http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=93824
Tourism: sunset for sustainable policy? Local governments need to be kept in the loop before making commitments BENNY KURUVILLA Posted online: Wednesday, June 15, 2005 at 0000 hours IST <Given the diversity that exists in terms of tourist destinations in India and corresponding policy requirements, it is optimal that the representative governments of the area effectively enforce planning, regulation and monitoring of tourism projects. 'It is well recognised that Gats will intrude into these democratic spaces, as commitments made by the commerce ministry will apply to all regional and local government authorities,' says K T Suresh of Equations. Take the case of the recently passed Kerala Tourism (Conservation and Preservation of Areas) Act, 2005. The Act allows the Kerala government to declare any area in the state as a tourism zone and empowers a committee to regulate activities inside such zones. Equations says such legislation, that recognise the need for sustainable planning and decentralised policy, will run afoul of Gats. In January 2004, India signalled its intention to have no quantitative limitations on foreign enterprises in the hotels and tour operator category. Says Equations, this means that the national and, more importantly, regional and local governments will not be able to restrict the activities of foreign tourism providers in ecologically fragile tourism areas. 'Added to a freeze on sustainable policy, this hits at the heart of democratic decision making, ' says Mr Suresh. Civil society's fears are not unfounded. Regional and local governments continue to be unaware of the deals that the commerce ministry is concluding in Geneva. Ten years is long enough to start serious introspection on Gats and it remains to be seen if some of these concerns are squarely addressed.>
