Our Correspondent
Kohima | September 27
Nagaland today observed World Tourism Day under the theme “Tourism and Biodiversity” in the aegis of the Tourism department and Nagaland Tourism Association.
Gracing the occasion, Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism Yitachu said tourism is an endless progress, in individual, community and nation.
“Whatever is in our state, in the form of tourism, it can bring changes for better livelihood and economic prosperity”, said Yitachu. Yitachu said the Nagas do not pay tax and this creates a huge gap in revenue-generation. “Unless we understand our fault, we cannot progress in bringing a change”, said the parliamentary secretary.
Another concern he pointed out was the state not having direct access to tourists. Yitachu strongly urged the state government and the department to ponder over this issue, as Nagaland has the potential to become a tourist hotspot. Additional activities will bring changes in the field of tourism, he said. “We have to remember that excuses don’t bring changes, if you want to bring changes, there should not be any room for excuses”, Yitachu said. He also urged the Nagaland Tourism Association, to study areas where the department can work to impact tangible changes in the state.
“Talk hard facts, so that we progress”, said Yitachu. Commissioner & Secretary Tourism Himato spoke on the significance of the theme. In his address, Himato said Nagaland is extensively rich in flora and fauna, which is also the main appealing spot to attract tourist in the state.
He encouraged the department to go for mass campaigns to every school and education on how important biodiversity is. He urged the department to be at the forefront in terms of ‘green colored jobs.’ He said ‘home stay’ in villages can be one of the priorities for the department in terms of employment. ‘Green colored jobs’ does not require good infrastructure, although there is no compromise in personal hygiene and cleanliness, he said. He also noted that bio-degradable waste is the biggest threat to biodiversity. It directly affects Climate Change, he said and urged all to realize this fact and strengthen the mechanism.
Joint director KT Thomas emphasized on the importance of protecting the flora and fauna of Nagaland. “Elsewhere, Tourism is shooting up and we need to educate the people in preserving forest, wild life animals”, said Thomas.
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