! )

Un ion Min ister for Petroleum and Natura l Gas a nd Panchayati Raj Man i Shankar Aiyar expressed shock at the state of the Panchayati Raj system in Lakshadweep. He said that there was no Panchayati Raj worth its name in Lakshadweep. He was complet ing a one-day visit to the Un ion Territory dur ing which he attended a combined meet ing of vi l l age and d istrict panchayats at Andrott. Mr. Aiyar sa id that it was a tragedy that the governance was v irtu a l ly concentrated i n the hands of bureaucrats ren deri ng the panchayats mere appendages to a whol ly Government-run admin istrat ive system of p lann i ng and representation . He sa id u n less the Centre set an example of outstand ing Panchayati system i n Un ion Territories, as it was responsible for Un ion Territories, i t would become an emba rrassment for the Government to seek better Pa nchayat i Raj system in States. Mr. A iya r sa id that he, a long with Mr. Reghupathy, had worked out a draft action p lan for reviv ing the Panchayati Raj system in the arch ipelago, which was agreed on between the Central offic ia l s and a spectrum of e lected vi l l age a nd d istr ict panchayat members. The action p lan would be fi na l i sed i n Del h i . (Panchayati Raj on ly i n name i n Lakshadweep: M i n ister, TH . B, 25 .01 .06, X l ! )

X12 Tri bes and Development

The Centre has decided to a mend the Forest Conservat ion Act 1 980 that wi l l enable Schedu le Tri bes to get ownersh ip rights on the l and where they were l iv i ng. The a mended l eg is lat ion wi l l be tab led in the Monsoon Session of Pa r l iament. Triba ls have no right on the land where they l ive. The tota l popu lat ion of tr iba l s in the country is 8.5 crore. Now the government has decided to a mend the Forest Conservation Act 1980. Provisions of the FCA shou ld be su i tab ly amended to a l l ow deve lopment a ct iv it ies to be taken up i ns ide the forests. Most of the states a re dema nd i ng amend ments to the a ct to fac i l i tate the regu l a ri sat ion of settl ements i ns ide forests. (Centre may a mend act to he lp triba l s get l and , Pramod Kumar, AA. B, 24.07 .05 , X 1 2)

X14 Human Rights of Tri bes

The Punarvasan Sangharsh Samiti (PSS), Nandurbar, and various other tribal rights organ isations i n Maharashtra have l aunched a month· long campaign for the i mmed iate tab l i ng of the Schedu led Tri bes (Recognit ion of Forest R ights) B i l l , 2005 in Par l iament even a s conservat ion ists and the Forest Depa rtment are opposi ng its provis ions.

Encouraged by the i ntroduction of the N at iona l Rura l Employment Guarantee B i l l in Pa r l ia ment, t here has been mobi l i sat ion i n the a d ivas i a reas of Maharashtra for the b i l l to be passed . S i nce Augu st 16 , from Nandurba r in Maharashtra , the PSS has launched a series of mass meet ings i n va rious tri bal pockets, which wi l l end i n Gandhi nagar i n Gujarat, on September 19 .

The Cam pa ign for Survival and Dignity, a federat ion of ad ivas i and forest people's organ i sat ions from across the country, has been puffi ng pressure for th ree years for secur ing forest rights to t r iba l people . The B i l l envisages , for the fi rst t i me, recognit ion of the rights of forest·based commun it ies.

However, even as the Forest Department says th i s b i l l w i l l sound the death kne l l of I nd i an forests, vi l l ages i n Melghat and other p rotected a reas a re q u ite keen on havi n g the i r r ights restored to them. The affected people do not seem to have much knowledge of the b i l l a nd its provis ions . The B i l l proposes "to recogn ise and vest the forest r ights and occupat ion in forest l a nd i n fo rest dwel l i ng schedu led tri bes who have been resid i ng i n such forests for generations but whose rights cou l d not be recorded."

O bject ion : The M in i stry of Environment a nd Forests has a l ready stated i n a note that i t does not agree with the i ntroduct ion of the proposed b i l l . In a meeti ng held in January this yea r, the MoEF said that there i s no need to bring i n a fresh law as suff ic ient provis ions a l ready exist u nder the Forest Conservation Act and the gu ide l i n es i ss ued in 1 990. I t a l so sa id that the d raft b i l l puts a q uestion mark on the very existence of Nat ional Parks and Sanctua ries where the current pol i cy is to shift the habitations outside t he protected area as has been done a l ready in the Melghat Tiger Reserve.

K ishore R i the of the Amravat i based N ature Conservat ion Society sa id the new b i l l wou ld regu la r i se encroachments and pave the way for contractors to offi c i a l ly denude forests. The Bombay N atura l H i story

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Society ( B N HS) has a lso opposed the b i l l . The B N H S bel ieves that the B i l l i n its present form w i l l neither promote forest conservation nor socia l just ice. (Ca m pa ign for forest r ights to tri bal ; I mmediate tabl ing of the Scheduled Tribes (Recognit ion of Forest Rights) Bi l l demanded, Meena Menon, TH .B, 24.08.05, X 1 4 / X20a)

A day after v io lence c la imed 1 3 l ives in Ka l i nga Nagar, serious questions are being raised on the i nadequate rehab i l itat ion pol i cy of the Orissa Government which c lea rly tr iggered the bloody c lash between the tr iba l s a n d the admin istration . Even as the i ncident h a s sent shock waves a n d the agitated triba ls conti nue to stage road b lockade for the second success ive day, the State Government i s st i l l undec ided about a ny i nq u i ry. Meanwhi le, negotiat ion for withdrawal of load b lockade was conti nu ing. The Government had acqu i red 2,000 a cre of l and at Kal i nga Nagar, Duburi in 1 992 for the i ndustria l complex. As per R&R package drawn up then , the oustees were given Rs 37,000 per acre as compensation. However, no eva cuat ion was made. Of tha t big chunk , the Tatas were h a n ded over 2 ,000 a cre i n Decem ber 2004, A tota l of 760 households were to he ousted by their project. Last year, fol lowing cont inuous protests, the State Government announced an enhanced package which offered Rs 25000 per acre ex·gratis on the origi na l compensat ion, a long with an a ssurance of one guara nteed job per fami ly. (Day after, Orissa rehab pol i cy u nder scan ner. I E . B, 04.01 .06, X 14)

