In Brief

MTDC Offers Special Monsoon Package

Maharashtra Development Tourism Corporation (MTDC) has announced its Monsoon Special Package for a relaxing weekend getaway. The package offers tourists a wide range of destinations: from the beaches of Ganapatitule, Harihareshwar, Bordi and Tarkali to the mountain ranges of Matheran, Mahabaleshwar, Bhandardara, Karla and Malshej Ghat.

The rates for these destinations are discounted ranging from 20 per cent to 30 per cent on the regular resort tariffs. The package also offers a day's free stay on payment for two days while at Mahabaleshwar, travellers may avail of free complimentary breakfast. This MTDC offer is valid till September 2005.

Kerala Plans New Tourism Strategy

After experiencing a fall of nearly eight per cent in international tourists and 2.9 per cent in domestic travellers this year, Kerala Tourism is all set to repackage itself. It is coming up with attractive and discounted packages and catchy slogans to woo back its tourists. Even the hospitality industry has been asked to keep their prices low. State Tourism Secretary EK Bharat Bhushan said that the state was being "discriminated" by national carriers since it would cost a traveller visiting Kerala Rs 30,000 on airfare alone but spend less when travelling to international destinations like Sri Lanka and Singapore. The tourism department will do well to promote newer destinations that have not been marketed as yet.

PM Promises Himachal Rs 23 Crore

The hilly state of Himachal Pradesh will get a shot in the arm with Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh promising funds for developing eight to 10 new tourist destinations. With this, the state will explore other interior regions of the state and strengthen basic facilities in the existing tourist centres of Shimla, Manali, Dharamsala and Dalhousie. The Centre agreed to fund three such projects involving an expenditure of Rs. 23 crore. New tourist circuits will include Chamba and other cover districts of Mandi and Bilaspur. Another project is the development of Chanshal and Rohru as adventure and leisure destinations. Some more projects are being prepared to create facilities for pilgrims visiting various shrines in the state as a part of the plan to promote religious tourism.

Rajasthan Tourism Hardsells Sati To Tourists

Guess what Rajasthan's tourism department is hard-selling as the state's USP? It wants tourists to remember the state for the virtues of women who committed Sati. In its latest guidebook titled Popular Deities of Rajasthan, the department has invited tourists to visit some of the best Sati temples in the country. It describes the state as "best known for various Sati matas". The book goes on to describe the myths and legends associated with the sati temples in Rajasthan. The devsthan (temples) department, however, said it had goofed up in the portrayal of the Sati and said that it would withdraw the references to the temples to avoid being interpreted as glorifying Sati.

Government Targets New Avenues For Tourism Promotion

The Indian government has tourism on its mind. It plans to identify new areas and circuits to promote religious, rural, adventure, ecological, medical, ayurvedic and even dental tourism in the country. This step comes after the success of 'Incredible India' that reportedly brought in 25 per cent more tourists and Rs 55,000 crore in revenue. And rightly so, it is estimated that medical tourism could bring around Rs 200 crore in the country by 2010. To capitalise on this, The Federation of India Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has set up a task force for promoting medical and health tourism in Maharashtra to make Mumbai the new medical supermarket. Sources from the medical fraternity claim that a minimum of four foreign patients are treated for surgery in Mumbai every day. Popular medical treatment for which large number of visitors come to India include holistic healing techniques like ayurveda and complicated heart surgeries.

MTDC Offers Houseboats In Kudal Backwaters

The Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) has taken a cue from its counterpart in Kerala. It now plans to exploit the backwaters opportunity and launch five houseboats at the Nerurpar, Tarkarli and Arondha creeks in the Kudal and Malvan talukas of Ratnagiri district by Diwali. MTDC manager and director, Bhushan Gagarani, said, "The state government has already sanctioned Rs 2 crore for the purchase. So we expect to launch five houseboats by October or November." Meanwhile, MTDC is also conducting a study to assess the feasibility of this venture. Gagrani said, "We are looking at the middle and upper middle-class traveller." A similar effort was made by MTDC a decade ago for its Tarkarli beach resort. But the scheme failed since it required a minimum 10-15 feet of water. MTDC's present effort is focussed on houseboats with wider bases that can easily negotiate the shallow backwaters of the Konkan belt.

Western Ghats May Get World Heritage Site Status

The Western Ghats' tropical forests in Maharashtra, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka may soon find a place in the exclusive club of the World's Heritage Sites. UNESCO (United Nations Educational and Social Organisation), the nodal agency for declaring new heritage sites, has already started efforts in this regard. Surveys by Wildlife Institute of India (WII), with the help of a Bangalore-based agency Atree, have already been conducted to find a particular national park or a wildlife sanctuary in the 1.5 lakh sq km Western Ghats. The region is famous for its endemic species and shelters 508 species of birds, 218 fish, 117 reptiles, 127 mammals and 121 amphibian species. Kudremukh, Someshwar, Pushpagiri, and Brahmgiri in Karnataka, Eravikulam and Mannuvan Shola in Kerala are some of the key areas which have the potential to be declared as heritage sites.