J&K Vs Aurangabad: The Tourism Paradox

Aurangabad, which once housed a flourishing tourism industry, is soon fading from most tour operators' brochures whilst Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) is fast regaining its lost glory. Raadia Mukadam endeavours to unravel the factors responsible for drawing the shadow over what was once Maharashtra's star tourism product and for reclaiming the paradise that once J&K was...

Synonymous with the world famous heritage sites of Ajanta and Ellora Caves, Aurangabad is a city still uniquely steeped in tradition. The caves, minarets, maqbaras and numerous mazaars dotting the cityscape lend a very distinctive touch to this once dusty town converting it into a veritable 'Jewel of Marathwada'. However, since the past four years, this city, which could have developed into the tourism hub of Maharashtra, is facing dwindling number of tourists, falling occupancies and a downswing in the fortunes of its hospitality industry. Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), on the other hand which is one of nature's best poem though badly edited by man, might have been down but is definitely not out of the (tourism circuit) yet. The state remains one of India's most beautiful destinations. Tourism is the best antidote to terrorism and this time around, J&K hopes to stay on course. Its government has an important agenda to follow - to bring back reluctant seekers to the paradise they seek. Two products both unique in their offerings but distinct in their fates. Aurangabad, despite the world heritage sites and several other monumental tourist attractions in the area and the backing of huge Japanese funding has been reporting depleting tourism fortunes. Whilst a resilient Jammu and Kashmir which the tourism industry had long since written off as a tourism product due to terrorist activities and socio-political factors adversely affecting the place, is back with a bang fighting all odds.

Is Aurangabad Closing The Doors Of Opportunity?

An analysis reveals that Rajasthan enjoys a lion's share of 40 per cent of India's total foreign tourist traffic. The Indian Airlines flight connecting the sector of Udaipur and Aurangabad that operated for almost 25 years transported a large number of this traffic from Rajasthan into Aurangabad. This resulted in two flourishing tourism products for India.

However four years ago, due to reasons yet unexplained, the ministry of civil aviation (MoCA) and Indian Airlines withdrew the service on this sector. Subsequently, inbound tourism to Aurangabad fell by almost 60 per cent and likewise corresponding room occupancies, leaving the travel and hospitality industry gasping. Aurangabad is clearly a promising destination for the international arena with the Ajanta and Ellora caves having been declared as a world heritage site. The irony however is while Aurangabad has been fortunate enough to get Rs 400 crore of Japanese aid to restore the monumental caves, it has remarkably poor connectivity to any other Indian destination barring the metropolis of Mumbai.

Says Suneet Kothari, managing director, President Park, "There are currently three flights operating out of Aurangabad connected to Mumbai. Unfortunately, Mumbai is not the point of entry for a majority of foreign tourists as compared to New Delhi. Due to poor connectivity to other tourist destinations, many travel agents and tour operators have removed Aurangabad from their tourist circuit brochures. Also, using Mumbai as a gateway to Aurangabad, for inbound or domestic tourists who may not be transiting through the city, unnecessarily inflates tour costs. Though MTDChas done much to promote this heritage city to both the national and international market, poor connectivity washes away its efforts."

Good connectivity is probably the most important criteria for the success of any destination. To that effect, Aurangabad, sadly lacks not only good air connectivity but also rail connectivity. Explains Sunil Gupta, general manager, WelcomHotel Rama International, "Most inbound tourists like to visit more than one destination in India and therefore like to do tourist circuits that are well connected. The city of Aurangabad does not have good air or rail links to other important tourist destinations of India. So, a tourist is forced to travel to Mumbai by air to catch his immediate flight/train connection. With the Japanese aid cave restoration work in full progress, the city of Aurangabad must have good connectivity to cities like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka."

Taking a cue from the North-East states, all domestic carriers in the country are currently forced to operate flights this sector. A similar ruling needs to be taken in favour of Aurangabad, to provide lacking connectivity and consequently augmenting forex earnings for the country due to more availability of seats in peak tourist season.

Kothari also recommends the promotion of cargo landing and night parking at all tourist airports including Aurangabad. "This is necessary as most tourist airports have just two to three flights landing throughout the day. This would help de-congest metro city airports as well as airline companies will find it economical, due to cheaper parking charges on tourist airports as compared to metro city airports," adds Kothari.

Further Ashish Kumar Singh, managing director, MTDC, adds, "I agree that where Aurangabad is concerned our focus has been more on infrastructural development in the past. What it needs essentially is an aggressive marketing effort from both the public and private sector. We now want to turn our focus and promote Aurangabad as a stand-alone destination, and not part of a circuit. With Indian Airlines now plying one flight a day and Jet Airways two flights a day from Mumbai, the number of tourists heading to Aurangabad are bound to increase." According to Singh, low occupancy reports from the Aurangabad hospitality industry are not solely because of a dwindling number of tourists but can be attributed to an increasing number of hotel rooms in the city. Resulting in more supply rather than demand.