The tr i ba l s of Ka l i nga Nagar in Or issa 's Ja jpur d i str ict have taken a vow not to vacate the i r land to make space for steel p l ants or other i ndustr ies. The ki l l i ng of 1 2 tr i ba l s i n pol i ce f i r ing recently has steeled thei r resolve to fight aga i n st d isp lacement and l oss of l ivel ihoods.

The number of t r iba l s having proof of the i r l a nd is very sma l l in the reg ion . A vast majority in Cha nd ia and nearby vi l l ages could be termed as encroachers of government l and as they do not posses land of their own . They l ack l and rights , as there has been no l and settlement i n the loca l ity si nce 1 928. The landless tr iba l s a re equa l ly involved i n the agitation aga i nst industria l i sat ion as they have l i tt le hope of getti ng compensation for the ir eviction .

H ighway b locked: Two km away from Chand i a , act ivi sts o f Visthapan Vi rodh i Janmanch , a n organ i sat ion of loca l t r iba ls , a re blocking the Daitar i ·Pa rad i p express h ighway at Gobarghati s i nce the day of the fi ri ng. "The a uthorities have never taken our demand of adequate compensation and rehabi l itation serious ly, whi le many r ich peop le a n d outsiders have managed to acqu i re l and rights i n recent yea rs . Over 80 % of the tr i ba l s i n the a rea a re l andless," sa id Chakradhar Ha ibu ru , president of the Janmanch. "Through our agitation , we wi l l n ow take u p the p l ight of the tr i ba l s d i s pl aced i n the past across the State a n d prevent sett i ng u p of new industries in tri ba l pockets ."

The effect of the fi ri ng seems to be spread ing to other pa r ts of the State. Hundreds of tr i ba l s blocked the entry poi n ts to Rourke l a c ity demandi ng that the Rourke l a Steel P l a nt return i ts surp lus l a nd which i t had taken from t hem about 50 years ago. The triba l s who started a n i ndefi n i te economic blockade of the township set a t l east s ix veh ic les af i re on the outski rts of the c ity. (Ka l i nga N agar tri ba l s take vow not to vacate l and for industries, P rafu l l a Das , TH .B, 1 1 .0 1 .06, X 14)

Based on a report submitted by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Specia l Rapporteur Chaman La l on the steps taken by the Ka rnataka Government for the rehabi l i tat ion of t riba l fa mi l ies d isp laced by the Kabi n i Reservo i r and B a nd i pu r Nat iona l Park projects , the N H RC has expressed its sat i sfact ion with the Government's efforts. Fam i l ies i n and around N. Begur i n H . D. Kote ta luk of Mysore district were d isp laced by the construction of the Kab i n i Reservoi r p roject i n ear ly 1 970s and the for mat ion of the Ba nd ipur Project Tiger Nat iona l Park i n 1 973·74. A status report fi led before the commission by the Deputy Commissioner of Mysore on measures for 1 54 tr ibal fami l ies d isplaced by the Band ipu r P roject Tiger N at ional Park shows that the Government has i ssued certificates of agr icu ltu ra l l a nd a nd res ident ia l p lots and benefic i a ries' identity cards to them. The Government has taken steps to construct two resident ia l l ayouts for them and deposited Rs. 1 1 .80 l akhs for power connections in the l ayouts. (NHRC happy with rehabi l itation efforts, TH. B, 04.02.06, X 1 4)

Al ienat ing l a rge tracts of tr iba l l a nd without consu l t ing the tr i ba ls , i n the name of deve lopment, was a c lear v io lat ion of the rights vested in the 5th Schedu le of the Constitut ion , said Communist Party of I nd ia (Marxist) Pol i t Bureau member Br inda Ka rat. The M in i stry of Env ironment was cleari ng a n umber of projects without protect i ng the bas ic r ights of tr i b a l s, wh ich wou l d be ra i sed in Pa r l i a ment . She sa id that the i ssue was d iscussed at the pa rty Tribal Committee i n New Del h i . " I n J ha rkhand, the State Government has entered i nto 42 memoranda of u n derstand ing to a l ienate l a rge extents of l a nd for sett i ng up even private projects , " she

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documenta tion Update I sa id . 'The Tatas have even a c lause i n the MoU, which does not permit the Government to give out deta i l s of the l and a l ienat ion, those fu l ly annu l l i ng the bas ic motive of the I nformation Act ," Ms. Karat sa id . Tri ba ls were being given a raw deal i n Andhra Pradesh , Chhatti sgarh and Jharkhand , she sa id . Referri ng to t i le Pol avaram i rrigation project as d i sastrous, she said that 3 ,725 hectares of pr ime forestl and wou l d get submerged , but envi ronment c learance was given i n just two days. (Projects c leared in v io lat ion of triba l rights, says Br inda Karat , TH .C , 20.02 .06, X 1 4)

X20a Acts, B i l l s , Ord inances

Some of the greenf ie ld specia l economic zones (SEZ) in the country that had been l angu i sh i ng for l ack of regu l atory c ia r ity a re getti ng active aga i n w ith the S EZ Act set to get the nod soon.

Scrapp i ng the 'sunset c lause' mooted by the F ina nce M in i stry w i l l pave the way for smooth f low of FD I . The Commerce M in i stry had been support ing the i ndustry's stance on t h i s i ssue , a n d the impasse cou l d be solved on ly with the i ntervention of the Pr ime M in i ster's off ice.

