Shillong: Meghalaya laid down a draft Tourism Policy 2022 keeping in mind the promotion of eco-friendly and sustainable tourism in the state that is blessed with pristine rivers, picturesque waterfalls, green hills, rolling meadows, natural caves, sacred groves and beautiful forests. Apart from promoting eco-tourism, the policy talks about cultural, adventure and health tourism and adequately building infrastructure for the same. The state government is looking at involving communities further to develop homestays through various schemes, build road connectivity, train locals in conducting guided tours and building capacity.

For niche tourism, the government is also planning luxury vehicles with GPS trackers and trained drivers. The policy is aimed at maintaining a balance between restricted footfall and economic growth so that the tourism sector sees sustainability without damage to natural resources. The policy also states that the connectivity projects laid down in the master planning of the newer tourism circuits will be taken up on priority.

Cyril V. Darlong Diengdoh, Secretary to the Government of Meghalaya and Director of Tourism (DT)-Meghalaya, tells Business-Northeast (BNE) about the long-term plan and how it can be achieved through concerted efforts.
Excerpts from the interview:

BNE: Did the Covid-induced economic pain points prompt the drafting of the tourism policy?
DT: Covid was one reason. Also, the state government gives priority to this sector as tourism is a job multiplier. There are all sorts of travellers from across the country and around the world who are keen on exploring unseen places. If they can find better facilities in those places, then they will stay there and that in turn will increase the income of the locals. Keeping all this in mind, the tourism policy becomes important for updating and maintaining relevance.

BNE: Can you please enumerate the plans?
DT: The thrust is on eco-tourism, developing infrastructure, improving the local economy and training locals in handling tourists and running the sector sustainably. Tourism development is a multi-sectoral engagement. For instance, infrastructure development includes road connectivity and transportation, which would involve the Public Works Department. There are several emerging tourist circuits in the state that is being developed. It is an ongoing process.
Then there is MITP (Meghalaya Integrated Transport Project) that will integrate various modes of transport, such as roads, waterways, urban transport and ropeways. Tourism roads will be upgraded in phases.
For improving the local economy, tourists should be encouraged to stay in a particular destination and engage in various activities. This way, the economy of that particular place will see substantial growth.
Training for locals is important to have proper guides and for them to know how to communicate with tourists and run the cycle efficiently.
We are involving communities for holistic development. Villages have cooperatives and these are engaged in these activities.

BNE: This policy focuses on niche tourism. How much revenue is the state looking at in the first five years?
DT: The policy focuses more on employment generation. The government is not thinking about revenue as it will follow with the development of various aspects. In fact, it is more concerned about the several benefits. For instance, as jobs will be created, we can prevent migration.

BNE: You have an existing app that you are planning to upgrade to provide a single platform for tourists. Are you planning to make the system more interactive?
DT: Updating and upgrading the app is again a continuous process. It is a platform for all stakeholders in the tourism business. They can put up information about their services which the tourists can access. The app has all information about services such as tour guides, tour operators, hotels etc.

BNE: The core of technology implementation is data. How are you planning to address the gap? Are you planning to rope in any private agency?
DT: Data is sensitive and maintaining data privacy is of utmost importance. So, we will not engage any private player in managing and analysing the data that we will collect from the app. Also, the data being collected so far is simple, like tourists’ feedback. That our department will do and act as per the feedback received.

BNE: How much investment will be made to develop infrastructure for this niche tourism? How much fund is earmarked for niche tourism?
DT: We already have PMEGP (Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme) under which Rs 5 lakh is given through the Department of Commerce and Industries. (PMEGP is a credit-linked subsidy programme formed by merging two schemes — Prime Minister’s Rojgar Yojana and Rural Employment Generation Programme — for generation of employment opportunities through the establishment of micro-enterprises in rural and urban areas. PMEGP is a central sector scheme administered by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) We also have the Meghalaya Homestay Scheme under which the Tourism Department allocated Rs 10 lakh for promoting homestays in the state… We have also tied up with Meghalaya Rural Bank. For funding, the planning is done every year. It is a continuous process.

BNE: About land banks, how is the state planning to handle the hiccups?
DT: The government will undertake infrastructure development wherever land is available. For instance, the Shillong Peak ropeway project. Also, we are engaging with communities (land is held by the community, and not the government, in Meghalaya) for land bank.

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