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Wayanad Tourism Organisation |
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| on The International Tourism-Scape | |
WTO-Long Way to GoWith its devotion to sustainable tourism, Wayanad Tourism Organisation has become synonymous to Responsible Tourism. Started in 1999 with 8 members, we have crossed many mile stones and stood united against many crises that surfaced from nowhere. But we had full faith in common people and the society. We believed things would change if we tirelessly pursue our dreams for a better, saner, greener and cleaner tourism model with better participation of local communities-a model that preserve the eco-system and suits to our unique cultural-scape.
Thanks for the selfless quest and matchless sincerity shown by all our members. We have proved better things could happen in tourism. Today Wayanad is known for its friendly people, less commercialized tourism environment, the safety of the visitors and to cap it all the serenity of nature, all over the globe. Rather than a client-firm relationship, our guests are something more to us. We have succeeded in catching the travellers’ hearts. With its nature-friendly architecture, love for greenery and concern for eco-system, the last decade of tourism arena witnessed emergence of a ‘Wayanad Tourism Brand’. At a time when greenery gradually vanished from the tourism properties elsewhere, here, bamboo, reed, mahagony, teak and countless other varieties covered our huts and cottages. And to cap it all, our guests are members of our own family and the recurring visitors underlined our success. However, the spadework of almost a decade started generating results. The destination catapulted to one of the most ‘sought after’ hideaway green-spot by eco-tourists. Instead of concrete jungles, here we promoted tourism ‘in tune with’ nature. Here tourism is still what that co-exists with ecology. Rather than any green activist, we can say with proud, WTO always fought against the import of destructive tourism trends into Wayanad.
Down memory line, in the days it started, the name ‘tourism’ was a word quite alien in the local dialect. For the common man, the word itself reminded some sort of a sin. But, through consistent efforts WTO had won the minds of people here. Many started interacting with the tiny tourism community. The beneficiary base has been widened many fold. Realising the significance of the industry politicians of all hues acted in unison to promote tourism. Fruit vending children of view-point at Lakkidy, lined up petti-shops along highways, hundreds of ‘home stays’ run by farmers, countless curio shops run by women and busy crafts-men making curios, all are beneficiaries of tourism. From the child-vendor in the street to the multi-million industrialist, everybody has realised the value of the magic word- Tourism
. Farmers of remote villages, those who cursed their destiny once due to massive wildlife attacks, are happy men now. Before ‘tourism boom’ there were no buyers for their lands. Now big hotel groups and resorts’ chains are waiting in queue for his land. And he proudly says, “I am not ready to sell my land. I have plans to start my own home-stay”. The farmer is confident. Gladly, the self respect is restored. Many inaccessible and less known tourism spots were catapulted to fame. Edakkal, a tiny hamlet tucked away in the lap of Ambukuthi Hills that nestles the pre-historic site of cave men, now has two dozen curio shops, about a dozen taxi vehicles and in the last three years land value has jumped from Rs.3 lakh/ acre to Rs. 40 lakh / acre!. And interestingly, at Edakkal, now no farmer is ready to ‘sell out’ his land. Most of the farmers who own land also run a small curio shop. It would fetch-in an additional income for him. And it is sustainable tourism.
In this land of greenery, tourism is not an anathema. Children of many schools are being trained in the activities through tourism clubs. Many housewives, with the help of their husbands, are successfully running home-stays. Now WTO has 28 members. It is a boon that we have likeminded people in our team. WTO is expanding, but in a rather slow pace. Reason: We don’t want to compromise in ‘tastes, treatment, principles and the quality’ of service providing to our guests. Apart from coordinating the in-house activities, WTO also found happiness to ensure a damage-free environment. Wherever there are possibilities to restore greenery, WTO members are keen on not to miss the chance. Much before the tourism terminology ‘Responsible Tourism’ gained currency in tourism circles; we had been practicing it here. WTO has been organising routine cleaning sessions in ‘tourism spots’ of the district with the support of District Tourism Promotion Council and other government agencies. As the key player in the industry, in all major tourism related projects and issues, the organisation has ‘chipped in’ its own share of wisdom. We organised seminars, work shops, Ad. Campaign and continuously interacted with the media for better tourism initiatives. We have crossed many mile-stones and stood united against many crises that surfaced from nowhere. But we had full faith in the industry and in the common people around us. We believed things would change if we tirelessly pursue our dreams for a tourism model with better participation of local communities.
We remember a galaxy of great minds that always extended helping hands to WTO in the past. They proved ‘True Friends’ of the industry. Politicians, bureaucrats and journalists- their list is long. It was nothing but their help that made us win giant leaps. We salute their contributions and hope the intimacy and friendship would keep on.
Yet, it is not the time to take rest. There are threats looming large at the horizon. Pollution generated from tourists including the ubiquitous plastic waste, is yet to be managed successfully. A coordinated effort is essential between department of tourism, forest department, local administrative bodies, revenue officials and stake-holders of the industry towards this end. Low quality service providers with inferior motives are increasing in the industry. We fear, they will spoil the ‘brand image’ that evolved through tireless efforts of many years. Another menace is the mushrooming of unauthorised home-stays. They are time bombs ticking at the heart of the industry. The tourism department is yet to act with more teeth against these worst elements. If it is late, remember the ‘Kovalam Model’. Don’t invite disaster that would haunt the coming generations. We have Miles to Go pursuing the goal-creating the ‘Dream Tourism Model’ in Wayanad, for the entire world.
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