Rural tourism

A presentation on the topic rural tourism and the significances of rural tourism along with govt. recognised sites and other imp works.

1. Rural Tourism in India India the land of Villages - “To know the culture, tradition and lifestyle of any Indian state travel to and stay in villages”. Indian villages are treasure houses of culture, tradition, colorful events and nature at its best. Each village, hamlet in Indian states are differ in their culture, customs and calendar of events.

2. Any form of tourism that showcases the rural life, art, culture and heritage at rural locations, thereby benefiting the local community economically and socially as well as enabling interaction between the tourists and the locals for a more enriching tourism experience can be termed as rural tourism. Definition of Rural Tourism

3. Rural tourism has certain typical characteristics like; It is experience oriented. The locations are sparsely populated. It is predominantly in natural environment. It meshes with seasonality and local events and is based on preservation of culture, heritage and traditions. The primary attraction is rural culture.

4. Rural Tourism Resources in India Agriculture. Heritage- Culture, tradition, customs, folk arts. Eco Tourism activities

5. Rural Tourism Activities in India Staying in rural village houses, Tents and Huts Working in agricultural fields Local cuisine Use of eco-friendly transportation modes Bird and animal watching, nature walk Exhibiting local folk art Participating in Fairs and Festivals, Celebrations Playing Rural games

6. Positive impacts of Rural Tourism Economic benefits contributes for the Growth and preserving industries, handicrafts and souvenir Allocation of responsibilities and revenue Over dependence on agriculture will reduce. Socio-cultural benefits Demands investments in developing infrastructure

7. Negative Impacts of Rural Tourism Tourism resources in rural areas are extremely provisional and seasonal. May be resulted in price increment. chance of abusing host community culture and cultural pollution. Over use of resources and local facilities would cause to be polluted and destructed. Exploitation of local population in the name of Tourism. Inactive participation of local people. Over use of water may cause scarcity of water in the summer. Construction of infrastructure , improper method of waste management are causing environmental pollution and disturbance on ecology. Sexual harassments on local women’s, drug addiction by local youths.

8. Challenges The major challenges to conduct rural tourism are preservation and protection of environment, natural resources and local culture. Problems related to law, land use. Lack of Trained Manpower in Tourism industry. Poor infrastructure and insufficient financial support. Lack of local people involvement and participation in tourism activities. Illiteracy level of local population. Language barriers.

9. Recommendations Active participation of Governments in policy making and implementation. Necessity of creating awareness in local people about the importance of rural tourism and its benefits. Educating tourists by providing guidelines on their responsibilities. Build confidence in safety and security. Plan for sustainable growth of rural tourism by following certain mitigating measures like Environmental Impact Assessment. Business must balance economics with people, culture and environment. Develop rural tourism protecting natural resources, local heritage and lifestyles. Promote traditional tourism products. Giving quality standards of services at all levels. Develop and deploy skills effectively.

10. Thank you Mahesha R Assistant Professor IITTM