Daily Times

Punjab Tourism Policy 2019 provides a complete road map for the future development of the tourism sector of the Province. The policy embodies a number of aspects which have been specifically focused upon. The very first among these is institutional reforms. The policy acknowledges the importance of institutions in materializing the policies of the government and provides guiding principles for reforming the tourism related institutions of the province.

The policy endorses a cross-departmental oversight mechanism, a stake holders led management structure, and a regular process of on-job capacity building in order to equip the human resource with requisite skills in accordance with the changing requirements of time.

The second aspect that has been emphasized in the policy is regulatory reforms. Punjab tourism Policy 2019 categorically declares a sound regulatory mechanism to be imperative for boosting the confidence and trust of the tourists in state machinery and creating competitiveness in the tourism sector. Stringent laws and their effective implementation apparatus are the two factors which have been described as the main areas of attention in the Policy.

The Policy also delineates the importance of building state of the art tourism infrastructure and requires the government to adopt a transparent, coherent, and well-conceived approach for the purpose. It provides for distributing Punjab in different tourism zones and carrying out well planned developmental activities in accordance with the need and requirement of every zone. Engagement of the local community and other stakeholders has also been focused upon in this aspect.

Realizing the importance of tourist’s safety and security, the policy directs the government to take adequate measures for their protection against all sorts of hazards in addition to ensuring the availability of high quality services to them. It has been recommended that necessary institutional and statutory reforms be carried out for addressing all sorts of issues related with the safety and security of tourists.

The next target assigned to the government by Punjab Tourism Policy 2019 is the marketing of Punjab’s tourism potential in an effective way. It has been suggested that the government should adopt a well-calculated strategy for attracting the targeted audience. Facilitation of tourists in terms of accurate information pertaining to tourism sites and enhancing the visibility of heritage and archeological sites have been declared as immensely important tasks in the context.

Punjab Tourism Policy realizes the fact that absence of skilled human resource in the hospitality sector results in the deterioration of the image of the province and the country as a tourist destination at international level. It therefore recommends that the provincial government should take appropriate measures for improving the quality of HR related to the tourism and hospitality sector of the Province. By ensuring quality services not only this that the number of foreign tourists can be enhanced in the country, but the issue of unemployment can also be addressed in a befitting manner.

Punjab Tourism Policy is fully alive to the impotence of the role that the private sector can play in the promotion of tourism in the province. It provides specific guidelines pertaining to the fields in which the private sector can be engaged successfully. Outsourcing the operation of government owned tourist sites, leasing the state land for the construction of tourist resorts, and privatizing the management of tourism festivals and events are some of the fields in which the private sector can find ample opportunities of playing a vibrant role.

Likewise, the policy considers the facilitation of the private sector as an important tool for motivating it to join hands with the government. It has also been recommended that the government should go for “One Stop Solution” to protect the private sector from getting entangled in bureaucratic delays in the issuance of licenses, permits, and NOCs.

The policy makes specific mention of tour operators, hoteliers, and travel agents and provides necessary guidelines for improving their professional proficiency. It emphasizes the registration of all such business entities in order to standardize their performance by bringing them within the regulatory ambit of the government. It has been stressed upon that all the private organizations should try to follow international best practices in order to improve the image of the country with international tourists particularly.

Similarly, the policy directs the government to use tourism as an instrument for educating the youth in an informal way. It requires that there should be a close liaison between the tourism organizations and educational institutions to get the requisite goals. It directs the government to make necessary arrangements for providing cost effective accommodation to students at tourist sites. In order to improve inter provincial harmony, the policy suggests carrying out youth exchange programs among various provinces of the country.

In addition to the few aspects mentioned above, there are many more that have been touched by the tourism policy of Punjab. Irrefutably, the policy provides an unambiguous plan of action for the promotion of tourism in the Province of Punjab. Luckily, the Tourism Department of Punjab is extremely sincere in implementing the policy in letter and spirit.

A detailed analysis of the performance of the Tourism Department with reference to the directions of the policy will be made in the future write-ups.