Dassam falls

Ranchi, Oct. 20: The state government has decided to rope in villagers as hosts to promote some of the choicest tourist destinations.

The hosts would be responsible for making arrangement for the lodging and food. Under the scheme, the tourists would be putting up in the houses of the villagers nearby a tourist spot. The hosts would charge a reasonable fee for the facilities offered.

“The aim is to involve the villages in the tourism industry. This would not only generate employment in the villages but also help in the growth of the industry in Jharkhand,” said state tourism secretary A.K. Singh.

He, along with director of Jharkhand Tourism Development Corporation Deepak Singh, held a meeting with the tour operators of the state on the feasibility and implementation process of the scheme.

The scheme has been prepared by Union government and is called “Incredible India Bed and Breakfast”. It has already been implemented in others states.

The department would chalk out a method for implementing the scheme.

The households that want to benefit from the scheme would have to register themselves with the state government. The government would then prepare a directory of all these households.

This scheme would involve the villagers in the industry, thus ensure safety of the tourists, Singh said.

The tourism department has also decided to raise a Tourist Friendly Security Force (TFSF), comprising ex-servicemen in the villages to provide security to tourists. Singh said the TFSF members would be trained also in hospitality. They, however, would not be given any arms and would deal with security aspect with public relations skills.

Two years ago, the state had prepared a plan to raise a separate armed security force to ensure security of the tourists in the state. However, the scheme is still at back burners.

The villagers would play the host to the tourist and would lodge them in their house.