Patel advocates improving tourist experience; Nalo highlights challenges

NEW DELHI, Aug 20: Union MoS for Tourism, Prahlad Singh Patel, emphasized the need for “enhanced levels of coordination” across the states and agencies of the states in facilitating tourists and offering them unique and memorable experiences.
Addressing a state tourism ministers’ conference here on Tuesday, Patel also stressed on providing “improved and updated information to tourists.”
Organized by the union tourism ministry, the conference was attended by tourism ministers and secretaries from 20 states, including Arunachal’s Tourism Minister Nakap Nalo and Tourism Secretary Sadhana Deori.
Nalo highlighted the challenges faced by Arunachal in augmenting the tourist facilities in the state, especially the need for resources to support the operation and management of tourist assets and facilities.
He invited the dignitaries present to visit Arunachal, in keeping with the prime minister’s call for all Indians to visit at least 15 tourist destinations within India by 2022, to learn about and experience the state’s rich cultural heritage.
The conference saw the launch of a ‘one-stop portal solution’ for tourism-related services, besides presentations on adventure tourism, homestay guidelines, and the status of projects under the Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD schemes.
In the matter of improving the quality of services offered by homestays and bed & breakfast establishments, it was pointed out that it would be necessary to develop a framework to assess the quality of services, and to issue certifications “to build aspirations in the homestay owners to continuously improve their ratings.”