But where are the tourists?

STATE UPDATE - KARNATAKA

Australian tourist Paula McCarthy has been in Bangalore for two days, after visiting Goa. "Though I knew a lot about the city's contribution to information technology, I was unaware of Karnataka's tourist destinations."

McCarthy, who's next destination is Kerala, is typical of a lot of foreign tourists "" they've heard of Goa and Kerala as tourist destinations. But Karnataka?

Yes, tourism in the state is picking up. Karnataka received 2.4 lakh foreign tourists and 1.2 crore domestic tourists in 2003, 15 per cent more than in the previous year.

Though these numbers are much smaller than those of Kerala or Goa, the state has shown an immense tourism potential.

Indeed, Karnataka chief minister S.M. Krishna has gone on record that his government would give priority to tourism, next only to education and health.

But though the state may be on the cusp of a tourism boom, it hasn't quite got there as yet. To be sure, hotels in Bangalore are full and have a waiting list.

Average room occupancy has increased to 81 per cent between April 2003 and February 2004, from 69 per cent in the same period last year. For the same period, average room rents too have touched Rs 6,300, up from Rs 4,400.

One snag. Visitors to the state are largely on business trips. As Raki Lalwani, director, sales, Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces, Bangalore, puts it: "Nearly 92 per cent of our guests are business travellers. They do not have time to travel as they come on business. The marketing that has been done by the tourism department has not had much result. Even those who actually come to travel do so because of sheer happenstance or referrals."

Confirms INITIAL? Muralikrishna, partner, Hoysala Hotel, a business class hotel in the city: "Most of our customers are business travellers."

Quite simply, the state government has not effectively promoted Karnataka as a tourism destination, despite having launched an advertisement blizkreig (the same agency that handled Kerala's memorable "God's Own Country" campaign handled Karnataka's campaign).

In 1999-2000, the Karnataka government received nearly Rs 200 crore in the form of direct and indirect taxes from tourism but earmarked under Rs 10 crore for the state tourism department.

Today, while the state easily benefits by over Rs 450 crore from tourism, the budget allocation for this sector is a piffling Rs 18 crore. Kerala, in contrast, has a tourism budget of Rs 74.5 crore.

Indeed, Kerala spends around Rs 16,000 per sq. km on tourism, versus Karnataka's Rs 1,000. Kerala also has the highest density of tourists at any given time.

Clearly, the growth in the tourism sector is mostly the result of the IT boom. Tour operators say that few foreigners visit the state.

"We are still depending on domestic travellers "" those who have come to Bangalore as a result of their work. Since they are not from Karnataka, they are not aware of any place here and holiday in Kerala or Goa. We really push Karnataka as a brand to these travellers," says a representative of a well-known tourist operator in the state.

Tourist operators grouse that the tourism department has had three commissioners in the last one year and that the state government has made no specific investments in tourism in the last three years.

"Owing to the intervention of the Archeological Survey of India, it has been promoting Hampi for some time now. The irony is that there is no accomodation in Hampi for a visitor, as a result of which he has to travel a long distance." adds a tour operator. They also cite the poor infrastructure as another reason for tourism not having taken off.

"Infrastructure is the key. The department has done enough to brand the coasts of Karnataka and may have also participated in many international trade fares. But there is not a single good place to stay all along this coast, except in Mangalore. This is the reality. The situation at Hampi is similar," declares another operator.

Yet Karnatak has a right to stake its claim to a place in the tourism sun. The state is blessed with an abundance of flora and fauna.

Mahendra Jain, commissioner of tourism, Karnataka, acknowledges the dearth of infrastructure. "We do realise the importance of investments in infrastructure. Besides the state, we are also urging the private sector to invest in infrastructure. The focus is not only on creating new destinations and branding them, but also on expanding existing destinations and creating an awareness of them."

At a recent conference on public sector and private sector partnership in tourism, the state announced plans to build world-class tourism destinations.

The Karnataka Tourism Board is also in the process of setting up a 'land bank' to help speedy implementation of projects.

The state is reviving plans to set up a 30,000 sq ft international exhibition centre and an international exhibition centre that will seat about 5,000.

An entertainment park on the lines of Disneyland is also on the drawing boards. That's not all. A much awaited 'Palace-on-Wheels'-type luxury train is expected to be a reality within six months.

The state is investing Rs 16 crore in this, with the Centre and the Indian Railways chipping in with another Rs 31 crore. Facilities at tourism destinations such as Nandi Hills, Coorg, Chamundi Hills, Jog Falls and a host of other areas are to be upograded.

"Let's hope that these are not just big announcements. Unless and until we see investments in infrastructure, no amount of seminars and public announcements will help," one operator concludes cynically.