Arun Singh
Early Times Report
jammu, Mar 17: The tourism department, it seems is in no mood to publicise new tourist destinations. A whooping amount of rs 31.01 Cr has been spent on already popular places in five years.
Sources in the Tourism Department told Early Times that the Department, in past had developed a number of new tourist destinations like Rajouri, Poonch, Kishtwar, Bani, Basohli, Sarthal etc and had created enormous tourist infrastructure under Central and State sponsored schemes at these new locations.
"But the Department incurred an expenditure of Rs 31.01 crore during the period 2008-13 on publicity and advertisement which had mainly remained confined to Vaishno Devi, Shivkhori, Raghunath Bazaar, Bhaderwah and other pilgrim places of Jammu and the new conventional tourist destinations like Rajouri, Poonch, Kishtwar, Bani, Basohli, Sarthal were left out," sources divulged.
They said that the publicity and advertisement of the new tourist destinations is essential for promotion of tourism and economic up-liftment of the areas unless the new Tourist destinations are properly advertised and publicized, the flow of tourists cannot be ensured.
"However, Tourism has remained an instrument of economic growth in the State and has contributed a lot in developing the economy. Jammu region has vast potential and growing economy has immense potential for the sustenance of the tourism industry but negligence on the part of officials at the helms of the affairs new destinations are not being given due attention," sources said.
Despite the fact that Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine at Katra is internationally acclaimed tourist destination in Jammu region and attracting a large number of pilgrim tourists every year but department spends huge money every year on organizing several event there, they said. |
