The Bengaluru tourism department attempts to make Bengaluru a global tourist phenomenon

Bengaluru, July 26: The young IT, BT and tourism minister, Priyank Kharge, already has a vision for Bengaluru: one in which the city becomes a global tourist magnet. And his newly created Bengaluru Tourism Advisory Committee (BTAC) is an attempt at building this brand of Bengaluru.

Following the resignation of members from the erstwhile Karnataka Tourism Vision Group (KTVG), who were largely industry captains who stepped down to pave way for the new dispensation, Kharge floated this Bengaluru-centric ideating and implementing body, reports bangaloremirror.com.

On July 22, a government order was issued, which talked about forming the BTAC to develop the city as a brand and a global tourist destination. To be headed by the minister himself, the committee has members from legal, urban, architecture and heritage sectors.

“The idea is to ensure that people explore the city better; there is tourism potential here. That is why I have brought together people to give ideas on projects, to brand Bengaluru, tap into the local knowledge. The idea is not what the minister wants but what the people want. I will hold the first meeting of the committee by this month-end and take it forward,” Kharge told Bangalore Mirror.

The almost-480-year-old city has avenues such as a great history, heritage, science, wildlife, higher education, spiritual, wellness, culture and adventure circuits that need to be explored better, says the order.

Kempegowda International Airport recorded over 18 million passengers in 2015; over 0.64 million foreign travellers and 12 crore domestic travellers visited the state. “It is felt that a lot more needs to be done for exploring the possibilities of showcasing Karnataka, and Bengaluru in particular, as a tourist destination to the global audience. There is a need for constituting a committee to advise and prepare road map to make Bengaluru a global tourist destination, to explore and experience Bengaluru better.”

The KTVG, which functioned under Kharge’s predecessor RV Deshpande, had about 15 tourism projects on its plate, of which many were under the adoption scheme. The scheme eventually lost steam — take for instance the adoption of Venkatappa Art Gallery, which saw vehement protests from the artist fraternity. Watching the backlash, many corporates firms that had volunteered to adopt a few tourist hotspots, backtracked.

However, these 15 projects will be handled by the tourism department.

V Ravichandar, member of BTAC who was also a co-chair of KTVG, said: “Bengaluru’s hard infrastructure is under stress. The minister’s focus on Bengaluru is welcome. Through these tourism initiatives, we can improve the soft infrastructure that makes our public spaces come alive. A city that has multiple leisure alternatives for its citizens will be a cool city for tourists too.”