As per the SEZ B i l l , wh ich was clea red, an i ncome tax ho l i day spann ing 1 5 yea rs has been p roposed, where the fi rst five years is 1 00 % tax free and the ensu i ng blocks of five years each wi l l have part i a l a nd conditiona l tax ho l idays. Wh i l e it i s sti l l shy of 20 years as demanded by the i ndust ry, i t was on ly too g l ad to t a ke i t . (SEZ Act to pave way for FD I f low, V i nod Mathew, BL .B, 07 .05 .05 , X20a)

Much i s spoken a bout the proposed Triba l B i l l 's concern for welfa re of schedu le tr i bes. The Left part ies are unhappy with Un ion U n ited Progressive A l l i ance (UPA) Government for not i ntroducing the B i l l i n Par l iament. I n rea l ity, the B i l l is neither goi ng to help the tri bes nor w i l l give them rights over the l and they dwe l l on. On the one hand, the B i l l w i l l destroy whatever forests rema in i n the country, wh i le making the tri bes cont inue to l ive i n sub·human condit ions. Worse i s that it w i l l spel l doom to w i ld l ife, which is protected on ly i n three to four % of the land of the country? I nteresti ngly, neither w i ld l ife biologists nor forest conservation ists were i nvolved i n prepar ing the B i l l . Whi l e the soc io log ists a rgue for ' ha rmon ious co·exi stence of t ri bes ' a n d 'susta i n a bl e deve lopment ' , i n rea l i ty, 80 % of the l a n d has been u ti l i sed by h u m a n bei ngs. Bes i des , over 1 6 % of the rema in i ng l a nd i s not p rotected . For the wi l d l ife, the only solut ion i s com plete i solat ion and protection. Th i s wou l d a l so help conserve the l a s t tract o f ' susta i nable l and ' . The B i l l contravenes var ious Forest Acts. There a re a lot of contrad ictions with in the proposed draft B i l l itself, which, wh i le a l lowing col lection of m inor forest produces (MFP) for ' l ivel i hood of tr ibes ' , it prohib its their use for commerc i a l pu rposes. No one knows how non ·commerc ia l co l lect ion of M FP w i l l i mprove the l ives of tribes. (Tri ba l B i l l : Where socio log ists take over forests, V inay Madhav, I E . B, 07 .06.05 , X20a)

With w i ld l ife enthusiasts and tr iba l rights activists d ivided on the proposed B i l l to recognise tri ba ls ' r ight on forest l a nd , the M in istry of Environment is draft ing an a lternat ive B i l l to tone down the exi st i ng one. Those opposed to the exist ing B i l l p repared by the Triba l Affa i rs M i n i stry say that i f the ho ld of tri ba l s on; forest l and is strengthened , i t w i l l i nterfere with wi ld l ife conservat ion . The decision to draft the new B i l l was taken at a recent meet i ng of the Cabi net Committee on Tri ba l Affa irs . The two B i l l s w i l l be compared before one i s accepted.

The Envi ronment M in i stry's a lternative deviates from the Schedu led Tribes (Recogn it ion of Forest Rights) B i l l 2005 on three key po i nts : I t puts a cap on the tot a l a mount of land that wou l d be g iven to t r iba l s . The previous B i l l had no l i mit . The new Bi l l w i l l not i nc lude w i ld l ife sanctua ries and protected forests i n the l a nd c la ims. I t wi l l , however, endow l ivel i hood rights to those l ivi ng on forest margins . (M in i stry works on 2nd tribal l a nd Bi l l , N i rma la Ganapathy, I E.C, 1 5 .09.05, X20a)

Promis ing that a new B i l l to protect the rights of the unorgan i sed l abour sector in the country wou ld soon be i ntroduced in Parl i ament, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi said the Centre was confident of solvi ng the problems of the working c lass in the country. "We a re a l so considering a pension scheme for the aged a n d women i n t h i s sector, a s wel l a s schemes such as hea l th i n surance". The Congress president c ited stat isti cs, sayi ng, i n Maharashtra , only 1 0% of the l abour c lass worked i n t h e organ i sed sector a n d stressed that un less they got proper wages and their problems were not solved , the country's progress would not be complete. (Unorganised Sector B i l l comi ng: Son i a , EI B, 24.02.06, X20a)

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X2I Ind ia 's Deve lopment

Th is yea r, a s the f i rst f ive-year review of p rogress towa rds the M i l lenn i um Deve lopment Goa l s a pproaches, I nd i a can be p roud of i ts accomp l ishments. In January, the M i l lenn ium Project report a nnounced that I nd ia was on a better track than severa l other deve lop i ng countr ies to reach the M i l lenn i um Deve lopment Goa l s (M DGs) by t h e target date of 201 5 . I n d ia 's commitment t o reduc ing poverty i s ref lected i n t h e n umerous i n i t i atives it has taken , l ead i ng to the p rogress made ove r the l ast decades . Three-fou rths of I nd i a 's poor popu l at ion , or 1 93 m i l l ion people, l ive in rura l a reas. Schedu led Tri bes and Schedu led Castes a re a mong the poorest in I nd i a and const i tute 40 % of the i nterna l ly d isp laced popu lat ion . These groups, and especia l ly women , suffer a h igher i nc idence poverty, greater vul nerabi l i ty and l ower soc ia l status than others. Targeting rura l poverty, part icu l ar ly among Schedu led Tribes a n d Schedu led Castes, and women , w i l l better enab le I nd ia to reach i ts fu l l development potenti a l i n a susta inable manner. (Enabl i ng rural fol k to overcome poverty, Lennart Bage, TH .C, 09.05.05, X2 1 )

Even a s I nd ia appears to be a t the forefront i n terms of economic growth , i t cont i nues to lag i n the qua l i ty of l ife as measured by its Human Development I ndex; it remains u nchanged at a low 1 27 among 1 77 countries. I n comparison, t he U nited N at ions' Human Development Report 2005 has a word of pra i se for neighbouring Bangladesh i n v iew of the rap id human deve lopment i t has ach ieved i n spite of its moderate growth . Desp ite i ts low rank i ng i n the H D I ca rried out each yea r by the U n i ted N at ions Deve lopment P rogramme ( U ND P), I nd ia , however, has shown progress in HDI va l uat ion, havi ng gone u p from . 595 l ast year to .602 in th is year's report.

