Tourists peeved at lack of basic amenities in Amritsar

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 25

Tourists are peeved at the lack of various tourism services in the holy city.

The list of inadequacies is long. The major problems being faced by them include maddening rush and unruly traffic, lack of tourist-friendly attitude among locals, absence of public transport connecting tourist sites and instances of mugging.

Gurpreet Singh of Bathinda, who had come to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple with his family, said the unruly traffic was difficult to negotiate. Encroachments and plying of carts selling various commodities on main commercial roads added to congestion, he said.

“We decided to walk down from the Hall gate to the Golden Temple after parking our vehicle near the Bhandari Bridge. On our way, we heard ear-piercing noise from constant honking by motorists,” Gurpreet said.

Bipin Dash from Odisha said pre-paid taxi stand was only available at the Golden Temple. “The service must be available at the Railway station and Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport too,” he said.

Sharing his experience, Dash who had a two-day stay in the city, said shopkeepers, auto and taxi operators must adopt a tourist-friendly attitude. He said they overcharged and supplied inferior quality goods to tourists which must stop.

A regular public transport facility linking tourism sites such as Gobindgarh Fort, War Museum and Sadda Pind must be introduced, he said, adding that it would save tourists from being fleeced. Tourists, who shell out three to four hundred rupees on travelling to visit these sites, will have to pay only Rs 20 per site, he said.

Sarbjeet Singh, a pilgrim from Dhariwal, complained of unhygenic conditions on roads and said there were heaps of unlifted garbage at several places. He said garbage must be lifted regularly to give a clean look to the holy city.

Tourists were also found being cautious of their belongings, especially purses and handbags, as they had heard that visitors were vulnerable to mugging.

District Tourism Officer Gursharan Singh said providing amenities and support to tourists was a collective task to be undertaken by each section of society, government and its various departments. He said camps were frequently held to educate traders, auto and taxi drivers to courteously converse with visitors and deal honestly to reap long-term dividends.