8. Tourism and History

• (a) handicrafts
• (b) toys
• (c) food items
• ✓ (d) tourist tickets

Answer: Thomas Cook established a travel agency selling tourist tickets.

• ✓ (a) books
• (b) plants
• (c) mangoes
• (d) forts

Answer: Bhilar is known as the ‘Village of books’.

Wrong pair: (2) Tadoba — Rock-cut Caves

• Aviation has brought the entire world closer, and marine transport has linked coastal regions, making travel easier and faster.
• Furthermore, due to the economic liberalisation policy of the Indian government, travel policies and procedures have been simplified.
• As a result, more people travel back and forth from India for various reasons like higher studies, relaxation, sightseeing, professional assignments (meetings, agreements), and film shoots.

• Historical heritage sites represent the creative thoughts and traditions of our ancestors and define our identity as a nation.
• Vandalising or defacing heritage monuments, such as writing on walls, carving on trees, or painting ancient monuments in garish colours, affects our image globally.
• Lack of good amenities in the precincts of the heritage sites causes filthiness, leading to physical degradation of the sites.
• Hence, it is essential to take primary precautions to conserve these sites so that they can be accessed and appreciated by future generations.

• The tradition of travelling is quite old in India. People have travelled since ancient times for various reasons like pilgrimage, going to local fairs and festivals, in search of a renowned teacher, and for trade.
• Buddhist monks and Jain monks used to travel constantly for preaching. The Chinese monk Yuan Shwang travelled to India in 630 C.E.
• In the medieval period, saints like Saint Namdev, Saint Eknath, Guru Nanak, and Ramdas Swami travelled extensively across India.
• Vishnubhat Godase also wrote down accounts of his journey from Maharashtra to Ayodhya in his book 'Maza Pravas'.

• Marco Polo was an Italian traveller of the 13th century.
• He holds an important place in history because he introduced Asia, especially China, to Europe.
• He stayed in China for 17 years.
• He wrote detailed accounts about the flora and fauna, social life, culture, and trade systems of Asia, which served as important historical documents for Europeans.

• Agro-tourism (also known as agri-tourism) is a rapidly developing field of tourism.
• It is especially meant for the urban population, who typically have very little exposure to rural life, farming processes, and agriculture.
• Under this tourism, people visit farms to experience agricultural activities, rural culture, and ethnic food.
• Now, even Indian farmers are visiting faraway places like agricultural research centres, agricultural universities, and countries like Israel where experimentation in advanced agricultural technology is carried out.

The development of tourism relies heavily on providing an excellent and safe experience to tourists. The crucial issues include:

• Guidance and Security: Providing proper guidance to national and international tourists about the actual travel and proper social conduct during their tour. Priority must be given to safe transport and security facilities.
• Amenities: Availability of reasonably good standard amenities, good accommodation, and clean washroom facilities on travel routes is of great significance.
• Accessibility: Paying special attention to the needs of handicapped tourists to ensure sites are accessible to everyone.
• Language and Information: Providing pamphlets, guides, and history books about a tourist site in various languages. Taxi drivers can also be trained to converse in more than one language and act as tourist guides.

Tourism acts as a major economic driver for local communities in several ways:

• Direct Services: Tourists require immediate services. Local people earn money by acting as guides, photographers, and providers of transport (like horse rides or horse cart rides at hill stations).
• Hospitality and Trade: A tourist destination needs hotels, lodges, and restaurants, generating massive employment.
• Local Markets: Markets in the vicinity grow along with the development of a tourist centre. The demand for locally processed food items and ethnic goods increases significantly.
• Artisans and Handicrafts: Local handicrafts and cottage industries begin to develop as tourists love buying souvenirs. This results in better income for local artisans, business people, and wage earners.

Tourism and hospitality is a vast industry with tremendous potential to create employment. The associated professional fields include:

• Hospitality and Accommodation: Managing hotels, lodges, resorts, and restaurants that provide stay and food facilities to tourists.
• Transport and Logistics: Aviation, railways, marine transport, private bus services, and local taxi/cab operations needed to move tourists from one place to another.
• Tour Planning and Guidance: Travel agencies selling tourist tickets, tour operators arranging itineraries, and trained local guides or translators who accompany the tourists.
• Local Economy and Handicrafts: Artisans creating souvenirs, cottage industries producing regional goods, and businesses selling locally processed ethnic food items.
• Heritage Management: Professionals involved in conducting 'Heritage Walks', museum curators, photographers, and writers creating tourist pamphlets and history books.

Three important types of tourism are:

• Historical Tourism: This type of tourism is popular all over the world and satisfies people's interest in history. Tours are arranged to forts, ashrams of national leaders, and places associated with historical events (like the 1857 Indian war of independence). 'Heritage Walks' are a key feature of historical tourism.
• Health Tourism: People from western countries visit India because medical facilities here are of a good standard and comparatively cheaper. Also, tourists from cold climates visit tropical countries like India for ample sunlight. Seeking Yoga training and Ayurvedic therapies also falls under health tourism.
• Agro-Tourism: Aimed primarily at the urban population who want to experience rural life and agriculture. Tourists visit farms to understand crop cultivation and enjoy rural culture. It also includes farmers visiting advanced agricultural research centres globally to learn new technologies.