E-Paper
Thai military coup to cast its spell on tourism sector
AS THE TOURIST season is fast approaching, military coup in Thailand has caste its shadow on this sector. If people associated with the tourism field are to be believed, last year a greater number of Thai tourists visited Varanasi, Kushinagar, Bodhgaya and Nepal as compared to tourists from other countries.
AS THE TOURIST season is fast approaching, military coup in Thailand has caste its shadow on this sector.
If people associated with the tourism field are to be believed, last year a greater number of Thai tourists visited Varanasi, Kushinagar, Bodhgaya and Nepal as compared to tourists from other countries.
These four tourist destinations, which fall in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, witness unprecedented rush of religious tourists mostly from Thailand, China, Sri Lanka, etc.
With this year’s tourist season round the corner, the people associated with this filed are a worried lot as they apprehend this sector to suffer if fear was not removed from the people of the country and Thailand, etc.
“The military take over in Thailand is going to hit tourist sector hard in India especially in UP and Bihar,” Ajay Singh, president of Government Approved Tourist Guide Association told Hindustan Times while reacting to the military coup. He said both Thailand and India, in fact the entire South Asia, was going to have an adverse impact on the developments in Thailand.
“The Bhuddhist tourists from Thailand who visited Varanasi, Bodhgaya and Nepal outnumbered Chinese and Sri Lankan tourists last year,” Singh said.
“Political unrest in Thailand would leave an adverse impact on the tourist traffic in this belt from Thailand this season,” he added.
“It is premature to say whether military take over will affect this tourist season,” a senior tourist officer said, adding, “In fact Thailand is going to be badly affected.”
It may be mentioned that Thailand Army Commander-in-Chief General Sondhi Boonyaratkalin wrested power from Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and declared martial law in the country yesterday.