No dec l i n e i n poverty: The U N D P report on human development has c lear ly brought out the fact that wh i le I nd ia has moved a head and joi ned the premier league of world economic growth, the accelerated g rowth has not resu l ted i n a commensurate decl i ne in poverty. On the Human Poverty I ndex ( H P I · I) , i t i s sti l l ra nked at 58 a mong 103 develop ing countries. ( I nd ia sti l l beh ind in human deve lopment: U.N . report, TH .B, 09.09.05, X2 1 )

X22a R ight to I nformation

A path·breaking bi l l seeki ng to p rovide right to i nformation was passed by the Lok Sabha amidst a n oppos ition boycott with Pr ime M i n i ster Man mohan S i ngh a ssert i ng the measure wou l d see the dawn of a new era i n governance a n d e l im inate the scourge of corrupt ion .

I ntervening i n t he d iscussion on Right to I nformation B i l l , 2005, S ingh sa id everyone, i nc lud ing c iv i l servants, shou ld see the measure i n a "positive sp iri t" and "not as a d raconian l aw for para lysi ng government" . The P M wanted the bureaucracy t o cons ider the b i l l a s an i nstrument for i mprov i ng government c i t izen i nterface resu lt ing in a fr iend ly, car ing a nd effective government. The b i l l was passed by a voice vote after government got 1 50 a mendments to the d raft approved by the house. The PM said the R ight to I nformation B i l l was "more fa r·reac h i ng a n d effective" than the exi st ing Freedom of I nformat ion Act. " I t has the widest possi bl e reach covering centra l and state governments, Panchayati Raj i nstitutions, loca l bodies and reci pients of government grants , " he sa id . ( LS nod for R ight to I nformation B i l l , VIB, 1 2.05.05, X22a)

Ratanjan vi l l age, over 50 km from here, in Maharashtra was recently i n the news. About 50 persons sat on a hunger str ike i n front of the Tal u ka Agricu lture Office at Barshi ear l i er th is month demandi ng i nformation on the schemes i mplemented in thei r vi l l age u nder the Employment Guarantee Scheme. In May, the vi l lagers had sought i nformation u nder the Maharashtra Right to I nformation Act ( M RT I ) on na l l ah bund ing, farm ponds, contour bunds and other works goi ng on i n the vi l la ge. However, i t was not given to them. Thi s gave r i se to susp i c ion that a l l was not wel l . There were compla i nts of i nf lated muster rol l s , fudged payments and false work records. Under the MRT I , i nformation has to be provided with in 1 5 working days fai l i ng whi ch the officer concerned is l i a b l e to be pena l ized . ( R i ght to i nformat ion e l udes v i l l agers, U nder the Maharashtra Act. i nformation has to be provided to people withi n 1 5 work ing days, Meena Menon, T H . B, 22.09.05, X22a)

X32 Women and Law, Violence aga inst Women

The Protect ion of Women from Domestic Vio lence B i l l c l ea red by the cab i net is long overdue and path· break ing in many ways . For the f i rst t ime, l awmakers have widened the defi n it ion of 'domest ic v io lence' to i nc lude verbal , emot iona l and economic violence. The B i l l a lso covers relationsh i ps outs ide marri a ge. But we can 't be complacent, because experience shows that l aws a lone cannot counter violence aga i nst women. I n I nd i a , the res ponse to domest ic v io lence has been to reassert women's res pons i b i l i ty for pol i c i ng men's

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I DO(,ll 1llenlatiol l Update I violence. Few efforts have taken u p the cha l lenge of 'pr imary prevention ' ; i nterventions i ntended to stop men a nd boys from u s i ng aggression . Without a radica l goa l to e l im i nate rather than respond to ma le v io lence aga inst women, prevention tends to be d i rected towards v ict ims or potentia l victims . Empower ing women i s not enough to combat domestic violence. To break the cycl e of violence, w e need to move beyond a n emphasis on women's respons ib i l i t ies and stri ke at the root cause : gender soc i a l i sat ion . We h ave to invo lve men and the young to combat domest i c v io lence i n I nd i a . (Rambos Not Wanted At Home , Domest i c v io lence B i l l necessa ry, but not suff ic ient, Ma l i ni Sen , TOI . B, 05.07 .05 , X32 1 X20a)

X40 Ch i l d ren

The Centre released a nat iona l p l a n o f action for ch i ld ren , i t s goa l s ranging from end ing fema le foetic ide to abol i sh i ng ch i ld l abour. Act ion P l a n 2005, which l i sts goa l s and strategies in 1 2 key a reas, i s an update of a s im i l ar p l an d rafted i n 1 992. It a ims at e l im inat ing ch i l d l a bour from hazardous occupations by 2007, a n d "progressively move" towards i t s complete erad icat ion . C h i ld re n below 1 0 s hou l d b e removed f ro m the workforce by 20 1 0. (Centre re leases nat iona l a ct ion p l an for ch i ld ren , AA.B, 2 l .08.05 , X40)

X41 Ch i l d R ights

Draft Ch i ldren's Rights B i l l , 2005 , copies of which have been c i rcu lated among l egis la tors and general pub l ic for e l ic i t ing thei r views and suggestions on it , has proposed to i ntroduce several c lauses , i nc lud ing the rights of the ch i ld for education and health, prohibition of ch i ld l abour, protection aga inst ch i ld abuse and constituting a State Commission for Ch i ldren to oversee the i mp lementation of the provis ions of the Act a nd constitution of a spec i a l court for ch i ldren .

