Amritsar: Tourism offices run from leased, rented spaces as dept’s prime properties sold off

Neeraj Bagga

Amritsar, April 28

Though candidates contesting from the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat are promising to promote the hospitality industry of the holy city, successive governments have sold off prime properties of the Tourism Department here.

The department has hired staff for of its local offices through outsourcing at low wages, prompting most of them to look for employment opportunities in other avenues.

Exactly two years before the first five-star hotel Ista, which is now being run under the brand name Hyatt, came into existence in the holy city, the state government had sold off three-star Amritsar International Hotel, run by Punjab Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC), at Rs 56 crore in 2007.

Since then, the number of luxury hotels has been growing every year in the city with the inclusion of Radisson Blu, Ramada, Holiday Inn, Taj Swarna, Le Meridian, ITC Welcome and many more in the offing.

Most tourism offices in the holy city, which receives a record number of tourists every year, are being run from leased and rented properties. The Tourist Information Centre, which also doubles up as District Tourism Office, is functioning from a railway land. Besides, tourism counters have been set up at the Golden Temple and Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport. The only office being run from its own premises is at the Attari border.

While all these years several new luxury hotels have been added to the holy city, the building of Amritsar International Hotel has been lying locked and abandoned since it was bought by one NRI family in 2007.

The 55-room hotel, opened in the late 1980s, had two restaurants, a lift, a swimming pool and other facilities to draw tourists. Spread over approximately two acres, it is situated on the opposite side of the ISBT, which is less than

1 km from the Golden Temple.

Similarly, the state government handed over the Tourist Facilitation Centre at the Integrated Check Post (ICP) — Aman Umeed Bhawan — formerly known as Neem Chameli and 10 acres of land around it to the Union Government after the latter requested for the same.

In return, the Ministry of Home Affairs gave 12.5 acres across the road to the state government a few years ago. On that land, the state government had set up a parking bay and an eating joint named Shahi Qila, which is now being run by a private company under the PPP basis.

Another loss to the city was converting of the youth hostel on the GT road into the International Bus Terminal. Since then, the city never got a youth hostel where youngsters from the rest of the country were provided rooms at affordable rates.

The staff strength of the Tourism Department is also dismal. The post of district tourism officer has been lying vacant for the past several months. The government has three tourism officers and one guide-cum-clerk. A tourism officer is paid around

Rs 24,000 and a guide approximately Rs 15,000 per month. Low wages and uncertain jobs prompt most of the staff to look for other employment opportunities. At least four employees, including a district tourism officer, have left their job during the past six months. Most of them have gone abroad.

Present scenario of hospitality industry

• The Tourism Department has hired staff for of its local offices through outsourcing at low wages
• The staff strength of the Tourism Department is dismal
• Most of the employees are looking for better employment opportunities in other avenues
• The state government sold off three-star Amritsar International Hotel, which was run by the PTDC, at Rs 56 crore in 2007
• The building of Amritsar International Hotel has been lying locked and abandoned since it was bought by one NRI family
• The state government handed over the Tourist Facilitation Centre at the ICP and 10 acres around it to the Centre after the latter requested for it
• The youth hostel on the GT road has been converted into the International Bus Terminal