Mountain tourism in Corona is a bad time
Silent silence all around. Occasionally there is the chirping of birds. Employees no longer have that preoccupation. Birds have
become guests as there are no tourists. In the green branches of the trees, in
the courtyard below, their loud music is arranged everywhere.
This picture was seen
recently while visiting the Meghla tourist area of Bandarban district town.
Once upon a time, the area was full of tourists. Now there are no tourists. As
there was no work, some employees were sitting in their chairs and relaxing. Around
the other tourist spots in the district, almost the same scene was seen.
The situation is similar
to Bandarban in the other two hill districts of Rangamati and Khagrachari. The
mountainous green forest, the largest lake in the country, the traditional
religious sites, the serenity of the springs the highlands. These are the
floating eyes. It is very difficult for a traveler to ignore all these.
Millions of tourists flock to the three districts of the Chittagong Hill Tracts
to attract this natural beauty of the mountains. Coronavirus-infested
tourist spots are now empty, despite being once a year-round presence of
tourists from home and abroad. Entrepreneurs are suffering from financial
losses. And the workers are becoming unemployed due to layoffs.
The Corona epidemic has
wreaked havoc on the mountain tourism industry. In the last four months alone,
the loss has been more than 100 crores. About three thousand workers have lost
their jobs. The traders claim that there is no alternative to launching limited
tourist destinations to overcome these losses. However, a limited number of
tourist destinations have been opened in Rangamati. The process of opening in
the remaining two districts is underway.
About two and a half
hundred hotels, motels, and resorts have been built here. An average of two to
two and a half lakh tourists visit the three hill districts every month during
the busy season.
Around two and a half to
three hundred crore rupees are traded annually around mountain tourism. The
annual income of the tourism industry in Bangladesh is about 5 thousand crore
rupees.
The above financial
accounts were obtained by talking to traders' associations, hotel-motel owners'
associations, tour operators' associations, launch associations, and
tourism-related researchers and experts in the three districts. Despite the
expansion of tourism in the country and in the mountains, no specific
information was available from any of the concerned agencies about this sector.
On the spot
Recently, a
representative of Prothom Alo visited the Meghla Tourist Center in Bandarban.
In his presence, the staff woke up. They said all the tourists and hotels and
motels in the district have been closed for four months since last March.
Nilachal, Swarnamandir, Ramjadi, Shailprapat, Chimbuk, Nilgiri, Boga Lake,
Keokradong, Nafakum — there is emptiness everywhere now.
Alutila Cave and
Mayabini Lake in Khagrachhari were well attended by tourists at normal times.
Recently, he was not seen on the spot. The centers are squealing.
Shuvlong Jharna is one
of the most attractive tourist spots in the Rangamati district. Throughout the
year, thousands of tourists came to see the suspension bridge. The suspension
bridge of the Rangamati Tourist Complex is wailing due to lack of visitors.
Recently visited
Shuvlong Jharna, restaurants and tourist spots in Kaptai Lake, Chang Pang,
Mejang, Bara Gang, Peda Ting Ting, and Gang Sabarang.
Loss due to corona
push 109 crore
Among the three hill
districts, Bandarban has the highest number of tourists. On an average, more
than 5,000 tourists come to enjoy the beauty of Bandarban every day during the
tourist season. At this time it became difficult to find a place in hotels, motels,
and resorts. Tourists flock to this district at other times of the year as
well.
The tourism sector in
Bandarban has come to a complete standstill due to the impact of the Corona
during the peak season. Traders have to calculate an average loss of Tk 50 lakh
every day. The traders said that they have had to pay a loss of around Tk 75 crore
in the last five months. And after Korona in Rangamati, the loss of the traders
in the tourism sector is about 22 crore rupees. The amount of this loss in
Khagrachari is 12 crore rupees.
The idea of tourism
traders, the amount of this loss due to Corona will increase further upfront.
Many of them have lost capital and the ability to start a business again. So at
the moment, there is no option to introduce a limited range of tourism.
Residential hotel-motel
owners say there is no income. There is no work. Even then the employees have
to pay salaries. But hundreds of families dependent on tourism have lost their
livelihood.
