Women self-help group to run tourist info centre in Kurukshetra

Nitish Sharma

Kurukshetra, July 28

The Kurukshetra Development Board (KDB) has decided to engage a women self-help group (SHG) to resume operations at the Tourist Information and Facilitation Centre (TIFC) lying closed for over three years near Sannihit Sarovar in Kurukshetra.

The TIFCs were started at three strategic locations — Pipli, near Sannihit Sarovar and near Brahma Sarovar — to give tourists information about the ‘tirthas’ situated in Kurukshetra. A budget of Rs 2 crore provided under the Krishna circuit was utilised in the project. But all centres have been lying closed due to lack of manpower with the KDB. As per the information, the board has now planned to resume the operation at the tourist centre near Sannhit Sarovar to provide facilities to the tourists.

An official said earlier, the board had planned to facilitate the tourists through common services centres (CSC), CSC e-Governance Service India Limited, a special purpose vehicle (SPV), set up by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. A proposal was sent to the higher authorities, but due to the inadequate number of manpower being offered to run the TIFC, the plan was dropped.

Upender Singhal, honorary secretary of the KDB, said, “At the TIFC, the tourists will be provided with information about the ‘tirthas’ and they will be able to watch a documentary about the city. They will get the facility of cloak room, food court, guide, taxi, hotel and ticket bookings. Earlier, a private firm was engaged to run the TIFC situated at Pipli Chowk but the operator failed to run it as per the terms of the board and it was also closed last year.”

“Meanwhile, the board last year had engaged a self-help group to run Satkar food facility for the tourists and devotees at affordable rates and the experience has been good. So it has been decided to engage another self-help group for the TIFC too,” he added. Additional DC-cum-Chief Executive Officer of the KDB Vaishali Sharma said, “The TIFC situated near Sannihit Sarovar will be operated by a women SHG. the training will be provided to the women self-help group to ensure end-to-end facilities for the tourists and devotees who reach here from across the country. It is a step towards providing all required information about the ‘tirthas’ and facilities to the tourists, providing opportunities to the women associated with the SHG and empowering them.”

“The process to finalise and engage the SHG has been initiated and a MoU will be signed soon. It will be run on a no profit-no-loss basis. A souvenir shop will also be established at the TIFC. Efforts are being made to start the TIFC at the earliest and after seeing the response, further decisions regarding the other two TIFCs will be taken,” she added.