The Hindu : Karnataka News : `State has lagged behind in tourism development'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Mar 05, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka

`State has lagged behind in tourism development'

By Our Staff Correspondent

MYSORE, MARCH 4. The Joint Commissioner of Tourism, S.M. Gowrishankar, has said that some of the smaller States have developed the tourism industry well, but the same cannot be said of Karnataka.

Mr. Gowrishankar was speaking at the valedictory of the national seminar on `Tourism: opportunities and challenges' jointly organised by D. Banumaiah Educational Institutions and Rotary Mysore here today.

He said that States such as Kerala, Goa and Haryana have succeeded in attracting a large number of tourists as their Governments have been supporting the industry.

"Kerala has allocated Rs. 74 crores, Goa Rs. 41 crores and Tamil Nadu Rs. 61 crores for tourism, whereas in Karnataka the budgetary allocation is only Rs. 13.5 crores." The tourism industry, besides generating revenue, has also created 25 million jobs in India, he said.

Stating that Karnataka has a high potential to develop tourism in a big way, Mr. Gowrishankar said that the trend and the mindset of policy-makers towards tourism is changing. The Deputy Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah, is keen on developing the tourism industry, especially in Mysore, he said. Mr. Gowrishankar said that the inflow of tourists to South India is not heavy because of the fact that foreign tourists visit one or two places of historical importance in North India and return home. Failure to disseminate information about tourist spots in other parts of the country and the lack of trained guides are some of the reasons for the tourism industry in South India not picking up, he said.

The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), R.M. Ray, said though the potential for tourism development in India is huge, the lack of discipline among the citizens is affecting the industry's growth. The Mayor, Dakshinamurthy, and the administrator of D. Banumaiah Educational Institutions, Thimmappa, were present.

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