Bihar Buddhist tourism sector sends SOS to Center for sustaining

Saturday, June 12, 2021

A leading Bihar tourism organization has written to Deputy Suresh Prabhu of Rajya Sabha and Union Minister of Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel urging for a monetary bailout for several small and medium-sized businesses, exhausted in the last 12 to 1 four months in the wake of corona virus related monetary issues.

They approached Suresh Prabhu in the hope that he would raise his voice, as he had asked Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri to allow other fully vaccinated people to travel to revive the tourism sector from the effects of the pandemic.

The Association of Buddhist Tour Operators (ABTO) takes part in the Bihar Buddhist circuit, which is the most popular among the 8 tourist circuits of the state covering sites like the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya, where Lord Buddha achieved enlightenment; Rajgir, where Buddha delivered his outstanding sermons on the loto; Nalanda – site of the ancient university and Buddhist knowledge; East and west champaran and Vaishali, where Buddha delivered his last sermon. These are among Bihar’s most popular destinations among foreign visitors.

The agreement is for long-term interest-free loans to operators and tour agencies; maritime operators hikers and hotels, along with a 24-month cessation on existing loan repayments.

“The hotel industry or the entire hospitality sector is the most affected through the crown. Many hotels in the heritage city of Bodh Gaya are about to close,” said Mrityunjay Kumar Rai, general manager of The Anand International Hotel in Bodh Gaya. Mr. Rai said that hoteliers greatly want freedom from GST (goods and services tax) including exemption from payment of electricity ownership expenses if they want to thrive in this emergency.

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