Accord ing to Law a nd Parl i amentary Affai rs M in ister H . K. Pat i l , who is i nstrumental i n prepar ing the draft with ass istance from l ega l experts in the State, the B i l l i f i ntrodu ced in the Assembly w i l l set a trend .

The rights of chi ldren enshrined i n the B i l l a re to enjoy ch i ldhood, learn accord ing to h is taste, ski l l and talent, a nd no i ndiv idua l or i nstitution sha l l i nterfere with their basic freedom. The B i l l has provided spec ia l c lauses to protect gi rl ch i ld against any k ind of d i scr iminat ion a nd no gir l wi l l be denied access to education, m in imum l evel of nutr it ion, access to health services, and exploited i n household activit ies a s unpa id l abour. A l l forms of violence agai nst gir l ch i ld - p hysical and menta l a re prohibited. The Govern ment wi l l formulate and enforce a regulat ion cal l ed Chi ld Code to lay the norms of behaviour and i nteraction of adu lts , espec ia l ly, u se of s l ang and abuse i n conversation with ch i ldren . The Government w i l l establ i sh ch i ld pol i ce stations after the Act i s enacted t o safegua rd ch i l d ren from cri m i n a l s . The pol i ce w i" b e sensit ized t o t h e i ssue o f ch i l d abuse , he a dded . (Draft B i l l for ensur ing specia l rights of ch i ld , I f the B i l l i s i ntroduced i n the State Assembly, It wi l l set a trend , says H . K. Pati l , T V S iva na nd a n , T H . B, 29.08.05 , X41 )

X42 Chi l d Labour

The Andhra Pradesh government has confi rmed that t he menace of c h i l d l abour is rampant in the state. Offic i a l s have establ i shed that in the cotton seed farms in Adoni in Kurnoo.l a bout 3 1 ,000 minor ch i ldren a re engaged. Further, a mong these chi ldren i nc lude a large number of gir ls . Thi s apart , the government has found that engagement of ch i ld l a bour i s growing i n four di str icts i nc lud ing Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Kurnool and Mahboobnagar. Ch i ldren below the age of 14 yea rs i nc lud i ng g i r l s were bei ng exploi ted i n var ious unsk i l led services at restau ra nts , grocery shops, farm l a nds , p last ic manufactur i ng, agri - process ing etc . Bes ides , they a re be ing engaged as domestic servants i n the state, a government survey poi nted out .

Accord i ng to a n est imate, there a re a bout 40,000·ch i l d l a bour i n N andya l a nd a nother 45 ,000 in Kurnool a rea . (Menace of ch i ld l abour rampant in Andhra , FE .B, 24.05.05 , X42)

I n response to a query by the Nat ional Human Rights Commissions ( N H RC) the Maharastra Government has agreed to submit a report i n two weeks detai l i ng i ts course of a ct ion aga inst employers us ing ch i ld l abour. A senor offic ia l i n the Chief Secretary's office confirmed that the N HRC notice, which fol lowed the recent detection of over 400 ch i ld l abourers by the Mumbai pol i ce, had been sent to the Departments of Labour and Women and Ch i l d Welfare. On June 1 , the Mumbai Pol ice rescued 465 ch i ld l abourers work ing i n var ious i ndustr ia l uni ts , i ncludi ng shoe making, bag making, zari and buffing. The raids were conducted with the he lp of the "Say No to Ch i ld Labour Task Force, a coa l i t ion of 46 NGOs. Fol lowing the rescue operat ion , the NGOs co l lected i nformation from the ch i ldren regardi ng their hometowns and employers. ( Report on ch i ld l abour soon; Move fol l ows N HRC notice to Mahara stra , TH . B, 1 2.06.05, X42)

I Documentation l Tpelote I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

• Z - M ISCELLAN EOUS .

ZIO N GOs

The Orissa government is contemplat ing blackl i st ing some non-government organ i sat ion (NGOs) i n the state which it says are posi ng hurdles i n the ongoing industria l i sation process on the pretext of socia l and environment i ssues. A confident ia l n ote prepared by the sta te home department h a s recommended d eba rri ng at l east four non-government organ i sations that a re perceived to be i nvolved i n a nt i - i ndustry activit ies i n tribal pockets. The non-government organ i sations on the f i r ing l i ne a re Rayagada-based Agragamee, Ankura n , Laxman N a i k society of Rural Deve lopment and Weaker Sect ions I ntegrated Development Agency. The home department has recommended that the government stop a l l grants to these four non·government organ i sat ions a n d ask the centre to cancel thei r l i cences under the Foreign Contri but ion Regulat ion Act.

It may be noted that , eager to accelerate the process of i ndustria l i sation , the Orissa government has signed up stee l , a l um in i um and a l um ina p lants i n the past one yea r.

Some of the projects are i n remote triba l belts where these non-government organ i sat ions are mostly active. The state has lost a few projects i n the past to protracted agi tat ion by t ri ba l s backed by the non-government organ isat ions. (Orissa p l ans to ban ant i · i ndustry NGOs, D i l l i p Satapathy, BL. B, 30.06 .05 , Z 1 0)

Centra l Soc i a l Wel fa re Board pres ident Raj a n i Pat i l sa id the Board wou ld set u p a task force to monitor NGOs. She sa i d more than 20 ,000 NGOs come under the Board , of which the State accounts for 794. I t rece ives comp la i nts aga i n st NGOs and thei r off ice·bearers, she sa id . (Ta s k force to monitor NGOs, I E . B, 06.0 1 .06, Z 10)

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 1 DOClll1U'll iu t iol1 Updule 1

• TSR - TSU NAM I .

