Tourism dept looks to boost Durga Puja carnival's appeal
Kolkata: The state Tourism department has decided to give a boost to the Durga Puja carnival at Red Road this year, by taking the foreign tourists to visit different places in Bengal, before or after the day of the carnival.
"Last year, we found that a good number of foreign tourists had come to Bengal to witness the Durga Puja carnival at Red Road. We want to showcase the beauty of Bengal to these tourists by taking them to explore different places before or after the event. So, we will be coming up with some attractive packages to woo the foreigners," said Atri Bhattacharya, state Principal Secretary, Tourism, at the inauguration of the three-day Travel and Tourism Fair (TTF) at Netaji Indoor stadium on Friday.
The state government is also trying its best to boost home stay tourism in the state. A number of homestays across the state have already been linked with the website of West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation and online bookings can be made through the website.
Bangladesh Tourism minister Shahjahan Kamal, who
was also present at the inaugural programme, said both
India and his country have taken steps to ensure easy and hurdle-free travel for the tourists.
"The two countries have taken measures to increase connectivity through roads, rail and air, facilitating tourists from India to visit Bangladesh easily," he said.
According to the minister, Bangladesh is not only a "culturally rich" country and a land of natural beauty, but also boasts of the world's largest unbroken beach at Coxbazar.
There are nine daily flights that operate between the two countries daily, apart from train services connecting Kolkata with Dhaka and Khulna.
Nepal Consul General in Kolkata Ek Narayan Aryal said the three neighbours can sew up a tourist circuit.
"India, Nepal and Bangladesh are very close neighbours. We can create a tourist circuit to reach out to people of the three countries," Aryal maintained.
Altogether 13 countries and 28 Indian states are participating in the tourism fair, which is in its 30th year, said Sanjiv Agarwal, the CEO of Fairfest - the organiser of the event.
