Khonoma village locals demonstrate how to respond to pandemic induced challenges

Monday, May 3, 2021

With COVID-19 severely affecting the tourism sector, local residents from Khonoma village — Asia’s first green village in Nagaland — demonstrated as to how to respond to the pandemic induced challenges.

Stakeholders from the village community and representatives of the state government re-imagined tourism in the COVID-19 period through a dialogue, ‘The Khonoma Experience — Tourism Strategies for the New Millennium’, organized by the Dolhuni Dzüviu Golato (DDG) Kikramia (family).

Abu Metha, advisor to the state chief minister, while addressing the gathering, urged the local community to work collectively in providing experiential tourism activities, while making sure that everyone, including locals, benefits from the experiences.

He urged the locals to use the ‘lockdown’ period to reinforce and introspect on what tourism model needs to be practiced in the state for further improving, upscaling and adding value to the services so that Nagaland may “propel” to a different stage.

Mr. Metha urged the stakeholders to provide policy inputs and assist the state government towards promoting the sector. He said that the 10-day Hornbill Festival made an economic impact of around Rs. 106 crore, generating 8,000 job opportunities, with an investment of Rs. 5 crore.

Mr. Metha said that tourism “can and will succeed” as the state has rich culture, heritage, biodiversity, and its hospitality to offer.

Metha also assured that the government will consider devising a birding circuit, besides providing capacity building programmes, and assisting locals in digitizing local businesses.

Tourism director Ajanuo Belho said that with COVID-19 affecting the tourism industry in a harsh way, the government has adopted strategies for revival and sustenance of the industry.

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