We love to travel – claim many including yours truly. No no I
am not doubting their love for travel. We all seriously love to travel. But how
many of us “love to travel” and “love to travel responsibly?” We the blogger or
the photographers or thinkers like to say or see things a bit differently – hat
ke types. Rather than going there and striking off that place from the “to
visit” list; we like to really be there, feel it, be one with it ( however
clichéd may that sound to my own ears) Am I sounding too cynical? Because I
have seen people do things they donot do at home, when they travel. Admit it,
we all have seen that, many of us must have reacted too and what followed might
be a story many would not like to remember. I am strictly referring to my
fellow countrymen and women travelers here.
So what is
Responsible Travel. To sum up what the Capetown
Conference on Responsible Tourism in 2002 describes – Responsible Tourism
is that tourism which aims at “creating better places to live in and better places
to visit”. It must encompass all kinds of tourism related activities to be
successful for a particular destination or state that aim at Responsible
Tourism.
How do we make sure that we all the indeed responsible
people and we are serious about what we do and what we donot do when we travel.
Pages after pages can be written on this. I admit I am no authority on
Responsible Tourism. However I as a traveler would really like to contribute in
my little way to “create better places to live in and better places to visit”.
(I know I have repeated, but that’s what it is)
Here’s what I feel can be considered.
Tourists / Travelers must be more careful and really
sensitive towards the local eco system. That habit of dropping everything on
the road as you travel needs to be done away with, and done away with forever.
You throw plastic packets, tetra packs, water bottles, spit on roads and walls
– please for cleanliness’ sake, what sort of a habit is that! This country is not a dustbin as we would like
to treat her. Why while travelling; many have this habit of just rolling down
the car window and throw out everything on to the road even in their own cities
and towns. All are ok with that as long as their own houses remain clean.
Please learn to respect this planet, our own country and get rid of this ugly habit.
Patriotism cannot be only during cricket matches! Bikers and backpackers on
tents and camps must make sure not to leave anything behind except for some
wonderful memories.
How aptly named! |
Locals must be aware and strict about their place their
surroundings. When tourists go to a place, the whole place changes
eventually. It has lot of positive
impact. A whole industry comes up. But the local people must be aware that this
industry will remain as long as they respect their own place and be responsible
towards it. When one sees someone doing something which may be as small as
throwing a candy wrap on road, say it. Make that a habit. I have seen in some
places in Leh, there were signs offering to refill water bottles at a nominal
cost. That’s such a wonderful initiative. No one has to keep buying those
bottles of mineral water all the time. We may not realise, but those bottles
are also hazardous.
The Travel companies must draw a line. Certain places are
very very sensitive and cannot handle too many tourists. After some Bollywood
movies Leh has become a favourite destination for people. That has indeed
generated many livelihoods for the locals there. But at what cost? Whole of
Ladakh region is ecologically highly sensitive and fragile. The way the tour
companies are operating “Mesmerising Leh, Rooftop of the world” packages, the day
is not far when this will collapse. My heart broke when I saw heaps of beer
bottles and empty packets of chips lying in Ranbirpura near Leh town which is
now a very popular place for film and ad shoots. I pray and hope the Indus does
not go the Ganges way and we need to formulate committees to clean that.
Government must come up with strict rules for tourism.
Boosting tourism in a place, must never lead to destruction of that place altogether.
There must be guidelines keeping in mind
the eco logy and environment of the place for tourists, hoteliers, homestay
owners, cabbies and even tour operators. Since travelling consist of a major
part of tourism, use of transport means cannot be done away with. Those may not
always be very friendly towards the environment. These complexities exist in
tourism. However the right persons at the right places must ensure a middle
path with minimum damage to the surroundings.
Whole of Tourism Industry must join hands together for
Responsible Tourism. I am using the term “Tourism Industry” a very broad sense
encompassing every element associated with it.
Travelers, Tour companies, Locals, Government all becoming
one and working towards achieving the aim of creating Responsible Tourism - have
I imagined too much!!
But then as
John Lenon said “ You may
say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one” --- A responsible one!
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one” --- A responsible one!
Leave a place as you found it |
Responsible travelling contributes to a better world. Good post!
ReplyDeleteThanks Ilakshee ba. Hope everyone will really be responsible rather than talking about it.
DeleteThe moment you start imagining yourself to be a guest at someone else's home the ethics of your own sense of being will encourage you to be a responsible tourist.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. I hope people realize that before it's too late. Thanks for reading.
DeleteIt is always better to think of ourselves as a tourist visiting a place and then think if we really wanted to be in that place.It is only then that we can know where we lack and improve. Nice post!
ReplyDeleteProblem is visitors lack the respect for the place they are visiting.. That's really sad.
Delete