NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel has recommended that some of India’s most prominent pilgrimage destinations be repositioned as "Civilisational Knowledge Hubs", where visitors engage not only in devotion but also in deeper understanding of the country’s heritage.
In its latest report submitted to Parliament on Friday, the Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, headed by Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kumar Jha, proposed that flagship religious destinations developed in recent years, including Kashi Vishwanath Corridor, Ayodhya Ram Mandir, Mahakaleshwar Corridor, and Char Dham, should evolve beyond physical redevelopment into centres of structured cultural interpretation.
The report titled ‘Holistic Development of India's Tourism Sector through Formal Skill Development, University-Level Courses and Professional Training for Guides, Hospitality and Eco-Tourism’ repositions tourism from a service vocation to a knowledge profession and put forward 34 recommendations.
The committee stressed that the next phase of development must focus on storytelling, scholarship and ethical engagement. It strongly recommended that “every guide be transformed into an interpreter,” equipped to explain not just architectural details but also the philosophical, historical and civilisational contexts of the sites. Similarly, homestay owners should be encouraged to act as “micro-storytellers,” offering visitors insights into local traditions, oral histories and living cultural practices.
The Committee further said that heritage sites should function as “living classrooms” where visitors leave with a clear understanding of India’s civilisational journey.
“The Committee observes that substantial public investment has transformed physical infrastructure and crowd management, yet visitor engagement remains largely limited to ritual participation and movement management. These destinations embody layered traditions of philosophy, art, architecture, astronomy, music, ecology and social history that remain largely unexplained to visitors,” the Panel noted.
To achieve the target, the Committee has proposed the creation of a dedicated knowledge and interpretation stream within a National Tourism Professional Cadre comprising cultural interpreters, researchers, narrative designers and digital heritage specialists.
One of the recommendations is the formation of destination-level narrative teams to be drawn from universities, cultural institutions and tourism bodies to support the goal. These teams should consist of researchers, cultural interpreters, storytellers and media professionals working collaboratively to translate scholarship into accessible visitor narratives, the Committee said.
However, it emphasised that this recommendation does not require the creation of new authorities or statutory bodies but purposeful coordination and redeployment of existing intellectual capacity.
The report also stated that creation of India-origin digital heritage content across languages and platforms should be prioritised as much of the global content on Indian heritage is externally produced and often lacks nuance.
“Narrative sovereignty is cultural sovereignty. This aligns with Atmanirbhar Bharat in the knowledge domain and strengthens India’s global voice. The Committee views this as a key step to reclaim cultural narratives, fostering local content creators and ensuring authenticity in digital spaces,” the Panel observed.
The Committee also recommended a government-run digital platform where tourists can book verified, certified guides directly, bypassing touts that currently control access at heritage sites. The platform will display guide profiles, languages, specialisations, ratings and real-time availability. Payment would be transparent and digital, eliminating haggling and overcharging.