3 min readNew DelhiJul 24, 2024 07:32 AM IST
First published on: Jul 24, 2024 at 02:45 AM IST
While Bihar got the biggest share of the tourism pie in the Union Budget this time with the development of Vishnupad temple in Gaya, Mahabodhi temple in Bodhgaya, along with Nalanda and Rajgir finding a pride of place in Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s Budget speech, a plan for an overall development of tourism sites in Odisha was also announced. The BJP recently formed its first government in Odisha.
While Uttar Pradesh got maximum focus in Narendra Modi government’s previous terms, with Ayodhya and Varanasi getting an overhaul with the redevelopment of temples and upgradation of ground infrastructure, the tilt seems to have moved eastwards to Bihar and Odisha, along with the party’s political ambitions and successes.
While presenting the Budget, Sitharaman said they have formulated a plan called ‘Purvodaya’ for the all-round development of the eastern region of the country, including Odisha.
“The states in the eastern part of the country are rich in endowments and have strong cultural traditions. We will formulate a plan ‘Purvodaya’ for the all-round development of the eastern region of the country covering Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. This will cover human resource development, infrastructure, and the generation of economic opportunities to make the region an engine to attain Viksit Bharat,” she said.
The Union Ministry of Tourism had recently announced a change in its approach from circuit-based tourism to destination-based tourism, wherein overall development of one destination will be taken up – in terms of tourist facilities, infrastructure, connectivity and other related aspects.
In line with this, the outlay for the Swadesh Darshan scheme has seen a spike from Rs 1,412 crore in the 2023-24 Budget to Rs 1,750 crore this time. The outlay for the other flagship scheme for pilgrimage-related tourism – the PRASAD scheme – has remained more or less the same over the last few years – at Rs 240 crore this time.
Sitharaman said tourism has always been a part of India’s civilization and the government’s efforts in positioning India as a global tourist destination will also create jobs, stimulate investments and unlock economic opportunities for other sectors. On Odisha, she said the temples, monuments, craftsmanship, wildlife sanctuaries, natural landscapes and pristine beaches of Odisha make it an ultimate tourism destination. “Our government will provide assistance for their development,” the Finance Minister said.
However, stakeholders in the industry were not too buoyed with the tourism-related announcements as they had held several rounds of discussions before the Budget and were expecting some relief in taxation.
The Finance Minister has promised to support the development of Nalanda as a tourist centre. (File Photo) 
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