Nabakalebara: Government plans home stay for tourists

BHUBANESWAR: Keeping in mind the expected footfall of lakhs during the Nabakalebara festival in Puri in July, the state government is planning to provide ‘home stay’ facilities to tourists.
The effort, part of the Centre’s ‘bed and breakfast’ scheme, aims to provide accommodation facilities to tourists in addition to hotels. The scheme was launched in October 2006 to augment availability of rooms to tourists and at affordable prices.
Official sources said the state government is planning to issue license to private households for accommodating tourists in their houses. The department will publicize names of house owners, enrolled under the scheme, and provide professional training to them.
Tourism secretary Arvind Padhee said the state government will inspect location of houses before granting licenses taking into account security and other aspects. “Bookings would be done through the state tourism department so that tourists are not deceived,” he added.
“It is a nice initiative as existing hotel facilities will not be adequate to house the expected huge inflow of tourists. The department should encourage house owners to arrange accommodation facilities,” said Sukadev Dasmohapatra, a resident of Puri.
Under the scheme, house owners can offer up to five rooms or 10 beds with good facilities. The house owner will be required to provide Indian breakfast to guests and display the tariff for rooms as well as food prices. Interested house owners will have to apply in the prescribed application form to the Odisha Tourism Development Corporation to get enrolled under the scheme, official sources said.
To deal with the expected tourist rush during the mega festival of Jagannath Temple, the Puri district administration has selected two places for development of temporary accommodation facilities for about one lakh pilgrims, sources said.
While accommodation at one such places will be free, devotees would have to pay an affordable amount at the other location. Meanwhile, the temple administration on Saturday organized training programmes for junior servitors for smooth arrangement of Nabakalebara rituals scheduled to start from March 29 with ‘daru anwshana’ (search for wood).