State emerges as top health destination

By S. Anil Radhakrishnan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JAN. 26. The State Tourism Department's efforts at marketing Ayurveda as a major Unique Selling Proposition (USP) have started paying dividends with the State emerging as a "high class health destination" in the world tourism circuit.

With the Ayurveda system of medicine being blended with luxury, comfort and aggressively marketed by the Department of Tourism abroad and within the country, tourists are arriving in large numbers in the State seeking rejuvenative and therapeutic programmes.

The Prime Minister, Mr. A.B. Vajpayee, and the French Education Minister, Mr. Jacques Lange, undergoing Ayurvedic therapy in the State, have given a boost to the department's efforts in this direction. The strategy has also helped to add value addition to Kerala tourism and to increase the days spend by a tourist in the State.

"The number of days spend by a foreign tourist in the State has gone up from the earlier four days to six or seven days this season. It is tourists from Germany, France and Italy who arrive in large numbers. This will benefit the tourism sector and the State's economy," the Tourism Secretary, Mr. Amitabh Kant, told The Hindu.

With the arrival of the foreign tourists in quest of genuine Ayurvedic therapy, Ayurvedic centres in various names and manned by highly trained staff had been set up in the private and public sectors near major and emerging tourist destinations.

All good and classy tourist resorts in the State now have Ayurvedic centres attached to them to cater to the needs of the guests. The centres were earlier confined to the beach resort of Kovalam and other major tourist destinations in the State.

Although all forms of Ayurvedic therapy are available in tourist destinations within the country and in neighbouring Sri Lanka and the Maldives, holidayers prefer Kerala as they are convinced that genuine Ayurvedic therapy provided by trained and qualified practitioners is available only here.

The availability of therapy in its traditional form, availability of herbs, cool and clean monsoon and the ideal humidity make the State best suited for the restorative packages.

The department's effort in positioning the State as a "high quality rest and relax destination" among tour operators and holidayers over the last few years has succeeded and started yielding results, according to the Tourism Director Dr. V. Venu.

"We had not been able to penetrate the British and U.S. market and to attract the foreign tourists to the State for Ayurveda therapies. By blending Ayurveda and backwater tourism, we will do it in a concerted way next year," says the Tourism Secretary.

"Tourists who arrive in search of Ayurvedic therapy have picked up over the years. Great care should be taken to see that the tourists visit and seek treatment only from the approved centres," says the Managing Director of the KTDC, Dr. A. Jaya Thilak.

At present, the State has only 21 Ayurvedic centres approved by the department. Another 30-odd Ayurvedic centres function in various names in tourist destinations. The mushrooming of the fake Ayurvedic centres is a major headache for the tourists.

"Kerala Tourism is against regulations. We are for branding. The centres are given approval after inspecting the facilities and infrastructure by a team headed by the Director of the Indian System of Medicine," says the Tourism Secretary.

Meanwhile, the department is of opinion that the indicators are "good" for the ongoing tourist season and the first of the millennium. There is a great deal of expectations as the State is poised to achieve a double digit growth of 10 to 15 per cent. Initial figures point to a 18 per cent rise in arrivals.

The Tourism Director feels that the bad phase being witnessed at Kovalam, the premier beach resort of the State,

is only a temporary phenomenon. "The profile of Kovalam is changing rapidly. The beach destination has become part of the package being offered by tour operators. Kovalam will bounce back," Dr. Venu said.

The department had accorded top priority to complete some major projects in the tourism sector in the coming two months. The projects include the Guest House at Pathanamthitta, budget rooms at Yatri Nivas, Alumkadavu Waterside Complex near Karunagapally, renovation of Kanakakunnu Palace, Facilitation Centre at Thekkady and Yatri Nivas at Guruvayur. Besides, the renovation of Napier Museum in the capital and Hill Palace Museum, both funded by the department, will be taken up.

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