Regardless of having a very good variety of beautiful and pristine vacationer locations, Odisha’s efficiency in attracting vacationers shouldn’t be on top of things. The India Tourism Statistics-2022 launched by the Ministry of Tourism, Authorities of India has revealed so.
The state couldn’t make it to the record of prime ten states by way of vacationer footfall, proving tall claims of the Odisha authorities creating vacationer locations into world-class ones to be hole to the core.
For the state having been out of the record of prime ten performers, individuals of the state really feel dejected.
In 2021, the state’s efficiency in attracting each home and overseas vacationers is nothing to jot down house about. In home vacationer rating and overseas vacationer rating, Odisha’s place is 18th and twentieth respectively. Whereas 37,42,221 home vacationers visited the vacationer locations throughout the state, the variety of overseas vacationers who visited the spots was abysmally low. It was 2,269. If in comparison with the footfall in 2020, the vacationer footfall in 2021has drastically plummeted. In a nutshell, it may be mentioned that the state failed in appeal to even one p.c of the entire variety of vacationers visited the spots.
Odisha can be far behind within the class of ASI ticketed monuments. Whereas not one of the ASI ticketed monuments in Odisha was visited by overseas vacationers final yr, Konark’s Solar Temple was the one web site visited by home vacationers. However, the footfall was not that encouraging. So the positioning was positioned on seventh rung.
Regardless of having tourism circuit, Blue Flag seaside, Eco Retreat, Eco Tourism and scores of festivals and festivals like Toshali Nationwide Crafts Mela and Konark Pageant, the poor vacationer footfall has laid naked the failure of the federal government.
Lack of infrastructure on the vacationer websites needs to be thanked for this poor efficiency. “Khajuraho and Konark are two comparable locations, belonging to across the identical time. However in Khajuraho, there may be an airport and 5 to 6 five-star motels. Compared to that, Konark has nothing. After nightfall, one can’t get even a cup of tea. This lack of infrastructure is because of entrepreneurs not coming to the spot. And it’s land disputes that make entrepreneurs turning their faces from Konark. They don’t seem to be getting lands to arrange motels,” noticed Jugabrata Kar, a tour operator.
In accordance with Debasish Kumar, a hotelier, the vacationer spots in Odisha are usually not nicely linked by street, rail or air. “Although Biju Patnaik Worldwide Airport is known as a global airport, it’s in title solely. As a result of, worldwide flights neither land right here nor take off from right here. This aside, we don’t have flights to many cities.”
Nonetheless, tourism director Sachin R Yadav attributed the poor footfall at vacationer websites to Covid-induced lockdowns.
“We’re conducting street reveals in Delhi, Rajasthan and Jeypore to get vacationers from these areas again to Odisha. This yr, the scenario is believed to enhance,” mentioned Yadav.
