Bhutan's Tourism Dilemma

Wandering on the streets of Paro or Thimpu in Bhutan one gets the feeling of being in an enchanted Kingdom. The streets are lined with buildings built in traditional architectural style, be it residences or offices. People are seen in traditional Bhutanese attire and there is absolutely no garbage in sight. Bhutan’s brand tagline, “Happiness is a place” indeed comes to life. This is perhaps the only country in the world, where the mandate of the modern state is Gross National Happiness.  It indicates that the universally accepted goal of economic development is only a means to the real goal of happiness. Bhutan’s philosophy is that happiness can be found in simple things anywhere.   Bhutan has been a pioneer in promoting high value, low volume tourism and has succeeded in earning revenue as well as conserving its heritage. However, Bhutan is now facing a serious dilemma in tourism. There has been a drastic increase in regional tourists over the last few years. Regional tourists are those from India, Bangladesh and the Maldives and they don’t need to follow the daily tariff norms that Bhutan applies to foreigners. However, as in many other issues, Bhutan is ready to take on the challenge.

Following Traditional Architecture

I was invited to a workshop to Bhutan in April to address this issue and see how Bhutan could link up to tourism in North-east India. I made presentation on Community-based Tourism and its relevance to this region. 

Following is also a link to an article by me, recently published on the same:

 http://www.deccanherald.com/content/549535/bhutan-shows-way.html