BENGALURU: Union Minister of State for Tourism and Defence Ajay Bhatt on Wednesday met with stakeholders involved in the tourism sector in Bengaluru.
At the meeting, he suggested that promoting lesser-known destinations with historical importance must also be a focus area. He added that the facilities and schemes provided by the Centre for the overall development of the sector should be utilised to promote tourism in the country.
He asked all stakeholders to identify and popularise lesser-known historical sites in the state and provide more information about them to tourists. Sources at the meeting said that it was highlighted to the minister that there are 1,800 protected monuments in Karnataka.
The minister said that while the state is showcasing Hampi and other UNESCO World Heritage Sites on all its platforms to draw crowds, there are many sites that are equally and more important, but need to be highlighted, though they are mentioned in the list of ASI-protected sites and the state archaeology department.
Representatives from the Centre and state governments, travel trade partners, hoteliers, guides and project management teams attended the meeting. During the interactions, the representatives put forward suggestions and opinions for the overall development of tourism and also cited issues faced by tourism sector.