Hoteliers’ views sought for tourism promotion

Lalit Mohan

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, February 18

The state government has invited suggestions from the hotel associations to prepare road map for promotion of tourism in Himachal Pradesh. A meeting of the hotel associations was held yesterday with director tourism and other officials of the state.

Sanjeev Gandhi, general secretary of the Upper Dharamsala Hotel Association, while talking to The Tribune, said that it was a welcome step on the part of the state government. It was for the first time that the state government was trying to involve the hoteliers in formulation of the policy for the promotion of tourism. “We have given our suggestion and hope that the government would include some of these in the policy to be framed”, he said.

In Kangra region the hoteliers and other industry related with tourism has been requesting the state government to cash in on the brand ‘The Dalai Lama’. The hoteliers have alleged that earlier the Dalai Lama used to hold most of its teaching at McLeodganj. The teaching used to attract tourists from across the world and used to give lifeline to the tourism industry of Dharamsala throughout the year.

However, over the years, the Dalai Lama has moved his teaching out of Dharamsala. In the last few years, the Bihar government has invited the Dalai Lama and he is hosting his teachings in Bodh Gaya that attract thousands of foreign tourists. Bihar Chief Minister had specially come to Dharamsala to invite the Dalai Lama for teachings in Bodh Gaya.

Deepak Kumar, a resident of Dharamsala who is associated with tourism industry, said that despite the fact that the Himachal government was hosting the Tibetan government in exile and McLeodganj was the home of the Dalai Lama outside Tibet, no endeavour has been made by the state government to urge the Tibetan spiritual icon to hold his teachings here. In case Kala Chakra teachings of the Dalai Lama were held at Dharamsala, it could give a booming business to the tourism industry of entire Kangra district, he said.

During his first winter sojourn in Kangra district in last month January, new Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur had met the Dalai Lama at his residence in McLeodganj. The Chief Minister had said that he would take up the issue of holding teachings of the Dalai Lama at Dharamsala. However, no statement in this regard has been issued either by the establishment of the Dalai Lama or the state government.

The hotel association of Dharamsala has also requested the state government that certain activities should be created in the area under the Smart City scheme to retain the tourists. Presently the tourists stay in Dharamsala region for just a couple of days as there was no activity for children or adults. The hotel association is of the view that the tourist stay can be increased in case some recreational activities are created in the region.