Arunachal Pradesh is wooing tourists from all States and Union Territories of Bharat. And is also exploring the overseas market. Thankfully, this State, synonymous with the sobriquet Land of the Dawn-Lit Mountains, is undertaking this massive marketing exercise with utmost caution. The reason being that it wants to strike a balance between generating revenue through tourist footfalls and maintaining its ecology. It doesn’t want environmental degradation with tourists in big numbers.
Indeed, the picturesque Himalayan State with its scenic beauty, enchanting topography, and salubrious mountain air needs to ensure that restricted travel is allowed.
Unveiling its logo “Beyond Myths and Mountains” at Hotel Shangri-La in Delhi on April 2, Pasang Dorjee Sona, Minister for Tourism, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, said, “The prime focus of Arunachal Pradesh’s new tourism policy is to position the State as a world-class tourism destination, while preserving its pristine landscapes, rich tribal culture and unique biodiversity. We want to promote sustainable tourism and community empowerment. With the introduction of this policy, we expect to double domestic tourist footfalls and increase international tourist arrivals tenfold.”
Responsible Tourists
Admitting that niche travel was the need of the hour, the Minister, who represents Mechuka constituency, said he was advocating high value travel. “However, we cannot ignore the masses. So far, we have had tourists from Maharashtra and West Bengal who have been exploring our culture and also taking time out to clean on their own. To create a bond between tourists and locals, we are also sensitising Arunachalis,” said the Minister.
Importantly, the Central Government has taken those entrusted with the task of tourism potential in this North Eastern State to international fairs.
Before the inauguration, the Minister was informally interacting with a media person who confided in him that it was the Hornbill Festival of Nagaland that attracted him. Naturally, the Minister was a bit depressed. Thankfully, he got a favourable response from journos at the press conference when he asked all media persons what they thought about Arunachal Pradesh.
After hearing a response from each journalist, including me, who told him that the State was associated with peace and tranquillity, the Minister, with a warm smile on his countenance, said, “Yes, we have something for everyone – mountains, rainfall, cuisine, forest and adventure sports. You name it.”
My interest in Arunachal Pradesh was developed while I was a sixth class student at Modern School, Barakhamba Road. My classmate was Omak Apang, who hailed from the State. He later became a Minister in Vajpayee Cabinet.
Interestingly, the new tourism policy places a significant emphasis on experiential tourism with key areas of focus including Farm Tourism, Wine Tourism, Wellness and Spiritual Tourism, Adventure Tourism, Film Tourism, Ecotourism, Tribal Tourism, MICE Tourism and Border Tourism.
Single Window Clearance
Pointing out that he was the one who suggested that the State must have a single window clearance system to attract tourists, Manjunath said, “We are creating investment facilitation centres so that there is ease of doing business. A one stop solution for investors for information dissemination will be useful for potential investors. We will have multilingual trained staff with proficiency in English.”
In each district, there will be a tourism facilitation cell. Tourism department will sign MoU with aggregator platforms like Airbnb and Make My Trip.
Like Dilli Haat, a craft bazar which has branches across Delhi, Arunachal Pradesh will also have a similar model. Travellers will be able to taste the diverse dishes of the border State.
To get a feel of the local customs, homestays are opening up. In fact, the State Government is giving a fillip to homestays than hotels. Homestay owners will get cash benefits. “In three years we will see remarks by tourists. Remuneration will be given to each owner.”
Interestingly, tourists prefer homestays rather than hotels.
Elaborating how travellers can acclimatise themselves with his State, Pasang said, “If you are clueless about Arunachal then the best way is to go there and get a clear vision of the place. We are carbon negative, giving oxygen to the country. We don’t want to overburden you with too many nuggets. We want you all to be partners. Today I want to thank the media fraternity. We, as a State, have so much potential to offer.”
On the need for a new logo, the Minister said it was necessary to inform the public about the new tourism policy. The new logo is eye-catching. “It’s minimalistic but more expressive. Earlier, the logo had a tree and mountain. Arunachal Pradesh: Beyond Myths and Mountains.”
During the interaction, a graphic designer, while congratulating the delegation for the brand new logo, asked whether flight charges of airlines would be brought down because some Indians are exploring foreign destinations like Thailand.
“I appreciate the question, but flight charges are pretty high. Government is in touch with flight owners to get more flights from major Indian cities to Arunachal at affordable rates.” Connectivity has been a challenge for the landlocked State. “We will soon have helicopters for inter-State travel. Our Civil Aviation Minister was here to get approval of more flights. Frequency of flights will increase tourist footfalls,” said the Minister.
Hitherto, the biggest bottleneck for investment was land ownership. Outsiders are not allowed to buy property in the Himalayan State. “Now we have asked the State Govt that we will get as much investment as possible. If private investors come then we will have improvement in infrastructure.”
Promoting cuisine of Arunachal Pradesh is the top most priority of the think tank in the State. Its cuisine is being promoted in various festivals in Delhi like the recent event in Saket where Arunachali food, cooked in hollow bamboo, was served. The bamboo gave dishes a smoky flavour.
Exploring how he has been working with the Central Government to boost tourism both domestic and from abroad, the Minister said the main focus is Mechuka, the best mountain destination.
Checks and balances have been put in place as sustainability is the key issue. The State wants green industries and has proposed long-term lease for investors. “We will come with a new land lease policy. We have proposed 100 years but it will not be at one go,” said the Minister.
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