Mamata hails Bengal’s homestay initiative for creating jobs
Times of India | 3 December 2024
12 Kolkata: Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said on Monday that the state's homestay initiative had created a lot of rural and urban jobs in the state and had become a model for other states to replicate. The CM was speaking during the question hour in the assembly.
"Tourism is a vast sector. We are working on surplus tea garden lands for tea tourism. Homestays are being set up all across the state. Unesco has recognised Bengal as a top destination. We have developed religious tourism as well," Banerjee said.
Adding to this, tourism minister Indranil Sen said, "So far, 2,489 homestays have been registered. Of these, north Bengal has 65% homestays. We are proactively training tourist guides. As many as 3,755 guides have been trained and they have tied up with the British Council, Alliance francaise and Goethe Institute to develop language proficiency."
"For each destination, we are working on a 1:10 model. If there is one govt tourist lodge, we are creating an ecosystem so that ten private lodges come up, creating employment opportunity," Sen said.
CM Banerjee said, "Work has been done on temples, mosques and churches. A skywalk was built in Dakshineswar and one is under construction in Kalighat. I will be visiting Digha soon, where a Jagannath temple, similar to the one in Puri, is being constructed. I am forming a trustee board for it. Regular worship will take place with wooden idols, while marble idols are also being made. Additionally, a Chaitanya Gate is being constructed."
"It was I who started homestays in Lamahatta. And now, homestays have been established in many households. The DPR (Detailed Project Report) for the Ganga Sagar bridge has already been prepared. It's a project worth Rs 1,500 crore. The Sagar Mela is now coinciding with the Kumbh Mela."
When BJP MLA Shankar Ghosh raised questions about tourism in the Buxa region, Banerjee said, "We are the only ones who have developed tourism in north Bengal. Spend more time in your area, Kalchini, and you will see the work being done."
In reply to Lalgola MLA Ali Mohammad's suggestion on developing Lalgola Rajbari — which houses an open air correctional home — as a tourist destination, Banerjee said that the matter must be taken up with the jail department. Mohammad said, "There is an ancient Kali temple inside the jail premises... Prisoners can be trained to be guides."