General

To prevent a dec l i ne i n the number of tour ist s v is it i ng I nd ia after tsunami , the Government i s tak ing u p with the World Touri s m Organ isat ion (WTO) the i ssue of refra i n i ng from descr i b i ng the country as an u nsafe desti nat ion . U nion Tour ism M i n i ster Renuka Chaudhury sa i d 'we a re tak ing up the matter with the WTO i n Spa i n a n d a l so ta ke up w i th those countr ies wh ich had posted a n 'adv isory ' i n websites caut ion i ng i t s c i ti zens aga i nst trave l l i ng to I nd i a , particu larly the north eastern region i n v iew of i nsurgency ' . Ms Chaudhary sa id her M i n istry had wr itten to the U n i on H ome M i ni stry to revi ew i ts restricted area permit (RAP) pol i cy preva lent i n some parts of the north east , to enable more tou rists to v is i t those areas. (Tour ism advisor ies: I nd i a to take up matter with wor ld body, FE .B, 1 6.04.05 , TSR)

The I nternation a l Fi nance Corporat ion , the World Bank Group's private sector fi nanc ing arm, has sa i d that i t w i l l provide upto to $ 1 50 m i l l ion as loans to companies that c a n help reconstruct commerc ia l tourism ventures i n tsunami ·affected countr ies i n South As ia a nd South·east Asia . The loans wi l l be granted on commerc i a l terms a nd are a i med a t estab l ished hotel companies that requ i re cap ital for recon struct ion o r refinanc i ng, an I FC p ress release sa id . I t sa id the f i rms should be committed to sound soc ia l and envi ronmental pol i cies with a posi t ive t rack record in operat ions a n d a portfo l i o of properties cater i ng to d i fferent segments of the market. ( I FC to support tsunami touri sm, AA. D, 1 6 .05.05, TSR)

Keep ing up with the Nat iona l Common M i n i mum P rogramme's p romise of provid i ng a government that i s 'tra n sparent a nd accountable a t a l l t i mes ' , Pr ime M i n i ster M a n mohan S i ngh h a s come out w i th a report, Tsun a m i - a report to the nat ion . The report , released recent ly, deta i l s the a mount rece ived a n d spent on tsunami ·re lated rehab i l itation and recon struction work in the country, as a l so how far the work has progressed i n t he affected states .

The estimated tota l package for tsunami rel ief, rehab i l itation and reconstruction was R s 1 1 ,907.29 crore, of wh ich Rs 3 ,644.05 crore came from the spec ia l Raj iv Gandh i Rehab i l itation Package a pproved by the Centre , Rs 3 ,610.35 crore was received from mult i l a tera l agencies and d i str ibuted a mong states, and RsA,652.89 came from other sources, l i ke P lan ass istance , ba nks, f inanc ia l i n stitutions etc. (PM releases tsunami- related a i d , rehabi l itat ion report, FE.B, 06 .06.05, TSR)

Along the famous wh ite sands of Phuket's Patong beach , stray dogs outnumber tou r i sts , who s ix months after the tsunami a re sti l l staying away from the once packed shore. A lthough tour ism off i c i a l s i n I nd ia , Sri Lanka and the Maldives a re cautiou sly opti mist ic a bout the future, vis itors rema in rel uctant to v is it Tha i l and's beaches, where ha l f the tsunami vict ims a re bel i eved to be fore ign hol iday ·makers. Tha i a uthorit ies admit touri s m has been s lower to rebound than they had hoped, and i ndustry offi c i a l s say they expect the comi ng peak travel season sta rt i ng i n November to be wea ker than norm a l , w i th a fu l l recovery poss ib le by l a te 2006. Thai land's nationa l economy has absorbed the shock even as i t sputters on high o i l pr ices, but tsunami ­h i t p rovi nces a re pay ing a h igh p rice. Offic i a l num bers for the f i rst quarter of the yea r pa i nt a d i re p icture : a rr iva l s of Swedes and Br i tons , who usua l ly v is i t in greater numbe rs than other nat iona l i t ies , a re down by 67% over the same period l a st yea r.

German touri sts have d ropped off by 74% and French 70%. As ian touri sts a re a lso stayi ng away: a rr iva l s of South Koreans are down by 64% a nd Japanese by 86%. (Touri sm's s low recovery a long tsunami ·h i t beaches, FE.C, 20.06.05, TSR)

One yea r on , most of the affected resorts have ach ieved a n i mpress ive turnaround , a n d some a re even better than before. "Most hote l s that were h i t , certa i n ly i n Sr i Lanka , took the t i me to m a ke s i gn if i cant developments and , as a result , c l i ents a re experienci ng a much better hol iday than before the tsunam i , " sa i d Louise Newton of S r i Lanka s pec ia l i st Somak Hol idays.

Repa i ri ng the damage to tourists' percept ions of t he region has been harder. Hotels may have been q u i ck to re·ope n , but tou r i sts have been s lower to retur n , pa rt icu la rly to a reas that took a d i rect h i t , leav ing many properties with empty rooms for much of l ast yea r.

The Andaman coast of Tha i l and had 1 5 to 20 % fewer visitors from key regions such as the UK l ast yea r than i n 2004, whi le vis itor n umbers to the Ma ldives were u p to 25 % down for the f i rst 10 months of l ast yea r and Sr i La nka suffered a 7 % d rop.

Resorts on the Andaman coast , wh i c h suffered terri b l e d a m age, have made a remarkab le recovery. Most hote l s i n Phuket, the l argest resort affected, have reopened, some after extens ive refurb ishment .

