Rajasthan records all-time high in tourism

<div class="section0"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-size:="">NEW DELHI: The case of the missing tigers in Sariska may have caused the Rajasthan government a major embarrassment, but that has not deterred it from celebrating record tourist arrivals. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">Tiger or no tiger, the state recorded an all-time high in 2004 when total tourist arrivals touched 17 million.This is a steep rise from 2003 when the number of tourists reached 13 million. Figures show a 27.8% increase in domestic and 54.6% increase in foreign tourist arrivals in the state since 2003. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">While officials in the tourism ministry are attributing the success to various policies and the "Incredible India" campaign, the state officials are happily counting the numbers. "Rajasthan has got a very good combination of heritage and royalty. Private participation in the state has been creditable and its rich heritage has been marketed well," says Amitabh Kant, joint secretary, tourism.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">While Jodhpur and the sand dunes of Jaisalmer are the most preferred destinations, officials say that regular religious fairs like Pushkar and events like Thar festival have been major crowd-pullers too.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">It''s been found that on an average, a foreign tourist spends Rs 2,000 per day and a domestic tourist Rs 1,200 during his stay in Rajasthan. It is further estimated that the average stay of a foreign tourist in the state is around a week.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">"Foreign tourists prefer the Shekhavati area for its havelis, art and craft and like to see the sand dunes and camels in Jaisalmer. Domestic travellers, on the other hand, prefer religious fairs at Pushkar, Gogameri (Hanumangarh), Khatushyamji (Sikar) and Ajmer Sharif," says Rajasthan state tourism minister Usha Punia. "Religious tourism is actually catching on and every third tourist is here for that purpose," Punia adds. This has prompted the state to increase its annual number of fairs to 18 from 13.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">Buoyed by the tsunami of tourists, the state has kept aside a budget for Rs 24.5 crore, besides a central assistance of Rs 24.8 crore. Apart from various ambitious schemes, a film city near Jaipur has been lined up. "Our experiment with marriage tourism is getting a good response. Overseas tourists, including NRIs, are planning royal weddings in Rajasthan''s palaces," says a state tourism official. He said many Hollywood stars are also planning weddings in Rajasthan. Medical, spiritual, rural, heritage and eco-tourism are catching up fast.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">Yet there is room for improvement. Kant feels Rajasthan needs to go for ''brand promotion'' and ''positioning'' as Kerala did. "The roads and connectivity have to be improved. Rajasthan should be connected directly to Europe and other international destinations," Kant adds. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">"We are building up the Hadauti circuit consisting of Kota, Bundi and Jhalawar," Punia adds. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">The NCR circuit consisting of Alwar, Bharatpur, Viratnagar is also being developed.</span><br /></div> </div>