The representatives from the Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation were in the City on a two-day visit to promote and popularise Bihar as a popular tourist destination.

They made a series of presentations on the historical sites of tourist interest, the lakes, the hills, adventure sports, traditional dances and fairs.

Exhibiting the culture and heritage of Bihar, the two day-long show had performances from the Sangeet Sangam Seva Group of Bihar. They sang folk songs in local languages like Bhojpuri, Maithili, Magadhi and others.

Talking at the press conference,  Navin Kumar, deputy general manager, department of tourism informed that Bihar attracted about 1,32,33,304 tourists of which 5,27,773 were foreigners. Talking about the state, Navin said that Bihar is a land of monasteries. The state is unique as it offers a rich mix of history for not just one but many religions. “Keeping this in mind, Bihar Tourism has identified religious circuits for Buddha, Jain, Hindu, Sikh and Islam religions. The objective of these circuits is to bring tourists from these religions closer to their ancestors and provide profound expression in development of tourist sites and spots,” he said.

In a ten minute long slide presentation, Navin took the audience through a few prime destinations such as Bodhgaya, Nalanda - the ruins of world's first university for higher education, Pawapuri- Lord Mahavir's nirvana site, Vaishali- the site for last sermon delivered by Lord Buddha; birth place of 24th Tirthankar of Jains, Vikramshila- the Centre of Tantric Buddhism and famous for its university and Kesariya- the place where the Buddha delivered his famous Kalama Sutta.

Navin went on to talk about the fair, art and craft that Bihar is popular for. The Madhubani paintings, zari work, Tikuli craft are products of Bihar. “The Sonepur Mela is the largest cattle fair in the world. It is something that every tourist must not miss,” added Navin.

He said that the tourism development is interlinked with the development of handicraft and cottage industry.

“Tourism linked with wildlife has the potential of attracting domestic and foreign tourists. In order to promote wildlife tourism, the state will soon develop wildlife sanctuaries, crocodile parks, snake parks, theme parks, children parks, monument parks, tourist house and restaurants,” he said.