village Tourism

Economic Times Bangalore;

:Mar 7, 2006;

:Business & IT;

:6

Village tourism initiative goes full steam ahead

Sreeradha D Basu KOLKATA



    THE FM’s budgetary allocation of Rs 830 crore for tourism, up just 5.6% from last year, may have thrown cold water on industry expectations. But the Ministry of Tourism seems to be relatively unfazed. It is, in fact, going ahead full steam with its initiatives to identify the “15 tourist destinations and 50 villages” mentioned for development in the Union Budget.

    Speaking to ET, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Mr Amitabh Kant said, “Right now we are in the midst of talks with state governments to narrow down the 15 destinations that will make the most difference to Indian tourism. We expect to finalise these places within the next 15-20 days.” The Bodhgaya-Rajgir-Nalanda belt in Bihar, among the hotspots for Buddhism, is expected to be among them. So also are Hampi in Karnataka and Maharashtra’s famous Elephanta Caves.

    “Our goal is to create unique destinations where visiting tourists can get a world-class experience. Setting up good civic amenities and ticketing facilities will be among the measures we’ll take up,” said Mr Kant. Endogenous tourism will also get a leg-up thanks to the Tourism Ministry’s efforts. This concept, which revolves around the culture and craft of a location, while seeking to create livelihood opportunities for the local community, will be promoted in 50 villages “with core competency in handicrafts, handlooms and culture”.

    Again, these villages are in the process of being identified. But among those likely to be selected are Pochampalli and Kuchipudi in Andhra Pradesh and Raghurajpur in Orissa, well known for their indigenous arts and crafts According to Mr Kant, most of the traditional crafts of these villages are bought by middlemen, who subsequently sell them in urban areas.

    “We are looking to develop these places as destinations in themselves,” he said. “We want both domestic and international visitors to experience the concept first-hand — not just by staying with and buying goods from the villagers but by learning the tricks of their trade as well,” explained Mr Kant.

 

 

 

Hesco's Watermills

NORTH BY NORTH-EAST: A WATERMILL STORY

Deepti Saxena / New Delhi/ Dehra Dun March 06, 2006

 

After lighting up border villages of Jammu and Kashmir, watermills, which had been in use in the mountains since time immemorial, will now illuminate India's north-eastern region.

In an ambitious plan, Hesco, a Dehra Dun-based voluntary organisation, will install watermills in Nagaland and Manipur as part of its “technology-for-peace” programme, in association with the Indian Army.

The watermill is an eco-friendly device that can harness water power to grind wheat and generate 5 to 8 Kw of electricity. At present, there are 200,000 watermills in the Himalayan region.

According to an estimate prepared by Hesco, watermills can generate 2,500 Mw of power in the Himalayan region, which is also seen as an answer to big dams which often uproot thousands of people and are very expensive.

Hesco Director Anil P Joshi has devised a very simple, inexpensive and environment-friendly technology kit that can upgrade these watermills into micro-hydel project to produce electricity.

Hesco is also running a training centre at its office in the Mehuwala area of Dehradun. Already, people from J&K, Arunachal Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh have taken training in watermills.

“We are now focusing our attention towards Nagaland and Manipur and will install watermills in these states," Joshi said.

Hesco has acquired expertise in watermill technology. Already, the organisation, in a joint venture with the Indian Army, has installed nearly 360 watermills in border villages of Jammu and Kashmir. Most of the areas are badly hit by terrorism.

Villages in areas like Kupwara, Baramulla, Kargil, Batalik Drass, Poonch and Rajouri had benefited from watermill campaign, Joshi said.

Last month, Hesco installed its first watermill at the Haipe village of Arunachal Pradesh. "This watermill is working very well," Joshi said, adding more watermills will be installed in near future.