Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh today said that Meghalaya is a safe destination for tourists but a few minor incidents have been blown out of proportion in order to give the state a bad name.
Lyngdoh said that with the growth of the tourism sector in Meghalaya, other states are trying to attract visitors to come and visit. “Therefore, especially in the digital age, people take advantage. A minor incident is hyped to make it look huge,” he said.
Although the state continues to draw in lakhs of domestic tourists, every so often an incident puts the brakes on growth, with recent instances within the last few months including checks imposed on entrants by members of a pressure group and the stopping of Assam-registered tourist taxis from certain tourist spots.
Lyngdoh, however, said that he has personally heard from tourists how they feel free and safe while visiting the state’s villages and are able to walk around without fear.
On the issue of tourist taxis, the minister said that drivers from Meghalaya could come to an arrangement with their counterparts in Assam instead of having to depend on the state government. A section of local tourist taxi drivers want a monopoly on ferrying visitors to tourist spots within the state. Those visitors brought to Meghalaya by non-local tourist taxis will, in their plan, have to switch to local taxis once they reach Shillong, for example.
“All states are interlinked, why can’t they also interlink in their efforts?” he asked.
Lyngdoh also informed that the state government is planning on introducing “tourist buddies”.
These will be stationed at major tourist destinations to ensure that visitors are guided and given an insight to the particular destination that they visit. Lyngdoh also said that these tourist buddies will give visitors a sense of friendliness and security.
In the next two-three months 50 such tourist buddies will be appointed who will assist the tourists in high footfall areas.
