म्हारो गाँव म्हारो घर- A concept for Rural Tourism

Rural Tourism is a sector which has vast potential in India. Reason, India is culturally very rich country deriving much of its spirit from its rural areas. Its cultural heritage is most visible in its villages and a large number of foreign tourists who come to India nowadays want to explore its culture. Hence, rural areas and subsequently rural tourism are best are best spot to work on.

Picturesque villages- View from mighty Aravalis (Haryana)

In this post, through the concept named ‘म्हारो गाँव म्हारो घर’, I want to present a preliminary lay-out for promotion of rural tourism in state of Haryana. Though, following thought schematic has been evolved as result of SWOT analysis of Mahendragarh region (Haryana). But I think with appropriate modifications, this concept could fit well for any rural area of India.

First, there are some pre-requisites to be ensured from government/administration’s side for this concept to be realized properly, these are:

• Improved Connectivity (Roads, Internet etc.) for rural areas
• Improvised Security apparatus in rural areas
• Improved health infrastructure in rural areas

Haryana is a state which strives on its villages, both culturally as well as financially. We have more famous villages than cities, some made famous by their historical anecdotes, some made famous by their contemporary sons. But both ways these villages are with huge potential for tourism.

These villages could very well be turned into attractive tourist destinations because as mentioned earlier there are lots of tourists who want to experience India through its heritage rather than just visiting some iconic landmarks or adventure tourism spots. Those tourists could be lured to these villages, to live there, to experience their life and culture, and off course some site seeing around.

Kush grass; Dirt tracks; barefoot- Village in Mahendragarh

To do this, for a start following steps could be taken:

1. Identify and enroll villages interested in participating as म्हारो गाँव (My Village).
2. Identify and enroll villagers from above mentioned villages interested in participating as म्हारो घर (My Home).
3. Formulate common minimum standards for the eligibility, like sanitary standards, food standards, and social standards requisite for final enrollment/shortlisting.
4. Provide time to each enroller for achieving the above standards, subject to which their enrollment would be confirmed.
5. Ask each of the enrolled villages to provide a list of activities which could be carried out in and around the village as a part of this policy. Approve the list.
6. Prepare a master list of the enrolled villages, the enrolled families and approved activities for ready reference of tourists interested in experiencing Haryana through its villages.
7. Advertise about this new way of experiencing Haryana and its heritage.
8. The tourists would choose and live with a villager in his घर (home) and experience the life and culture of his गाँव (village), as sort of paying guest.
9. A rotation policy of sorts could be put in place by government administration, so that all the enrolled villages and villagers could be benefitted from this policy.

This policy, if implemented wholeheartedly, will benefit both the village and villagers in following few ways among many:

1. Economic improvement through cash inflow.
2. Educational improvement through need to cater to ancillary tourism activities such as guides, translators etc.
3. Cultural improvement through “tell and know” approach between hosts and guests.
4. Social Improvement through “competition for betterment”.

PS: I originally evolved this idea as my contribution to mygov.in, which actively seeks public participation in formulating various government initiatives and policies.