Odisha has seen surge in the total inflow of both domestic and international tourists in 2014. To cater to the growing needs of the tourists, state has redesigned and overhauled its online presence. All the information related to tourism is now available on its websites. Ashok Chandra Panda, Minister of Tourism & Culture, Odisha, in an interaction with EC’s Mohd Ujaley, says “Odisha Tourism Policy 2013 and Industrial Policy 2015 have provided a number of financial and non-financial incentives to investors focusing on tourism as priority sector and government is also using online presence to promote these initiatives.”
Edited Excerpts:
What initiatives are you taking to promote tourism in Odisha?
We are taking many initiatives to promote tourism. The Tourism Policy 2013 and the new Industrial Policy 2015 are the major initiatives in this direction. With these two policies the state government has tried to ensure that more benefits come to the sector. Odisha offers excellent opportunities for tourism. This state is home to several ancient monuments, places of religious importance and beaches. We have developed a good infrastructure for catering to the needs of the tourists. We are taking initiatives to encourage the private sector to develop the infrastructure for hospitality. We are looking at the development of several luxury and budget accommodation centres, including hotels. Some of these can also be developed through the Public Private Participation (PPP) mode. The goal of the government is to create an environment for sustainable development of tourism.
Are you taking any initiatives to promote Odisha as a tourist destination on a global level?
We are doing that. Odisha Tourism has been participating in a number of tourist road-shows, events, fairs and festivals within and outside the country for promotion of tourism. We are also creating awareness about the tourist potential of the state through advertisements in leading print and electronic media, websites, social media, and other such mediums.
What steps are you taking to ensure that there is better safety and security for the tourists?
I completely agree that safety and security is of paramount importance. We are committed to doing our utmost to ensure the security and safety of everyone in the state, including the tourists. Tourist Police Patrolling facility has been introduced in Puri-Chandrabhaga and Puri-Satapada zones. A Tourist Police Cell at Puri has been established and tourist police cells at Konark, Dhauli. Lingaraj Temple, Nandankanan, Satapada, Chandipur, Gopalpur, etc., are proposed to come up. In addition to these, we have also created a Tourist Emergency Fund to provide financial assistance to the tourists during disaster situation.
Today most tourists go online to find information regarding places to visit, hotels, restaurants, modes of travel, etc. What steps are being taken to ensure that such information from Odisha is available online?
The state has a very good online presence. The websites of Odisha Touris —ww.odishatourism.gov.in/www.panthanivas.com/www.visitodisha.orq—have been redesigned to offer useful information to the people who may be interested in coming here as tourists. Information regarding places of tourist interest, accommodation, transport facility, online booking of hotels, tour packages, and much else, is available on our various websites. Tourists can also use the toll free number- 1800-208-1414 for getting information. We are also very active in the social media—Facebook and Twitter. You can look for latest updates regarding tourism from our social media accounts.
What steps are you taking to improve the digital literacy of the people who manage the tourism sector?
Today digital medium has become the most important tool for exchanging information. Digital literacy is important for every government department. It is of vital importance for the tourism sector, because in this case you have to communicate with tourists who are coming from outside. Under the Digital India programme we already have a government of India programme for providing computer training to people. Currently we are providing 2% of our budget for the IT and IT enabled services as per the guidelines of the Government of Odisha. Going forward I believe that e-governance is going to change into m-governance. This will allow us to leverage the power of the mobile handset to provide new kinds of services to the tourists. We have also developed systems for providing guide training.
Is there any budget related constraint being faced in the development of tourism?
There is no budget constraint for development of tourism in Odisha. Last year tourism budget was Rs. 15070.95 lakhs and for this year it is Rs. 13624.45 lakhs. The budget for tourism development can also be increased in the supplementary budget.