Kerala CM launches responsible tourism mission

Giving a new lease of life to the responsible tourism initiatives in the state of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister, Government of Kerala, has launched a mission dedicated to responsible and sustainable tourism. The Responsible Tourism Mission is a first in the world and would lead Kerala Tourism through people-friendly, local community-friendly and environment-friendly initiatives ensuring rural development, employment opportunities and women empowerment. Presiding over the launch function was Kadakampally Surendran, Minister of Tourism, Kerala, while K Suresh Kurup, MLA and Jose K Mani were the Chief Guests. Dr Venu V, Principal Secretary, Kerala Tourism delivered the welcome speech and P Bala Kiran, Director of Tourism presented the Responsible Tourism Mission project. K Rupesh Kumar, Coordinator, State Responsible Tourism Mission announced the new Responsible tourism destinations.

Dr. Venu V said that it’s a proud moment for all of them. “Responsible Tourism that started off in Kumarakom is now a world-renowned concept and a point of discussion across the globe. It’s definitely a proud moment for us to be a pioneer in setting up this concept so effectively. Within a span of 9 years, 16 crores are the profit Kumarakom could gain through tourism. Around 1.16 crore revenue is generated by the localities. The reason behind this growth is the involvement as a group by the communities around.” The aim of RT is to create 1.5 lakh jobs in the future, added Dr Venu V.

Surendran, said, “To be the pioneer state in practising the concept of Responsible Tourism in the entire country is a proud moment. The government policy is to make tourism more popular. Apart from improving the functioning of the elite class, the government also aims to use tourism as a tool for village development and women empowerment. Their aim is to make Responsible Tourism more beneficial to the localities. It feels proud to see the mission that started off in Kumarakom as a pilot project in 2008 and is very happy and proud about this. The Government moves forward aiming to bring in more job opportunities and income generation to the localities.”