Acting local and thinking global, India makes a push for accessible tourism

NEW DELHI: Amid global efforts to create universally accessible and inclusive tourism culture, the Union tourism ministry is working on ‘accessible tourism guidelines for India’ to help both public and private sectors develop their resources and services in accordance with the concept of ‘Tourism for All’.

The draft of the guidelines – a guidebook to create the best practices and acceptable standards for accessible tourism—has recently been finalised by the ministry for which it had engaged the Indian Institute of Technology-Roorkee (IIT) as knowledge partner. 

The guidebook contains 10 chapters with eight sections spelling out the need of guiding principles for barrier-free tourist-friendly services and infrastructure in India and various interventions such as universal design approach, information accessibility, inclusive mobility and easily reached accommodations required to make India future ready and thrive on business opportunities in tourism-based ventures.

“Alongside the beauty of this diversity and rich cultural heritage, India has continued to embrace universality through promoting its tourism amidst other evolutionary developments in the nation. However, in the spirit of progress, India needs to push further to attain high levels of inclusion and then emerge as an accessible tourist destination of the world,” reads the draft.

Endorsing the efforts of the ministry, travel and tourism industry representatives said that the guidelines from the Government would certainly help in spreading awareness and to ensure travellers, hotels and government agencies made adequate arrangements for people in need. 

“Like Kids Zone, there should be a demarcated area for senior citizens and visitors with special needs, where they can entertain themselves. The government-recommended guidelines will ensure basic services like wheelchairs. I have myself seen that a prominent five-star hotel in Delhi couldn’t provide a wheelchair to a guest. The government must also find ways for strict adherence to the guidelines,” said PP Khanna, president of Association of Domestic Tours Operators of India (ADTOI).