Itanagar: In a bid to promote tourism within the state and to heal the damage caused by the Covid pandemic to this sector, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Monday flagged off the ‘Dekho Apna Pradesh’ campaign, in presence of Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein and Tourism Minister Nakap Nalo at DK Convention Centre here.
It may be mentioned here that ‘Dekho Apna Pradesh’, is a brainchild of Khandu conceptualised in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ campaign.
In the first phase of the campaign, stakeholders like tour operators, home stay owners, transporters, hoteliers, bloggers, etc will travel on different tourist circuits of the state in groups.
Speaking on the occasion, Khandu said, “Ours is such a vast state and there’s so much to see and learn of other tribes, culture and places. This campaign is to encourage our people to visit other places of their own state. This will not only benefit the tourism sector but also create awareness on the diversity of the state bringing in unity.”
“I may not be wrong if I claim that even not all stakeholders, especially the tour operators, must have visited all tourist places of the state. Therefore, we are facilitating them to travel to other districts in the first phase of the campaign,” Khandu asserted.
He said that this would not only let the stakeholders gain first-hand knowledge of the places they visit but also get acquainted with local stakeholders and even land up with business deals.
Khandu requested the stakeholders to come back benefited from the 10-day visits and encourage local people of their respective areas to explore places within the state.
“This way people will become aware of their state and at the same time contribute to their revenue generation,” he said.
He also requested all stakeholders to create awareness within the locals in hospitality etiquettes.
“We have to teach our people to be good hosts, change our mindset of looking at every new face with suspicion and to have a welcoming attitude towards all. Unless we do this, no amount of campaign will succeed,” Khandu said.
Citing tourism as one of the best sectors for investment, the CM made a call to well-to-do businessmen, entrepreneurs and youths of the state to invest in tourism along with agriculture and allied sectors. He said returns will come good and fast as these sectors are the future of the state.
Reiterating his push for high-end tourism in line with that of Bhutan, Khandu stressed on quality in service with authentic information.
He said all tour operators along with District Tourism Officers and Tourist Information Officers should be well equipped with the history, culture and importance of all tourist places in their jurisdictions.
“Whatever information you pass on to visitors must be authentic. Tourists should not leave the state loaded with misinformation,” he cautioned.
Under the first phase of the ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ campaign, 60 participants divided in three groups (A, B and C) would embark on a 10-day journey of various tourism circuits of western, eastern and central Arunachal where they would learn more about the area’s culture, heritage, food habits and most importantly its tourism aspects.
