‘Tourism & Sustainable Energy: Powering Sustainable Development’

‘Tourism & Sustainable Energy: Powering Sustainable Development’

Mention Indian Tourism and the Taj Mahal is top of the mind recall, says educationist Bharat Malik. “Last week, a group of environmentalists suggested there was a need to cap the number of tourists visiting the Taj, pointing out that increasing numbers of visitors was causing damage. This brings out the aspect of sustainability – the purpose of a tourist attraction is to be viewed by tourists. If we start restricting the number of visitors, does it make sense – alternately, does damage to the Taj on account of large number of visitors stand true on the question of sustainable development?” he asks.
    Malik points out that a recent court order has meant that core areas of some tiger sanctuaries are off limits for ‘tiger safaris’. “The same question comes up here – how do we enable these tourist attractions to ‘survive’ human interaction, how do we power sustainable development?”
    From Mumbai’s Sanjay Gandhi National Park where one is witness to wild cats interacting with human habitat, to ancient monuments which suffer from poor maintenance and upkeep, the question is: can tourism also power sustainable development?
    If this year’s theme leads us to learn more about the sustainable energy initiatives in place in the tourism sector, further debate what more should be done and advance the use of sustainable energy in tourism, the answer may just be ‘yes’.