‘Develop infrastructure to attract agro-tourists’

Nagpur: Agro-tourism is limited to day trips and does not have scope for overnight stays. It is about observing how agriculture is done and an ordinary day in a farmer’s life, said Prachiti Bagade, assistant professor at the department of geology, LAD College, on Saturday.
She was speaking at a workshop organized by the Vidarbha Economic Development Council (VD) and Smart Welfare Foundation. The daylong workshop was on ‘Opportunities and challenges in agro-tourism’.
Speaking on the problems faced by agro-tourism industry, she said, “Infrastructure is not properly developed at some agro tourism centres (ATC) because of lack of adequate capital. Labour management, lack of awareness among tourists, extreme weather conditions and conversion of ATCs into overcrowded resorts are some of the main problems.”
Bagade stated that agro-tourism aids in generation of rural employment. “Using waste water from swimming pools and rain dance for farms at a few ATCs is a good environment initiative.”
Prasanna Shembekar, associate professor, Tirpude Institute of Management Education, spoke on hospitality and marketing in agro-tourism industry. “Most people don’t know the difference between a farmhouse and an ATC. Agro-tourism is done on a working and functional farm.”
Shembekar pointed out that observation, demonstration, participation and recreation are the main ingredients for a proper agro-tourism destination. According to him, one should figure out how to make customer come to you, make him turn up again and to ensure that he spreads the word.
He said 15% of people don’t know what agro-tourism is. Over 85% think that it means visit to a farmhouse. Using digital marketing can be used as a tool to promote ATCs, Shembekar said.
Amol Khante of CAC-AllRounder and Roshan Daga, Ranwara, shared their success stories about agro-tourism. Prashant Sawai, director of MTDC, spoke about investment opportunities and services in agro-tourism while Anup Ghumare, CEO, Cenin Tours and Travels, highlighted the role and support from tours and travel agencies to agro-tourism.
Sunil Mankikar, president of Smart Welfare Foundation, spoke on how to start new ATCs with minimum investment.