Bangladesh: Exploring youth tourism potential

Published 26 Jan,2021 via The Financial Express - Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation's recent claim that the country has 800 potential tourist spots in total may fill many with incredulity. But the number should be recognised as being official. For it was placed at a Parliamentary Standing Committee Meeting on the Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry not long ago. The corporation informed the meeting that the 800 tourist spots had been identified in eight divisions of the country. The divisions are Sylhet, Khulna, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Barishal, Rangpur, Mymensingh and Dhaka.

The meeting appeared to be a serious one. For it was held at a time --- winter, when tourism activities in Bangladesh remain at their peak. Last year, the tourism industry was in a total deadlock thanks to the raging Covid-19 pandemic. The current year shows signs of recovery. With the remarkable drop in corona prevalence, habitual tourists have already started arriving in the popular sites of beaches and hills. Against this propitious backdrop, the parliamentary standing committee meeting was informed that Tk 702 million had been allocated for the Parjatan Corporation (BPC) in the ADP for the FY 2020-`21. The amount would be spent for implementing eight tourism- related projects.

A source at the tourism ministry has said the spots in the eight divisions have been identified by the archaeology department, the water resources ministry, the forest department and the respective deputy commissioners across the country.