However, in nea rby Khao Lak, which was j ust f i nd ing i ts feet as a hol iday dest ination when the tsunami struck, it 's a d ifferent story. The death tol l there topped 2 ,000, and severa l hotel s were destroyed. The prest ig ious Anantara , for i n stance, w i l l not be rebu i l t . Br i tons have been s l ow to return to the whole of the Andaman coast. Visitor numbers to Tha i l and a s a whole were up 5 % in 2005 , but numbers to the Andama n a rea were down by 1 5 to 20 % .

The B ay o f Benga l bore the b run t o f the t i d a l wave, so the cou ntry's m a i n tou r i st dest i nat ions su rvived rel at ively u n scathed. The southern tip of the coasta l state of Kera l a a n d the Andaman I sl ands were hit, but the touri st resorts were not affected .

U K a r riva l s were u p a bout 1 6 % l ast yea r, part ly due to the l a u nch of a tra nche of new f l i ghts by Br i t i sh A i rways, Vi rgi n At lant ic , A i r I n d i a a n d Jet A i rways . A i r fares h ave fa l l en a s a resu l t . Th i rty·two of the 72 resorts i n the Ma ld ives were affected by the tsun a m i , but on ly 15 a re sti l l c losed . O n ly one of the f l ooded resorts, the C lub Med Faruko lhufush i , wi l l not reopen.

The i s l ands have been given a wide berth by the I ta l i ans , Germans and Japanese s ince the tsunami but the Br it ish have been more res i l ient . The tsunami has done n othi n g to deter i nvestment i n the Ma ld ives, where the l oss of l i ves was rela t i ve ly s ma l l , a n d severa l new resorts a re due to o pen th i s yea r a n d next. A new l uxury yacht , t he Ran i a , which can be h i red with its own private i s land , has a l ready been l aunched, and Four Seasons w i l l open a second luxury hotel i n t he Ma ld ives i n February.

M a l ays ia suffered on ly s l i ght damage , hav ing been l a rgely sh ie lded by the i s l and of Sumatra . Damage i n Penang , such as sand i n swi mming pools , f looded restaura nts and debris o n beaches , was qu ickly c leaned up. (Tsunami one yea r on: Tourist resorts ach ieve a remarkable turnaround , L i nsey McNei l l , BL .B, 02.01 .06, TSR)

I n the aftermath of l ast yea r's cataclysmic tsunami , Dr. G regory Stone of the N ew England Aquar ium co· led a n expedi tion to survey the damage caused to Tha i la nd's cora l reefs.

As reported i n a recently released techn ica l report ava i l abl e on the New Eng land Aquari u m website a n d i n December's i ssue of N at iona l Geographic, t h e expedit ion's resu lts i nd icate a qu ick recovery for most of the reefs.

The d ive tourism industry is a major part of the region's economy and local ly caught fish a re a pr imary source of prote i n i n the d iet of the people i n the reg ion . The coral reefs there a re a mong the most beaut ifu l i n the world.

An i nternationa l tea m of e ight sc ient i st ·d ivers, led by Dr. G regory Stone of Boston and Dr. Gera ld A l l en of Austra l i a , t rave l led to the coast of Tha i land a pprox imately three and a ha lf months after the tsunami struck in order to rap id ly a ssess the extent of damage to reefs.

After more than 500 d ives at 56 s ites, though the team found plenty of damage, there a ppears to be reason fo r optim i sm . Of the reefs a ssessed , 36 % s howed very l i tt le to no da mage, wh i l e 50 percent showed a moderate a mount of tsunami - related damage. On ly 14 % of the su rveyed reefs had suffered severe damage .

•••• The scient if ic team conc luded that the rare devastat ion of the tsunami was less of a long·term threat to the

2 0 0 5 - 0 6 I Documentat ion Update I cora l reefs than ongo ing human-caused damage such a s over-fish ing, poorly p lan ned coasta l deve lopment a nd global warming. (Tsunami : coral reefs can recover qu ickly, T H . B, 06.0 1 .06, TSR)

Tam i l Nadu & Pond icherry

The Tam i l Nadu Tour ism Development Corporation has brought out a colourful brochure as a post-tsunami u pdate to i nst i l confidence in trave l lers. Accord i ng to the brochure , a " temples in the tsuna mi -h i t a reas a re unaffected ; beach resorts i n Mama l l apuram on the East Coast Road stretch , wh ich were affected by the tsunami are funct ioning aga in ; there was no l oss of l i fe of foreign tour ists; most of the major tourist a ttractions i n the State a re located i n land a nd were not affected; a nd new monuments were u nearthed at Mama l l apura m after t h e tsunam i . The pa m ph l et has p i ctu res o f t reasures unea rthed from the sea by t h e tsunami a t M a ma l l a pu ra m , the mangrove forest of P i chava ram , the Dan i sh Fort a t Tranqebar (Ta rangambad i ) , the Vel ankann i Church i n Nagapatt inam, a nd the Vivekananda Rock Memori a l at Kanyakumari a nd the Pam ba n Br idge a t Rameswara m . I t a l so has p ictu res o f many overseas tour ists a rrivi n g by l uxu ry l i ners a fter the tsunami . (Brochure to a l l ay fears of tour ists , T.S. Shankar, TH .C, 05_05.05, TSR)

With a view to revita l i se the economy of the tsunami - ravaged d istr icts , TN ch ief m i n ister J J aya l a l ithaa has sought a 1 O-year exemption from excise duties on goods manufactured by new industria l un its which operate i n the affected region _ I n a l ette r to the P r i me M i n i ster, she a l so req uested a th ree-yea r exempt ion from excise dut ies on stee l , cement, p ipes and other construction materia l s used for estab l i sh ing new i ndustria l u n its i n t h e tsunami affected d istr icts. S h e d rew a para l l e l , where i n t h e Centre h a d is sued si m i l a r orders grant ing excise duty exemption to excisable goods manufactured by new industri a l un its i n Kutch which was devastated by a massive ea rthquake on January 26, 200 1 . (Jaya seeks 1 0 yea r exc i se hol i day in tsunam i ­h i t a reas, TOI . B, 08.06.06, TSR I M I l )

