While lauding the efforts of the State government to promote tourism in the State, the President of Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG), Nilesh Shah on Tuesday emphasised on need to improve connectivity in Goa and to maintain a continuous dialogue with tourism stakeholders to retain Goa’s status of a leading destination.
Shah also stressed on the need to protect the State’s natural resources like the beaches and its green cover.
“Improving connectivity in Goa has to be our top priority. Improvement and completion of various roadway networks including reducing bottlenecks like the one seen in Porvorim will help a long way,” Shah said, while speaking at an event in Panaji on the occasion of the World Tourism Day.
Shah’s view on connectivity assumes significance as the State has a very poor public transport system while the debate on aggregator-based taxi service has still remained inconclusive.
Speaking further, the TTAG President said the government must continue with its initiatives of keeping Goa clean and green.
“The unique selling point of Goa Tourism is its beaches, wildlife sanctuaries, greenery and forest cover. We need to protect them by all means for tourism to flourish in the State,” he said.
He also stressed on the need to have continuous dialogues with tourism stakeholders through the Goa Tourism Board to help keep Goa as India's top tourism destination and a leading international destination.
Earlier, he thanked the government for the ease of doing business initiative and for setting up the long awaited Goa Tourism Board. He also lauded the successful beach cleaning event held recently all over Goa and in the country.
TTAG had organised various events such as mini rally with non fuel based vehicles, heritage walk, Goan food competition for women home makers & students of Hotel Management Schools and Goan cultural programme on the occasion of World Tourism Day.
“These events will help in bringing about awareness of the negative environmental footprint created by tourism and the impact it has on the people and the planet,” Shah said.
“This awareness needs to be harnessed by creating competitive, environmentally friendly and sustainable products, which creates jobs and promotes the local culture, heritage and produce, and in turn creating a more engaging, socially responsible and conscientious tourist,” he added.