J&K Turns A New Leaf

Conversely, Jammu and Kashmir consists of three regions differing in topography and culture yet distinguished in its offering. Whether it is the plains of Jammu, the Himalayas or forest retreats, the Kashmir Valley is a large, fertile, region enclosed by the high snow-capped ridges with renowned temples and hilltop monasteries of Ladakh, one of the best living traditions of Tibetan Buddhism in the world today. Despite being subjected to political unrest since the late 1980s due to terrorist activities, with an elected government in place, the state tourism has since the last year however been mustering its lost glory. The Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Development Corporation (J&KTDC) that operates and manages government accommodation in tourist centres at Srinagar and Jammu, and tourist complexes, hotels, tourist bungalows in various resorts, also runs a travel division, which has been launching competitive package tours to tap the domestic market.

Speaking on key strategies and initiatives adopted by the state to revive tourism in J&K, M Ashraf, director general, department of tourism, J&K, revealed that, "The state government is in the process of formulating and implementing an effective tourism policy for the state, that will lay emphasis on infrastructure, destination enhancement, and security of tourists. It is also in the midst of a sustained and strong promotional campaign both in India and abroad to lure back international tourists."

Some of the key promotional slogans used by the state have been, 'Jammu - You Won't Believe Your Eyes' which promotes the hills resorts of Jammu like Patnitop, Sanasar and Mansar. Ladakh has been branded as 'The Land of Endless Discovery' through this campaign. According to Ashraf, the government is likely to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Punjab government for a joint tourism promotion of the state. Subsequently, a circuit comprising Amritsar-Kashmir has also been proposed which could possibly rope in Chandigarh. The government has also been urging the private sector comprising tour operators and travel agents to recur their endeavour in promoting J&K.

With this view, the state government has instated the Raja Patil Tourism Award last year, with a cash prize of Rs one lakh and a trophy for tour operators bringing in the largest number of tourists. To keep the travel trade abreast with new tourism offerings the state will be shortly initiating a monthly newsletter that will provide an insight on the latest tourism developments in J&K.

Since efficient infrastructure plays a pivotal role in the success of any destination as a tourism product, the J&K government has been aggressively inviting the private sector to partake in their infrastructure development drive luring them with tempting Sops. 'Invest for a cause'. 'To invest in

Kashmir is to invest in peace' and 'Chalo Kashmir' are the new slogans to attract investment and attention. The government has drawn up another ambitious plans to boost tourism by augmenting room capacity, sprucing up lakes and encouraging private sector investment. Of the Rs 26 crore budget outlay for the year, nearly 60 per cent has been earmarked as incentives for private sector investment. In its recently announced budget for 2003-04, the J&K state government has announced a special sales tax holiday for hospitality industry. The government has also proposed a general tax holiday from the payment of entertainment duty till January 31, 2005. To encourage new and smaller ventures, the government will provide soft loans at one per cent interest. The government has proposed to bear the 50 per cent cost of modernising travel agencies and has also disbursed Rs 30 crore to hotels as spruce up Srinagar's 12,000 houseboats. Further, for safe guarding the interests of tourists visiting J&K, the government has enacted a special legislation titled act called 'Jammu and Kashmir Registration of Tourist Trade Act, 1978-1982'. Under this act, all tourist officers posted in different resorts have been vested with special powers as prescribed authorities to register and regulate tourist trade in their respective areas of jurisdiction, and to look into complaints from tourists visiting the state. A dialogue has also been initiated by the government along with the central government's ministry of civil aviation with respect to prohibitive fares of domestic airlines and for removal of inland air tax.

Aurangabad: Underplaying Its USPs

It was encouraging for the travel industry that the ministry of tourism on a proactive note declared Buddhist circuits in India that will be accordingly merchandised and promoted in the international circuit. To the sheer shock of the Aurangabad hospitality industry, world heritage monuments like Ajanta & Ellora that house exclusive caves depicting the life of Lord Buddha had completely been ignored. An opportunity to market the very essence of these caves as a leading Buddhist attraction was passed over, and Aurangabad's very unique selling proposition (USP) was forgotten. States of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand were however earmarked for these promotions.

Says an aggravated S Saleemuddin, managing director, Aurangabad Tours & Travels P Ltd, "The caves of Aurangabad enjoy great respectability and mystique in the eyes of an international tourist. That is exactly why it is beyond me to comprehend the plight of tourism in Aurangabad. First, they take away the IA flight connecting Rajasthan and Aurangabad, and now to add insult to injury they ignore the Ajanta & Ellora caves as exemplifying monuments of Lord Buddha. On one hand, the ministry of tourism is getting proactive about promoting tourism to both the inbound and domestic tourists, and on the other hand, they are meting out step motherly treatment to what could easily be their trump card. Promotion of the Aurangabad-Bhopal-Sanchi circuit, which are all important Buddhist centres and also interlinked by train, should be undertaken by the government and suitably promoted."

