Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, March 8: State tourism secretary Aravind Padhee in a recent programme patted his own back while claiming that around 77,000 foreign tourists visited Orissa during the last one year. Padhee, who is also the managing director of the Orissa Tourism Development Corporation Ltd (OTDC), spoke at length about the good response his department has been getting from tourists from across the country.
Experts from the tourism sector, however, beg to differ from the tall claims of the tourism department. While talking to Orissa Post Benjamine Simon, chairman of the Indian Association of Tour Operators (Orissa chapter) said, “Many foreign tourists are now avoiding the state because (of) the anti-foreigner policy of the state. The state government has hardly anything to offer to the foreign tourists other than a heap of restrictions and a bunch of formalities before they venture into some prominent parts of the state. In many areas, they need to take prior permission from the government which is often a painstaking exercise.”
Simon says most of the foreign tourists are now heading towards nearby states such as Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal where they can roam with hardly any restrictions and
formalities.
Himanshu Das, vice president, All Orissa Travel and Tour Operators Association, said, “There are lots of confusion and ambiguities in terms of restrictions and guidelines. If the government wants to restrict or ban something, they should first do it in the form of legislations. Moreover, there needs to be a proper set of guidelines for tourists and also for tour and travel operators so that uniformity is maintained. The state government should ensure that international standards be followed by all tour operators.”
According to the existing norms, foreigners are not allowed to venture into districts such as Koraput, Raygada, Khandamal, Mayurbhang, Keonjhar, Kalahandi without the prior permission of the district collector or other authorities concerned. In some pockets even additional permission from some other departments are also required. Ironically, at many of these restricted areas Indians, at will, take pictures of tribals and sometimes even make documentaries, but foreigners are barred from even clicking a single picture. Nevertheless, if a foreigner wants to visit a friend of an NGO, in the above-mentioned areas, he needs prior permission from the authorities to do so.
Nevertheless, the single-window system, meant to provide a one-way solution for permissions, also seems to lose its virtue because of ambiguities reported in the scheme. It has been reported that often some district administrators do not give importance to consents given by the state tourism department.
S S Rath, tourist officer, Department of Tourism said, “Restrictions imposed at many places are meant to preserve the rights of the tribal people. Many tourists have violated the social norms in the past and have taken advantage of freedom given to them. Foreign tourists also need to respect local customs. Moreover, there should not be ambiguities in the guidelines. ”