Sirajul Islam, general
secretary of the Bandarban Residential-Hotel-Motel Owners' Association, told
Prothom Alo that there are opportunities for people of at least 11 classes and
professions to benefit financially behind a tourist. About 55,000 people of
Bandarban are directly and indirectly involved in the tourism business. Now
that everything is closed, almost everyone is suffering financially. Therefore,
it is important to open this tourism sector, which is the biggest employment
and income-generating district of the district, in compliance with the hygiene
rules.
Ananta Bikash Tripura,
general secretary of the Khagrachhari Hotel-Motel Owners Association, said the
hill tourism business is booming throughout the year. Most of the tourists come
to Vaisabi and two Eids. But this time Corona has been pushed.
Rangamati's tourism
industry suffered extreme losses after the catastrophic landslide on June 13,
2016. Don't make up for that loss as if it were a blow to the head.
More than half of the
workers were laid off
Talking to tourism
businessmen, it was learned that there are 55 hotels and motels in Rangamati
town and 103 resort-cottages in Sajek. There are 70 hotels and motels in
Bandarban. There are 30 in Khagrachari. More than 5,000 people were employed in
these residential establishments. Most of them received money on a daily basis.
But more than half of them lost their jobs due to Corona's push. Those who are,
they are getting nominal salary. They are also at risk of losing their jobs if
this situation is prolonged.
Not only the hotel and
motel workers are being affected, but also the tour guides, the owners of the
shops in the tourist centers, the clothes sellers, the drivers and driver
assistants, the employees of the food shops, the shipping workers are also on
the list.
Rangamati Tourism
Corporation manager Srijan Bikash
Barua said tourists were not coming due to the ban. As a result, they had to
calculate a loss of Tk 35 lakh per month.
Rangamati Hotel-Motel
Association President. Moin Uddin
Selim told Prothom Alo that more than 300 employees have been laid off from
hotels and motels after the administration announced the closure of tourist
centers. Now some businessmen have started renting groceries and houses in
residential hotels. You have to do something to survive.
They are also in
trouble
The shopkeepers of the
tourist centers are also in trouble like the employees of the residential
hotels and the sailors. One of the major attractions for tourists visiting the
highlands is the collection of cloth woven in the hills. Tourists also collect
various memorabilia made by them. People in this sector are also in danger due
to the non-arrival of tourists.
Siam Bom, a mountaineer
from Bandarban, made a living by selling loom cloth and garden fruits.
"People don't come," he said. Some are not sold. The money saved is
also running out. I am thinking about the day ahead. '
What is the
administration thinking?
Entrepreneurs, workers,
and dependents of the tourism sector in the hill districts are now living a
helpless life. They think that there is no alternative to launching tourist
centers to get rid of this situation. He says that even if the health rules are
maintained and social distance is maintained, the centers should be opened.
This is their appeal to the administration.
However, officials said
the administration has agreed to open limited tourist destinations after Eid
al-Adha.
The same was said by Kamrul
Islam, Deputy Collector of Bandarban Deputy Commissioner's Office. However, in
this case, steps will be taken as per the instructions of the ministry, he
said.
However, Khagrachhari
Deputy Commissioner Pratap Chandra Biswas said that new corona patients are
being identified in Khagrachhari every day. In this case, it would be risky to
open the tourist centers.
One of the attractions
is the highlands
Santosh Kumar Deb,
Associate Professor, Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Dhaka University,
has been writing about the country's tourism sector for a long time. Talking to
him on mobile phone about the tourism sector of the country and the highlands.
Corona's impact on the tourism sector catastrophe and financial losses were
highlighted by Prothom Alo. He suggested that in order to overcome this
situation, tourist centers should be set up on a limited scale and in
compliance with health norms.
Santosh Kumar Dev said
that there is a risk of loss of around Tk 6,000 crore in the tourism sector due
to Corona. But if the Corona situation continues for a long time, the damage to
the tourism sector will increase. About three lakh people in this sector are at
risk of employment. As part of human livelihood, it is necessary to take
initiative to introduce tourist centers in a limited range in compliance with
hygiene rules.
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