Nearly two months after the deadly landslide disaster in Kerala’s popular high-altitude resort town of Wayanad claimed several lives and shattered the hopes of the tourism industry, state Tourism Minister PA Mohammed Riayas, in a light-hearted conversation with The Hindu, spoke about the long road to recovery.
Tourism is often one of the first to be hit in most disasters, and tragedies leave a devastating impact on local economies. How difficult will the road to recovery be?
Safety is a prerequisite for tourist movement. Hence, when natural disasters strike, the tourism sector is the first to bear the brunt of such disasters. While the path to recovery depends on many factors, it is crucial for the state to shorten the recovery period, especially in Kerala, where the tourism sector contributes to around 10% of the gross domestic product (GDP).
What steps is the tourism board taking to restore tourist confidence and encourage them to visit again?
It should be noted that negative perceptions about visiting disaster-hit places can persist for years. Soon after the rescue operations in Wayanad, the state launched a video campaign titled “Ente Keralam Ennum Sundaram,” bringing social media heavyweights from across South Indian states to Wayanad in the hopes of speeding up the road to recovery and changing negative perceptions. The campaign started paying off during the Onam festival, with a trickle of holidaymakers trickling into the mountain destination.
The High Court had recently asked the state to carry out a carrying capacity assessment of hill areas across the state following the Wayanad tragedy.
Yes, the work is underway. The authorities will soon submit to the courts and other relevant institutions a list of destinations reporting the number of tourists for each destination. It is the responsibility of the courts and other institutions to set limits on the number of tourists that can visit ecologically fragile areas in a certain period of time. The authorities also believe that mass tourism in ecologically fragile areas should be restricted.
In Kerala, the tourism industry is often the first to receive criticism from various quarters whenever a natural disaster strikes, but the tourism department is not the authority that issues permissions for construction activities in disaster-prone areas.
There are various departments involved in the process of making a region suitable for the hospitality industry. Usually, the local government department issues permits for the construction and maintenance of buildings. Coordination between departments is required to maintain the aesthetics of the destination. Of course, there will also be measures from the government to ensure the tranquility of each destination.
While there has been a surge in the number of domestic tourists visiting the state since COVID-19, the number of foreign tourists is yet to reach pre-pandemic levels.
This is a global phenomenon. Post-pandemic foreign tourist inflow is yet to catch up to pre-pandemic levels anywhere in the world. Even in India, the numbers are still below pre-COVID-19 levels.
Sri Lanka has made a remarkable recovery since the pandemic, which comes amid the island nation’s economic downturn.
Sri Lanka is a country after all and its potential is much higher than Kerala. Sri Lanka has airlines that connect the country with various cities across the world. Not so with us. We only have direct flights with West Asian and Far Eastern countries. Despite the constraints, we are doing our best and currently the ministry is elaborating plans to maximize the existing potential by tapping into the West Asian and South East Asian markets. We are confident that in two years’ time, we will achieve the pre-pandemic foreign tourist numbers of 1.15 million.
Published – 24 September 2024, 9:08 PM IST
