Question

Your school is organizing a long tour for the students of your class to Kolkata, Guwahati, Shillong and Gangtok. In order to make the students aware of the need to be responsible ‘eco-tourists’ and to brief them about what they should and should not do in this long tour, a meeting has been arranged. You have been asked to make a presentation giving tips to the students on responsible behaviour as tourists. Taking help from the objectives of eco tourism and your own research, prepare the presentation. It can be a power-point presentation or a speech supported by charts and visuals. As the places to be visited include heritage sites, places of worship, monuments and places of ecological importance such as mountainsides and rivers, your presentation should cover a range of responsibilities. The general thrust should be “Towards Joyful and Sustainable Tourism”. You may decide to do this as a group activity also. In that case divide the work among the members of your group for research and collection of data, preparation of the presentation, preparation of visuals and actual presentation.

Answer 1

“Towards Joyful and Sustainable Tourism”

Dear students, you are fortunate that you are going on a long tour organised by the school to Kolkata, Guwahati, Shillong and Gangtok. Let me tell you that you are visiting one of the most beautiful places of India. You must be aware of the need to be responsible ‘eco-tourists’. You will be visiting heritage sites, places of worship, monuments and places of ecological importance such as mountainsides and rivers.

Your first stop is Kolkata—the ‘City of joy’ and the erstwhile seat of the British Raj in India. Kolkata offers you many sites of historical, cultural and religious importance. The ‘Victoria Memorial’ is the finest specimen of the colonial architecture. ‘Dakshineshwar’ and ‘Bellur Math’ are two famous places of religious importance on the bank of the Hoogly. The ‘Hawrah Bridge’ is another important landmark of Kolkata. Guwahati is the capital of Assam. It is situated on the bank of the mighty Brahamputra. The ‘Kamakhya Temple’ is visited by thousands of devotees from different parts of the country every year. Shillong used to be called “the Switzerland of the East”. And who can forget the matchless beauty of Gangtok, the beautiful capital of Sikkim. You can have the panoramic view of the Kanchanjunga ranges from here. You can see of the most scenic spots in and around Gangtok. The most famous monastery, ‘the Rumtek’ is just 20 kms from here.

Remember, wherever you go, you should respect the place, the people and the environment. Don’t pollute or degrade the purity, serenity and beauty of a place. If you are on mountains, don’t litter garbage, plastics or polythene bags there. They degrade the environment. If you are visiting historical monuments, don’t spoil or deface them. If you are visiting a place of worship, maintain the serenity and purity of the place. And when you are among the local people, always be respectful, friendly, courteous and cultured to them in conduct and behaviour. Wish you a comfortable and happy journey!