Chairing the sixth meeting of H.P. Tourism Development Board here today, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh expressed happiness over UNESCO heritage status for Great Himalayan National Park, in Kullu district and said that it would certainly go a long way in promoting tourism in the State.Tourism industry contributes 9.75 percent to the Gross Domestic Produce of the State and it can prove to be a game changer for the State if chain of big International Hotels be invited and asked to invest in Himachal Pradesh. “We can facilitate such big hoteliers by either providing them land on lease or by identifying suitable land for them to construct their hotels”, he said .Seconding the views of the Vice-Chairman Tourism, Major Vijay Singh Mankotia on the issue above, Chief Minister said that conclaves or seminars in association with FICCI, ASSOCHAM or CII should be held in near future, as these hoteliers were also members of such associations and could be urged for investing in the State in interest of tourism industry which would give fillip to the Tourism Industry and Himachal Pradesh would be established as a leading global sustainable tourism destination by 2029.He stressed upon renovating and re-constructing the ancient temples of the State and also advised the department of Language, Art and Culture to re-construct such temples, which were of late gutted with the same old traditional architectural design.
“All temples of pre-historic time require refurbishment and the concerned department should take necessary steps in this direction” said the Chief Minister.The Chief Minister while speaking on the ‘Jakhu Ropeway Project’ asked to complete the required formalities and for completion of the much delayed project without delay. He also proposed for another Rope Way from Sarahan to Bashal Manda and said that it was a picturesque spot from tourism point of view from where people can trek over to Bhaba Valley of Kinnaur.The Chief Minister emphasized the need to fast-track the infrastructure projects with definite time lines and stressed that critical gaps in the infrastructure for the growth of tourism be met on priority.He said that to stop harassment of tourists and visitors especially in Shimla certain guidelines to curb the activities of touts and coolies at Railway station or near the bus stand or entry point needs to be regulated by law. ‘This was necessary to stop harassment of tourists in hands of such people’ said he.
The Government is committed for promotion and sustainable development of tourism in the State and to encourage the hospitality industry in hard and tribal areas and in backward panchayats of the State, the Government has exempted the new hotel units being set up from paying luxury tax for a period of 10 years w.e.f. 1st August 2012 and April 2013 respectively from the date the unit commences operation. This would not only apply to hotel units being set up in rural areas but has been also extended to Home Stay Units in rural areas for a period of five years with effect from July, 2013. To provide parking facilities to the visitors is a great challenge for any hilly State and adequate parking facilities were the need of the hour keeping in view the increasing volume of vehicles.
The Chief Minister inquired about the ongoing parking projects in the State and expressed satisfaction over proposed ongoing parking slots and those too which were to come up soon.He also advised to install sign boards showing directions of the important tourist destinations on major State and National Highways.“Thrust should be given to improve the condition of Dhalli bus stand in Shimla besides improving the conditions of other bus stands at Nahan, Una, Hamirpur, Kullu, Manali and Chintpurni”, said the Chief Minister. He also asked to chalk out a plan for mono-rail project in Dharamshala, adding that large scale publicity campaigns must be carried out to sell the brand ‘Himachal’ and any negative publicity that might prove ruinous to the States image must be rebutted aggressively.“None of us falls short in courage or conviction, and we do what is best for the State and for the people of Himachal’ said Shri Virbhadra Singh. For creating ‘Way Side Amenities’ (WSA) the department concerned should pursue the case for getting No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the departments concerned, whose land was to be acquired and developed for creating WSAs.
The Chief Minister also asked the concerned departments to get the building of Town Hall vacated for renovation and said that as the funding for the same was being done by Asian Development Bank (ADB), the work period was limited and the Town Hall should be vacated at the earliest, so that the beautification work could be carried out. It would be a temporary shifting till the heritage building gets a new look, added he. The Chief Minister also asked to incorporate the Minister for Urban Development in list of Board of Members.Suggestions were also invited from Non-Official Members present on the occasion. Earlier, Vice Chairman of H.P. Tourism Development Board, Major Vijay Singh Mankotia welcomed the Chief Minister and thanked him for associating and entrusting the task for development of tourism industry in the State.He said that tourism today was recognized as the largest employment generation industry in the world and the State had immense potential to exploit the natural wealth for giving much needed fillip to tourism industry.“Under the stewardship of Chief Minister, tourism would be given added thrust as he was concerned and committed for making Himachal Pradesh as a major tourists destination”, said Mankotia.
The need was to execute our plan in a manner so that we can invite more central assistance, he said, adding that reputed brands from the hospitality sector would be invited to showcase the true potential of State as a tourist destination. He said that efforts were afoot to have a Brand Ambassador for tourism promotion in Himachal Pradesh.Shri Mohan Chauhan, Director Tourism detailed about the agenda and steps being taken by the department to boost tourism.Chief Secretary Shri P. Mitra, Additional Chief Secretary (Tourism) Shri V.C. Pharka were present in the meeting besides other official and non-official members of the Board.