The Pondicherry government has cha l ked out several p lans for promoti ng ethnic ·cum- l ifestyle based tourism at the tsunam i · ravaged coasta l h a mlets of the U n ion terr i tory. Accord i ng to rel i ef a n d rehab i l itat ion commissioner B V Selva raj , every settlement which has been created under the Tsunami Rehabi l itation Project wou ld be provided with a strong i nterface for promot i ng l i festyle based tourism having l ively i nteraction with the fish ing and coasta l communit ies. Proper landscaping wou ld be done in these hamlets a nd cottages woul d b e constructed i n such a way that the i nfrastructure would encourage foreign a nd domestic tou ri sts t o v is i t these vi l lages. The ent i re activity is be ing consciously developed as a part of providing a l ternate and d iversified vocation for young f ishermen. Moreover, the eth n ic· cum· l i festy le based tourism wou ld be eco-fr iendly a nd employment i ntensive. Deta i l i ng the tsunami rehab i l itat ion work, he sa id that t i l l now, 1 3 non-government orga n isat ions and the government of Ma h a ra shtra have been work i ng in c losely with the Pond i cherry government to construct 4,997 houses for tsunami ·affected victims i n 22 settlements. ( Now, tsunami hamlets to be tou ri st spots, AA. D, 27 .02 .06, TSR)

Andaman & Nicobar Is l a nds

Envi ronmenta l i sts have slammed a tourism deal by I ndia 's tsunami ·h it Andaman i s lands with Tha i land , saying such a move wou ld destroy its fragi l e ecology a n d e n courage the sex trade. The Dec. 26 tsu n a m i k i l l ed thousands of people on I nd ia 's remote Andaman a nd N icobar is lands, caused massive envi ronmenta l damage a nd decimated the sma l l tou rism i ndustry i n the ra i n forest-covered i s l ands ri nged by cora l reefs. I n a move to breathe new l ife i nto the shattered economy, authorit ies s igned a five -yea r deal i n J une with the resort town of Phuket i n Tha i l and , famous for i ts beaches but a l so for a bu rgeon i ng sex trade. The dea l wou l d a l l ow tourists v is it i ng Phuket to take a short f l i ght to the Andamans . But environmenta l i sts warned the i s lands ' i nfrastructure as we l l a s i ts ecology cou ld not cope with a b ig n um ber of tou r ists . (Envi ronmenta l i sts f l ay I nd ia 's Thai tourism p lan , FE.B, 04.08.05, TSR)

The Andaman and N icobar I sl ands admi n istration has said it w i l l provide at least one da i ly wage job for a year to each fam i ly affected by the tsunami . About 6 ,31 3 fami l ies have been identified for the scheme after a door· to·door survey was conducted . Pr ime M in ister Manmohan S ingh a nnounced l ifti ng of the ban on recruitment in the U n ion Terr i to ry to f i l l the 650 vacant Government posts. He sa id there wou ld be an i ncrease in the nu mber of a nga nwadi workers. The admi n i st rat ion has a lso d rawn a n a ct ion p la n for agr icu l ture, a n i m a l husbandry, fisheries a n d rural development. (Manmohan announces l ivel ihood plans for Andaman a n d N icobar, Aarti Dha r, TH .B, 06.0 1 .06, TSR)

I Documenta tion Update I 2 0 0 5 - 0 6

• Source I ndex .

Code Newspaper

BL.B Business L i ne, Banga lore

FE.B F inanc ia l Express, Banga lore

ET.B Economic Times, Banga lore

IE .B I nd ian Express, Bangalore

A A . B As ian Age, B anga lore

DH.B Deccan Hera ld , Banga lore

TOI . B T imes of I nd i a , Banga lore

VT.B Vijay Times, Bangalore

TH.B The H i ndu, Bangalore

AA. D Asian Age, De lh i

FE.D F inancia l Express, Del hi

ET.D Economic Times, Delh i

IE .D I nd ian Express, Delh i

TOI .D Times of I nd ia , Del h i

TH.D The Hindu, Delh i

HT.D H i ndustan T imes, Delh i

TP.D The Pioneer, Del hi

TS.D The Telegraph, Delh i

I E.C I nd ian Express, Chenna i

FE.C Fi nanc ia l Express, Chenna i

ET.C Economic T imes, Chennai

BL.C Business Line, Chenna i

HE.G The Hera ld , Goa

GT.G Gomatak T imes, Goa

NT.G Navh ind Times, Goa

Readers are welcome to write to u s for a ny of the m ateria l s l i sted in the U pdate. though we would request for a contribution towa rds photocopy and mai I i ng expenses.

• •

Esta b l i shed in 1985, EQUAT I O N S is a research, campaigning and advocacy organisation charged with a vision of democratisingtourism.

We bel ieve that the alternatives to the current models of mass tourism are viable and have demonstrated this in i nnovative partnerships that place local communities' needs and rights at the center of decision-making and benefits of tourism development.

We bui ld networks of people grassroots organisations, local communities, panchayats and local self governance bodies, activists, researchers, trade unions, legal and policy experts-who are concerned, as we are, with e n s u r i n g t h a t t o u r i s m p l a n n i n g , p o l i cy a n d impl ementation is equitable, people·centred and just.

I n the last two decades, our work has focused on the i m pacts arising out of unregulated and irresponsi ble tourism development i n India and the developing world. We do this through research, information analysis and dissemi nation, campaigns, advocacy and lobbying. We - . actively, support communities and local groups in their efforts to cha nge the paradigm of unjust a n d unsustainable tourism development.

The DocUpdate is a compilation of media reports and research articles on tourism and development issues. The publication a i ms to provide an analytical perspective to the debate on tourism and development and is useful for researchers, tourism institutes and activists.

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