BOLENG, 10 May: In a significant step towards transforming Siang district into a premier cultural and ecotourism destination, a district-level tourism meeting was convened at the DC’s conference hall here on Saturday.
The meeting, chaired by minister Ojing Tasing, aimed to craft a strategic, inclusive, and actionable tourism roadmap for the district.
The meeting brought together stakeholders from various sectors, including tourism, forest, horticulture, agriculture, textile and handicrafts, youth bodies, SHGs, and civil society.
A special highlight of the meeting was the session led by the first batch of NIMAS-trained adventure travel guides from Siang district, who shared their training experiences and commitment to contributing to Siang’s tourism landscape.
Tasing directed all departments to ideate and implement tourism-related interventions under their respective sectors.
Drawing inspiration from the Clean Model Village initiative, the minister encouraged the Siang deputy commissioner to mobilise heads of offices to adopt one village each to mentor and develop as clean and tourism-ready site.
The minister further emphasised the need to identify viable tourist spots, with a dedicated roadmap to position the Mouling National Park as a marquee destination.
He emphasised the need for hospitality training, curbing unsustainable practices like hunting of wildlife, and integrating NIMAS-trained youths into the district’s tourism framework to ensure responsible and inclusive tourism growth.
MLA Talem Taboh stressed the need to develop tourist circuits and focal points across the district, with emphasis on hospitality, behavioural change, and cultural sensitivity. He emphasised that the success of tourism depends as much on mindset as it does on infrastructure.
DC PN Thungon reaffirmed the district administration’s commitment to driving sustainable and inclusive tourism growth in Siang.
He acknowledged the challenges currently facing the sector and emphasised the need for a solution-driven, action-oriented approach to address these issues, with local communities playing a central role in the district’s tourism development.
During the meeting, the participants decided that a district tourism task force will be constituted to monitor, coordinate, and fast-track tourism initiatives. Strict timelines will be set for site assessments, capacity building, pilot circuits and tourism packages, branding and communication and finalisation of the roadmap document with monthly progress reviews.
The meeting was attended by SP JK Lego, administrative officers, heads of departments, CBOs, registered tour operators, and other key stakeholders. (DIPRO)
