March 8, 2024: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 7 dedicated nine tourism infrastructure projects, spread across the country, developed under the Swadesh Darshan and the Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) schemes, worth Rs 469 crore through video conferencing from Srinagar.
Further, 43 other projects for Rs 963 crore were also launched by the PM under the Swadesh Darshan and Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) schemes of the ministry of tourism. The project launch events were carried out at all the 52 destinations, simultaneously,by co-ordinated efforts of the Ministry of Tourism, State Government / UT administrations and local authorities.
The projects included 3 projects under the PRASHAD Scheme (Hazratbal-Srinagar, Jogulamba-Telangana, Amarkantak-Madhya Pradesh) worth Rs 129.35 crore. Some of the major interventions developed in the projects include pilgrim facilitation centre, ghat development, façade illumination, sound & light show, parking, queue complex, safety & security infrastructure, etc.
Besides, 14 projects across Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana worth Rs 320.8 crore were also launched to further develop untouched pilgrimage and heritage sites.
In addition to the above, with an objective of fostering growth and development of tourism destinations in a responsible and sustainable manner under the Jan Bhagidari Initiatives, the Prime Minister has also launched three visionary campaigns and schemes for tourism sector.
A tourist destination poll, Dekho Apna Desh People’s Choice 2024, was also launched by the PM to identify the most preferred tourist attractions under five categories. Through this nation-wide poll, the ministry aims to engage with citizens to identify most preferred tourist attractions and understand tourist perceptions across 5 tourism categories: spiritual, cultural & heritage, nature & wildlife, adventure, and any other category. The polling portal would be available for people to exercise their choices at https://innovateindia.mygov.in/dekho-apna-desh/. It is an effort to identify attractions and destinations for development in mission mode, contributing to India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat@2047.
Further, the Chalo India Global Diaspora Campaign to enable Indian diaspora members become Incredible India ambassadors was also launched during the event. The campaign has been launched in the spirit of Jan Bhagidari for an Atulya and Viksit Bharat and on the basis of the clarion call of the Prime Minister, requesting the Indian diaspora members to encourage 5 non-Indian friends to travel to India every year. The website https://www.chaloindia.com/ will inspire and encourage people living in other countries to visit India.
The ministry has formulated Challenge-Based Destination Development (CBDD) with the objectives to develop sustainable and responsible destinations providing end-to-end experience. The scheme intends to develop destinations through competition, convergence and strategic alignment with India’s tourism priorities. The ministry has selected 42 destinations under various tourism themes across 25 states/UTs for development under the scheme, which was announced by PM.
The ministry launched the Swadesh Darshan’ Scheme in 2014-15 and provided financial assistance to states for development of tourism infrastructure in the country. The brief objective of the scheme was to position tourism as a major engine of economic growth and job creation, following community-based development and pro-poor tourism approach. Since the inception of scheme, 76 projects have been sanctioned by the ministry across 31 states/Union territories with a total capital outlay of Rs 5,294.1 crore. Under the scheme, 6 projects in Bihar, Meghalaya and Rajasthan amounting to Rs 339.59 crore were inaugurated by the Prime Minister on March 7.
Additionally, the ministry has revamped its Swadesh Darshan scheme in the form of Swadesh Darshan 2.0 with the mission to create a robust framework for integrated development of tourism destinations in partnership with states and local governments for promoting sustainable and responsible tourism in the country. The ministry have notified 57 destinations from 32 states for development under the Swadesh Darshan 2.0 scheme. Under the Swadesh Darshan 2.0 scheme, the ministry has sanctioned 29 tourist experiences in 17 States/UTs amounting to Rs 644.44 crore till date.
During the event held at Srinagar, Modi requested tourists to spend at least 5-10% of their total budget in purchasing local items from local communities of the tourist destinations. During his address to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, he stated that he would like Jammu and Kashmir to be one of the most celebrated wedding destinations of the country.
The PM reiterated the campaign “I Do” and urged people to come to the land of Jammu & Kashmir for their wedding ceremonies and celebrations. Jammu & Kashmir has witnessed record growth in past years. In 2023 more than 2 crore tourists were recorded, and record growth is seen at Amarnath and Vaishnodevi Yatra.
(Featured image sourced from the Twitter handle of Ministry of Tourism)
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