There is good news from Wayanad for tourism industry stakeholders. The district has registered a steady rise in arrivals after a lull. The hill district in the southern tip of the Deccan Plateau on the Western Ghats is a favourite stress-busting destination of software professionals from Bengaluru, Kochi and Hyderabad. It had seen a sharp decline in arrivals after the August deluge and Nipah virus outbreak in the adjacent district of Kozhikode this year.
“The tourism industry had incurred a loss of ₹10,00 crore owing to the impact of the natural calamity this year,” said K.R. Vancheeswaran, president, Wayanad Tourism Organisation (WTO), the largest private body in the district that caters to the industry. Close to 300 properties in the district, including hotels, resorts and homestays, rely on tourism industry. Nearly 25 properties were closed down owing to poor business this year, Mr. Vancheeswaran said. “Social media messages on the Nipah outbreak had created panic among prospective tourists too, he said.
Monsoon usually sees an influx of domestic tourists, especially from Benguluru, Coimbatore and Chennai. But “hyped” social media reports on the deluge had forced holidayers to alter their plans, he added.
However, now the industry is fully equipped, in terms of infrastructure, accommodation units and connectivity, to welcome the season, he said.
According to the data provided by the Wayanad District Tourism Promotion Council, 9 lakh domestic tourists visited the district in 2017 apart from nearly 10,000 foreign tourists. But, this year, the district registered a decline of more than 60% arrivals compared with last year, said B. Anand, secretary, DTPC, Wayanad. The situation from mid-May to August-end was grim as many properties and destinations were closed down. But a steady growth has been seen since September this year.
Turnaround
“Now the district has recovered fully and is back to normal and the most sought-after destinations are open to receive the tourists,” Mr. Anand said. The income from Pookode Lake, a major tourism destination, was ₹3.87 lakh in August. It has increased to ₹4.9 lakh, ₹11.43 lakh, ₹16.42 lakhand ₹21.01 lakh in September, October, November and December respectively this year, he said.
The fifth edition of the International Mountain Bike Challenge that concluded at Mananthavady recently also gave a fillip to the tourism industry. We expect that the the newly opened Kannur international airport and new destinations to be opened soon, including the ‘En Ooru’ (My hamlet) project at Lakkidi; construction of the Mananthavady town square and the second phase of the Sulthan Bathery town square and Kumkichira Heritage Museum would help boost the sector, he said.
