How to divert tourists from beaches to hinterland, Goa Tourism Board ponders

The Board would be using the state tourism policy and a master plan prepared by the Tourism Ministry to promote the sector

How to draw tourists away from the crowded beaches to the hinterland? This was the first deliberation conducted by the newly formed Goa Tourism Board, which has been tasked with promotion of the tourism sector in the coastal state.

Tourism Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar also said that the Board is in the process of selecting a chief executive officer (CEO) who would be hands-on in running the functioning of the 19-member Board which was constituted earlier this month.

"For the last several years, people were expecting the Board to be set up. The opposition was chastising us over the setting up of the Board. Now, the Tourism Board will take the decisions for promotion of tourism in Goa. We want to promote tourism without posing any risk to the environment," the Tourism Minister said.

The Board, he said, would be using the state tourism policy and a master plan prepared by the Tourism Ministry to promote the sector.

Ajgaonkar also said, adding that the Board would now promote tourism in Goa using the state tourism policy and the master plan as the guiding documents to promote the sector.

"We want to take the tourists from the beaches to the hinterland and the Board will follow this direction. It will look to promote, eco tourism, hinterland tourism, adventure tourism etc. There is no point in having crowded beaches alone," Ajgaonkar said, adding that there is a need to strike a balance between environment and tourism activity.

Ajgaonkar also said that the Board also deliberated on the appointment of a Chief Executive Officer to take charge at the Board, which is co-chaired by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Tourism Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar and has several sector experts and stakeholders as members.

"We need a good CEO to promote Goa tourism. We need a CEO who can generate the most income... If we spend Rs.200 crore on infrastructure (the CEO) will have to see how to recover Rs. 500 crore from it," the Tourism Minister said.

"We need a CEO who is an expert. We could take a government officer too who could be taken on deputation. This is my proposal," he added.

After facing a slump for nearly a year and a half, tourism activity in Goa is slowly picking up ahead of the Christmas and New Year festive season. At its peak, Goa witnessed more than eight lakh tourist footfalls in 2019.

Watch the latest DH Videos here: