Prospect
of Rural Tourism in Assam:
A
Catalyst for Development of Rural Entrepreneurship
Dr. Manoj Kumar Hazarika, M.Com*
Ms. Daisy Rani Kalita, M.A., M. Phil,
B.Ed.**
Abstract: Tourism is one of the fastest
growing sustainable and smokeless industry in the world. Assam is the most
prominent state of North Eastern Region (NER) of India with tremendous natural
beauty, rich tourism products, ethnic diversity and uncharted mysteries. Despite
of abundance natural resources, Assam is industrially backward state due to
some physical and political reasons comparing to the rest of the developed states
of the country and 86 percent population lives in rural Assam. The state has
different classes of ethnic groups, cultural heritage and customs to develop of
rural tourism in the state. With the motto of “Back to the Nature” Government of Assam has initiated various plans
and policies to develop rural tourism. Rural tourism benefits the local
community through entrepreneurial opportunities and thus increases income and
creates employment. It also acts as a deterrent for the migration of rural
youth to the cities for searching employment. It has been observed from the
different studies that the trend of rural tourism is increasing in developed
countries providing a positive impetus to the rural economy by developing rural
entrepreneurship. Therefore rural entrepreneurship development can play a vital
role to development the rural economy as well as the state economy of Assam. The
Government of Assam adopted ‘Assam Tourism Policy 2008’ for the first time to
boost the tourism scenario in the state with special focus on promoting
partnership between private and public sectors.
The main objective of the present study is to assess the potentiality and
development of rural tourism in Assam in general and Sonitpur district in
particular. The study is descriptive in nature and based on a case study
supported by secondary data.
Key words: Rural Tourism, Rural
Entrepreneurship, Government Schemes.
*
Assistant Professor, Department of Commerce, Darrang College, Tezpur, Assam
E-mail:mkh784001@gmail.com, Contact No.: 91
96134 18906
**
Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Darrang College, Tezpur, Assam
1.
Introduction:
In the present scenario of global
warming, tourism is a fastest growing environment friendly smokeless industry
in the world. It is sustainable in nature and always tries to uplift the
natural beauty and bounty. Assam is the most prominent state of North Eastern
Region (NER) of India with tremendous natural beauty, rich tourism products,
ethnic diversity and uncharted mysteries. Tourism in Assam is based on
wildlife, natural beauty, unique flora & fauna, holy shrines, lush green
tea gardens, turbulent rivers, vibrant and colourful cultural festivals. Assam
has immense tourism potentials, which are to be explored as commercial
resources. Tourism is one of the fastest growing segments in the state economy
and therefore the Government of Assam has given tremendous thrust with relevant
to natural creations. The State Tourism Department has witnessed a considerable
success and all round development both in respect of infrastructure development
and creation of other facilities over few years with the financial assistance from Government
of India as well as the State Government. For the growth of tourism sector,
special emphasis has
been given on Tourism Circuit Development, Destination Development, Wayside
Amenities etc., through public and private partnership to tap the unexplored
potential opportunities. Assam Tourism Policy, 2008 has also been adopted by
the State Government for first time giving special emphasis to encourage
private investment in Tourism sector by providing financial and logistic
support. Meanwhile, the State Government has made all basic arrangements for
construction of 5 Star Hotels in collaboration with corporate sectors in major
places in Assam.
The State Government
enhanced the budget allocation from Rs.4.50 crore in 2003-04 to Rs. 14.73 crore
in 2009-10. Tourism industry is growing day by day, the flow of tourism into
the state increased more than four times from 10 lakhs in 2001 to 45.44 lakhs
in 2013-14. But due to poor connectivity,
non-availability and absence of tourism infrastructure and lack of decent
hotels, foreign tourist flows to state is still low. Tourism is aimed at the
appreciation of both natural world and traditional cultures existent in natural
areas and to protect natural and cultural assets. Assam has several ethnic
groups residing in harmony in spite of the differences in rites and rituals, festivals
and attires. One may discover the fascinating legacy of art and crafts in
Assam, one can hear the rhythms of the shuttles of looms in the craft village
like Sualkuchi near Guwahati.
2. Statement of Problem:
Assam is industrially backward state comparing to
the rest of the developed states of India such as Maharashtra, Haryana &
Punjab. The heavy & big industries are not developed due to some inherent
problems like, poor infrastructural facilities, banking and communication
facilities and geographical isolation. In almost all the countries the general
trend, the migration of the rural youth to the cities creates regional
imbalance in the state. As per the Population Census, 2011, the proportion of
rural population in the State decreased by 1 percent from 87 percent in 2001 to
86 percent in 2011. It has been observed from the different study that the
trend of rural tourism is increasing in developed countries resulting into
increase the rural economy by developing rural entrepreneurship. Assam is the
state of different classes of ethnic groups, cultural heritage and customs to develop
of rural tourism in the state. Therefore, the present study is illuminated to
investigate the scope of rural tourism in Assam in general and Sonitpur
district in particular.
3.
Objective of the study:
The study concerned with the following
objectives:
(i)
To ascertain the prospect of tourism,
specially the rural tourism in Assam in general whole and Sonitpur district in
particular;
(ii)
To study the potentiality of tourism to
be a catalyst for the development of entrepreneurship;
(iii)
To study the Government participations
and schemes for developing the tourism industry in Assam;
(iv)
To frame a strategy for development of
rural tourism.
4.
Methodology of the study:
The
study is explanatory in nature and based on a case study as well as secondary
data. The primary information were collected by selecting and visiting a
potential tribal village for developing rural tourism near a tourist
destination in the Sonitpur district of Assam. The secondary data were
collected from various research journals, books, newspapers, websites and
government reports.
5.
Rural Tourism in Assam:
The basic
concept of rural tourism is to
benefit the local community through entrepreneurial opportunities, income
generations, employment opportunities, conservation and development of rural
arts and crafts, investment for infrastructural development and preservation of
the environment and heritage. Thus, any form of tourism that showcases the rural life, art,
culture and heritage at rural locations, thereby benefiting the local community
economically and socially as well as enabling interaction between the tourists
and the locals for a more enriching tourism experience can be termed as rural
tourism. Rural tourism is essentially an activity, which takes place in the
countryside. It is multi-faceted and closely related with farm/agricultural
tourism, cultural tourism, natural tourism, adventure tourism, and eco-tourism.
As against conventional
tourism, rural tourism has certain typical characteristics. Primarily, it is
experience oriented and predominated by natural environment. It also depends on
seasonality and events of communities. It is also related to preservation of
culture, heritage and traditions. Needs of rural tourism is inevitable in the state like
Assam. Its potentiality harnessed as a strategy for rural development of the
state. Assam may become one of the heaven for tourists, if it properly and
strategically show-case it’s resources to the world. In the same way, rural
Assam has many resources to expedite the tourism industry. Rich in traditional
arts, crafts and culture, the rural Assam can be emerged as an important
tourist spots, for the tourists of the nations in general and state in
particularly. This category of tourists have a craze to know about the life
style of the tribal, which will attract them to visit rural Assam, if the
concept of rural tourism is properly materialized, the entire endeavors for
fruitful rural tourism will be achieved. The emergence of rural tourism will
help in boosting a range of activities, services and amenities provided by
farmers and rural people to attract tourists to their area to generate extra
income.
On the other
hand, economic development will be taken place in the real sense, if it helps
to generate employments for local people, create market for locally made
products & increase income of the people. Therefore, the concept of rural
tourism is developed. Assam is one of the oldest, culturally richest and most
diverse state of India. Various tribes of community like Adivasi, Mishing,
Bodo, and Kachari living together in Assam with a common zeal. A good number of tourists come to visit the
famous tourist spots of Assam like Kaziranga, Nameri, and Manas National Park
every year which help to develop rural tourism in the nearby areas. Number of
domestic and foreign tourists increased year after year. The number of domestic
as well as foreign tourists increased by double i.e. 103 percent from 2004-05
to 2013-14.
Table showing annual flow of domestic and foreign
tourists in Assam
Year
|
Domestic Tourists
|
Foreign Tourists
|
Total
|
2004-05
|
21,86,250
|
9,365
|
21,95,615
|
2005-06
|
25,86,428
|
8,309
|
25,94,737
|
2006-07
|
34,79,870
|
13,657
|
34,93,527
|
2007-08
|
34,89,814
|
13,799
|
35,06,613
|
2008-09
|
36,98,706
|
14,533
|
37,13,239
|
2009-10
|
38,95,525
|
14,694
|
39,10,219
|
2010-11
|
41,27,447
|
15,633
|
41,43,080
|
2011-12
|
44,08,336
|
16,660
|
44,24,996
|
2012-13
|
45,44,666
|
17,708
|
45,62,374
|
2013-14
|
44,44,393
|
19,086
|
44,63,479
|
Source:
Directorate of Tourism, Assam
The above-mentioned
table clearly projected the flow of domestic and foreign tourists to the State
in the last ten years. The number is increasing year after year and this
creates seasonal pressure on the conventional tourist spots like Kaziranga,
Manas, Nameri, Orang National Park etc. Therefore, to expedite the flow of
tourists to the rural areas, diversion of tourists should be motivated. On the other hand, economic
development will be taken place in the real sense, if it helps to generate
employments for local people, create market for locally made products &
increase income of the people. Therefore, development of the concept of rural
tourism is very much important in the state.
6.
Development of Rural Entrepreneurship through Rural Tourism:
The
tourism sector has the potential to be a catalyst for the development of
entrepreneurship. Especially through the development of rural tourism, the
rural community has the tremendous opportunities to show case their talents,
products, and services to the domestic as well as foreign tourists. On the
other hand rural entrepreneurship development in this regard can be a strong
measure for poor level of rural tourism performances. Rural entrepreneurs are those who carry out
entrepreneurial activities by establishing industrial and business units in the
rural sector of the economy. Rural industries and business organisations in
rural areas generally associated with agriculture and allied activities to
agriculture. According to KVIC (Khadi and Village Industry Commission),
"village industries or Rural industry means any industry located in rural
areas, population of which does not exceed 10,000 or such other figure which
produces any goods or renders any services with or without use of power and in
which the fixed capital investment per head of an artisan or a worker does not
exceed a thousand rupees". Assam is industrially backward due to some
physical and political reasons and heavy and big industries are very less
comparing to the rest of the states of the country and more than 80 percent
population lives in rural Assam. Therefore rural entrepreneurship development
can play a vital role to development the rural economy of Assam, which
benefiting the local community through entrepreneurial opportunities and thus
increase income, create employment. It also acts as a deterrent for the
migration of rural youth to the cities for searching employment.
According to the various studies, tourists were interested
to visits the several centers of SMEs business consisting of the production of ethnic foods and local beverages from rice and fruits,
pickles etc. As
a result, tourists have the opportunity to buy these products and participate
in the rural communities participating through SMEs such as in making
handicrafts, handloom, etc. are able to receive orders and favorable market
throughout the year. This provides evidence that all the facilities provided by
the government to advance the involvement of entrepreneur in rural areas is fruitful.
7.
Government Scheme for developing rural tourism in Assam:
The government of Assam has
taken a fresh initiative to explore rural tourism which has largely remained
untapped as there are many places in the state's vast rural swath that speak of
culture, history and religion. The main features of rural tourism will be the
projection of multi-faceted village life in which art, culture and religion
have formed a tapestry. For instance, the government has proposed to develop
the Shyamgaon area at Titabor in Jorhat district which is dominated by
Buddhists. The village lies close to Jorhat town and two famous tourists’
hotspot of world largest river island ‘Majuli’ and world famous one horn rhino
park, ‘Kaziranga National Park’. Tourist department of Assam with the state government
was concentrating on four other sites the ‘Dehind Patkai Kshetra’ in Tinsukia
district, ‘Sualkuchi’, the silk township near Guwahati, ‘Durgapur’ near
Kaziranga National Park and the ‘Asharikandi’ area in Dhubri district. The
government has submitted a project report to promote village tourism and ensure
socio-economic uplift of the rural people.
An innovative Rural Tourism Scheme is being
introduced by the State Government recently for women showcasing the rural
lifestyle, culture, handicrafts etc., for development of rural tourism as well
as income and employment generation of rural women.
Under
UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) programme Government of India,
Ministry of Tourism, had taken up Rural Tourism scheme. The programme seeks to
propagate craft-based tourism for sustainable livelihood and integrated rural
development for capacity building, direct training and infrastructure with the
rural community as primary target beneficiaries assisted through the Rural
Tourism Scheme of the Department of Tourism, Govt. of India. The government so far has identified 31 villages across the
country as tourist spots including Durgapur in Golaghat District and Sualkuchi
in Kamrup District of Assam.
Apart
from the Northeast Circuit under the 'Swadesh Darshan' scheme, two other
circuits under this scheme, named Buddhist Circuit and Himalayan Circuit, can
be linked to the region for development of rural tourism.
Along
with the government agencies, FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce
and Industry) is actively promoting the concept of rural tourism in this
country and abroad. Now it becomes a mission for state as well as centre to
uplift the rural tourism. This will not only attract tourist traffic, but also
it will offer new avenues for economic growth of the region.
All
these efforts are aimed at establishment of infrastructure with smooth exchange
of information among all the stakeholders resulting in rural tourism.
8. Strategies: Scheme for Rural Tourism:
In the present
world, a tendency has been cropped up at the minds of the urban population to
enjoy the sylvan beauty, where from the concept of rural tourism is developed.
To handle this new phase of tourism, proper scheme should be drafted. Under the
scheme, the main aim is to promote village tourism as a primary tourism
product. The potential areas are to be identified for development and promotion
of Rural Tourism. A Convergence Committee headed by the District Collector
(D.C.) is to be formed for the implementation of the scheme. Apart from
providing financial assistance, the focus is to tap the resources available
under different schemes of Department of Rural Development, State Governments
and other concerned Departments of the Government of India. Following
strategies may be taken under the scheme:
- Selection and
identification of spots for rural tourism,
- Preparation of
detailed plan for implementation of the project,
- Sanction financial
assistance for implementation of the project,
- Execution of the
works by the Central Govt., State Govt. or private agencies,
- Direct release of
fund to the implementing agency by the Government on instalment basis,
- Ensure
transparency in its transactions,
- Creation
infrastructure and assets and management of assets by the State
Government.
- Prescription of
the schedule of rates for execution of works as per the CPWD or State PWD,
- Requirement of
Utilization Certificate for release of next instalment,
- Taking follow up programme by the
Government.
Before
implementation of the project for developing mechanism for rural tourism,
following issues may be considered:
1.
What forms of
attractions have to be developed into the tourism packages in the region (nature,
adventure or cultural etc.) ?
2.
Whether these
attractions have to be combined or separated?
3.
Do we have a market for
those categories of tourists?
4.
What types of
infrastructure are to be created for promoting rural tourism?
5.
Are the local people
receptive to tourism?
6.
How to ensure that the
ecology and environment at the destination are not damaged by tourism?
7.
What types of tourists
are to be attracted? etc.
It
must be noted that in the marketing of a destination (region, city or leisure
spots) the following aspects may be considered:
- Attractions - like
promotion of rural tourism around a heritage site,
- Infrastructure
(accommodation, cuisine, hygiene, clean water, basic amenities etc.)
- Accessibility
(roads, means of transportation
- Carrying capacity
of the destination,
- Environmental issues
(Pollution, Eco-fragility, etc.)
- Safety, law and
order situation (for both the local population as well as tourists), etc.
9.
Case Study of Pub-Dharikati Mishing Village of Sonitpur District:
Sonitpur is a historical and
mythological place of Assam with full of potentiality for development of
tourism. It is a virtual treasure trove for natural lovers, wildlife
enthusiasts and those savouring history and culture. But Sonitpur and its
tourism potential still remain under low ebb and there is a need of adequate
public awareness to promote tourism from commercial standpoint.
Sonitpur District is
spread over an area of 5324 sq. kms. on north bank of Brahmaputra river. In
terms of area Sonitpur is the second largest district of Assam next to the
Karbi Anglong District. Sonitpur District falls in the sub-tropical climatic
region, and enjoys monsoon type of climate. Summers are hot and humid, with an
average temperature of 29° C. The highest temperature is recorded just prior to
the onset of Monsoon (around May-early June). Summer rain is heavy, and is
principally caused from late June to early September by the moisture-laden
South-West monsoon, on striking the Himalayan foothills of the north. The
population of Sonitpur district is 19,24,110 Census 2011 and more
than 80 percent of population in district lives in rural area. The people here
are not a homogeneous lot. Rather, they are a mosaic of ethnic groups, an
admixture of diverse types of people. Sonitpur District is surrounded by
adivasi and tribal treasuries like Bodo, Kachari, and Mishing etc. These tribes
have rich tradition of arts and culture and can thus give a unique experience
to tourists.
In the field of food
processing Sonitpur district is famous for
pickles made from king-chilies, locally known as ‘Bhoot Jolokias’ is very
famous. The king-chilies of Tezpur had figured as ‘The World Hottest Chili’ by
the prestigious western magazine ‘The Time’.
Similarly,
Handloom and Handicraft Industries plays a very
vital role in day-to-day life of the Community of rural areas in Sonitpur
District. Traditional weaving on loin-loom for making clothing is very much
famous in tribal community. The traditional dresses can be upgraded and
modified to suit to the present day to make if commercially benefited.
The Pub-Dharikati
Mishing village, which is situated near by the Nameri National Park (Tiger
Reserve Forest), would be potential tourist spot for rural tourism. The Mishing
are the second largest tribes of Assam.
They are river ernie tribes and prefer to live on the riverbanks.
Being a river ernie community, they construct their houses in a typical way to
get rid of flood. A typical Mishing house is one of the special attractions for
domestic as well as foreign tourists. They generally
speak the Mishing language, belonging to the Sino-Tibetan family. But a lot of
them also speak the Assamese language as a lingua franca. A
majority of them follows the Hindu religion along with its variant forms.
The family structure of
Mishing community is also peculiar. Joint family system is a unique feature of
Mishing, sometimes, even 100 family members live under one roof. Mishing women
are skilled weaver and the ‘Miri Jim’ is a marvelous product of Mishing.
10. Suggestions:
On
the basis of the present study, following suggestions are to be forwarded for
the development of rural tourism in Assam in general Sonitpur district in
particular:
1.
Local participation is an important
aspect in the development of rural tourism. Therefore, State Government as well
as Central Government must take initiative to aware the local people about the prospects
and benefits of rural tourism. The government must
conduct some awareness programs among the rural people; otherwise the concept
of rural tourism becomes valueless.
2.
The district of Sonitpur has abundance resources in natural, cultural, and
historical for the development of rural tourism. The government may take the
advantages of PPP model, public-private-partnership to develop infrastructure
like model rural tourism villages, communication and transportation etc. to
attract the tourists.
3.
The benefits or profits of the rural tourism may share with the local community
to encourage their interest and to improve their participation in this segment
of tourism.
4.
Rural tourism must focus on promotion of local art, craft and culture for the
development of rural entrepreneurship.
5.
Publicity and advertisement must be made
through various media like TV, Radio, Newspaper, and Journals for promoting
rural and alternative tourism.
11. Conclusion:
With the motto of ‘Back to the
Nature’, the rural India can be marketed easily by exploiting the
potentiality of rural tourism, after all ‘India lives in her village’. Though, the
concept of rural tourism may be a new one for India but it is well established
in the other developed nations. The Tourism of Haryana had already begun the
initiative for the development of rural tourism in the state by declaring the
rural holiday in association with various farms around Delhi. The Government of
Assam, of late, has realized the importance of rural tourism and started
various plans and policies for the development of this segment of tourism. The
state government has also welcomed project proposals with details of
techno-economic feasibility reports for setting up large revenue generating
projects like creation of model rural tourism villages. The Government of Assam
has given special emphasis to promote rural tourism in its Tourism Policies
2008. The Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India has been taken as joint venture
with provision for equity participation up to 25% of project cost (maximum of
Rs.10.00 crore per project) to promote rural tourism. The Govt. of Assam will
provide ground hospitality and other support to the technical expert for
conducting techno-economic study for such selected and identified tourism
projects. According to researches many developed countries in the world uses
rural tourism as a catalyst for the development of rural entrepreneurship by
providing various opportunities to the local youth. The Sonitpur district of
Assam has a good potentiality for developing rural tourism which will turn
provides opportunity for development of entrepreneurial ability. The growth of
the rural tourism is not possible without the active participation of the local
people. Therefore, the awareness of the local people regarding the benefits of
rural tourism is for most essential for the development of rural tourism.
References:
1. The Assam Budget 2015
2. Economic Survey of Assam 2010-11 to 2014-15
3.
The Economic Times dated on July 29, 2008,
4.
Bhattacharjee Dr. Bidyut Jyoti, (2014)
Research paper: A Study on Scope for Development of Rural Tourism in Villages
of Small Towns with special reference to Karimganj District of Assam.
International Journal of Business and Administration Research Review, Vol.1,
Issue.6, July - Sep, 2014
5.
Kumar
CHINMOY, article: What are the different types of rural
entrepreneurs?
6.
Population Census of India
2011
7.
Information
and Business promotion services of FICCI 2014.
8.
Publication
of Directorate of Tourism, Govt. of Assam.
9.
The
Assam Tribune, June 24, 2007.
10. National Information Center, Sonitpur District Unit, Tezpur.
11.
Kyndiah P.R.
International Conference on Eco & Rural Tourism, August
25 - 26, 2004, New Delhi.
13. Tourism
Policy of Assam 2008
14. Norhafiza
Md Sharif Ku Azam Tuan Lonik (2014)
Research Paper, “Entrepreneurship as a
Catalyst for Rural Tourism” Development, SHS Web of Conferences 12, 010 8 (2014) http://www.shs-conferences.org
[Published
in the book, “ Travel and Tourism, Challenges and Opportunity for Economic
Development” in 2016, publisher: Paramount Publishing House, New Delhi,
Hyderabad [ISBN: 978-93-85100-43-7]
No comments:
Post a Comment