Madhya Pradesh expected to launch Responsible Tourism (RT) on the lines of the Kerala government’s initiatives

Published on : Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Madhya Pradesh is expected to launch Responsible Tourism (RT) on the lines of the Kerala government’s initiatives for making tourism a tool for developing villages and local communities.

Kerala Tourism’s RT Mission will put the project into practice in the central Indian state under a 16-point programme. An official agreement in this regard would be signed on January 13, as stated by the Kerala government.

On the eve of the ceremony, a high-level delegation from Bhopal will commence a week’s tour of Kerala to gather first-hand knowledge about RT in the state. The 13-member team would be led by Madhya Pradesh Tourism and Culture Department Minister Usha Thakur.

“A few states in the country are implementing the Kerala-model RT, but Madhya Pradesh will be the first to sign a pact with the government. The nodal officers for the project will be Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board Director Manoj Kumar Singh and Kerala RT Mission coordinator K Rupeshkumar. Once the delegation from Bhopal returns, a team of Kerala RT Mission will make a visit to Madhya Pradesh,” said the official statement.
Kerala’s Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran expressed his happiness over other states trying to learn from Kerala’s RT model. “Of late, other states also have evinced interest in launching the Kerala-model RT. We will be happy to cooperate with them in implementing RT as a social development initiative,” Surendran added.

Kerala Tourism Secretary Rani George said that the RT Mission has 20,000 units and 109,000 beneficiaries in Kerala. It has given local people a collective income of Rs. 38 crore from the state’s tourism sector.

The Kerala Tourism’s MoU with Madhya Pradesh includes a 16-point programme.