Did you know that the fifty thousand-year-old 'Lonar Crater' near Aurangabad is India's only and the world's third largest meteorite impact crater in the basaltic rock region? Well, surprisingly most people in the travel industry are ignorant of this fact, the elementary reason being that the 'Lonar Crater' barely merits a feature, in tourism department's marketing and promotion campaign. "Though Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) has been making an endeavour at popularising this place as a tourist destination, there is absolutely no literature available for this natural wonder at any of the tourism offices in India or even abroad," revealed Kothari.

Whilst eco-tourism is gaining ground globally, with no exception to India, the Lonar crater with it's rare flora and fauna, is a highly impressive sight and a perfect product to be promoted as part of India's eco-tourism drive.

In fact countries like USA and Africa have special 'crater vacation tours' for their craters at Arizona and Ngorongoro respectively. "While this presents a brilliant destination for the inbound and domestic tourists heading to Aurangabad, it is rarely sought after, as not many tourists are aware that this wonder is located only a couple of hours away from Aurangabad. Brochures, posters, CD-ROMS must be immediately prepared, and circulated by the government on the same. A mystique and intrigue has to be created about such a product," says Sadiq Syed, managing director, Asian Travel Company.

Drawing parallels with Singapore, Syed added, "Singapore has done a fascinating job of meeting the challenge of marketing a destination that had no natural touristic attractions. Most of the attractions in Singapore are man-made. But India, particularly with reference to Aurangabad is a classical example of having a product generously endowed with natural touristic attractions, but has been left unexplored leave aside strategically exploited." Reiterating these sentiments, says Saleemudin who has been in the travel business for over two decades, "At this rate, tour operators from Aurangabad will either have to look for alternate carriers or simply relocate."

J&K Unfurls New USPs

Maintaining its pristine natural beauty as its USP, J&K is developing and promoting new destinations and circuits. The government is focusing on certain routes like Manali-Leh Road and the Hindustan-Tibet Road along with areas like Lahul, Spiti and Kinner for setting up and developing infrastructure. Says Azim Tuman, vice-chairman, House Boat Owners Association, "The government has taken the initiative of cleaning up the Dal lake, the tourist hot spot. Plans are afoot to develop other facilities around the lake after completion of the current project. The work for cleaning up the Dal Lake is already underway reflecting on an increasing tourist influx. Naturally houseboat owners are back in business. In fact not more than a fortnight ago, there was not even a single houseboat available as all were occupied by tourists."

According to Ashraf, the major focus area will be pilgrim tourism with a keen focus on Amarnath and Vaishno Devi. But since an increasing number of inbound tourists are opting for adventure holidays, Mount Kailash previously touted only as a pilgrimage destination, is now being aggressively marketed to adventure tourists. Experts have been hired to classify the ski slopes at Gulmarg. Once this is done, the slopes and other facilities will be upgraded to international standards so as to allow the hosting of international winter sports events.

The government has also re-opened 15 peaks in Kashmir's Ladakh region, including the much sought after Nun Kun which is at the height of 21,000 feet and the White Needle peak to mountaineers. For golfers, the valley also boasts a ten-hole golf course built at a cost of Rs 37 crore and designed by the well know American golf course designer, Robert Trent Jr The course which is possibly one of the top ten in the world is being placed third in Asia and aims at luring the up-market travellers that choose golf for recreation.

Exploring The Potent Domestic Market

With inbound tourism on the decline due to socio political disturbances world over, in the past few years, the government must divert its attention toward the potent domestic market. "India is a huge product, almost like a continent with 29 countries to explore. We must aggressively promote domestic tourism, particularly places rich in culture and heritage like Aurangabad, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Agra and many more. The list is endless. With reference to Aurangabad, to tap the domestic tourists, the department of tourism must publish brochures and release advertisements in regional languages in the electronic as well as print media. All world heritage sites of India declared by UNESCO must be published in Gujarati, Bengali languages as it is a widely accepted fact that Gujarati and Bengali communities travel extensively in India as domestic tourists. "It is heartening however to notice innovative strategies that the J&K tourism is offering to project itself as a safe destination as well as reintroduce this paradise to the Indian market," says Subhash Goyal, chairman, STIC travels P Ltd.

Says Sudhir Patil, director, Kesari Tours and Travels, "We already have several bookings for the forthcoming Diwali season to Kashmir and I can vouch that all our tourists have never faced any security hazards in J&K." Reiterating this Jaffer Shaikh, general manager, TPH Travel Services, says, "What matters is how a destination is perceived. While there is no denying that political unrest is still prevalent in J&K, there are several areas that are devoid of any danger. We continue to send both groups and FIT travellers to J&K who have returned completely satisfied with their experience. In fact, the only disappointment of a recent group was that they did not witness any action that they were otherwise anticipating. On the other hand, tourist influx to Aurangabad can definitely improve if connectivity is improved. We however ply our own Volvo busses on the route."

India is one of the few countries in the world that is richly endowed with all vital ingredients that make a successful tourism product, all it warrants is efficient marketing. It is quite apparent from the above comparison that marketing is the name of the game and that good or poor marketing strategies can easily make or mar an otherwise accomplished tourism product.