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Thursday, January 16, 2014

STRENGTHEN HOME STAY POLICY DECISION WITH COURSE CORRECTION DURING IMPLEMENTATION

Apropos your front page article titled “Govt notifies ‘homestay’ definition and regulatory aspects” in your issue of 24th December.
We welcome the positive and commendable step by the Government to recognise, regulate and support this form of ecotourism while assuring the basic standards of service quality and security for the tourists. Our organisation (ECOSS) had put up a comprehensive list of suggestions for drafting of the Sikkim Registration of Home Stay Establishment Rules 2013 and we are thankful that much of it has been accepted by the Government. A final state level workshop with all stakeholders before publication of the Rules would have made it all the more participatory. But there is place for amendments and improvements.
Home stays are a means of wooing the tourist to our villages and ensuring that the benefits of tourism go directly to our rural communities. They offer the tourist a unique experience of living with a rural family and experiencing authentic local and ethnic culture, cuisine and village life. This is not found in a hotel or lodge.
It is with this understanding that the State Government has embarked upon an ambitious  project for promotion of home stay tourism by ‘building’ twin roomed home stays with attached toilets in selected villages free of cost. This is a unique initiative especially for those who cannot afford to build one and is a great opportunity to use tourism as a pro-poor vehicle for development.
While appreciating all these efforts, there is one issue that we would like to bring focus upon which needs the attention of the planners and engineers. We understand that all home stays being built by the Government is totally in concrete and without any element of ethnic or vernacular architecture. Our interaction with most home stay beneficiaries clearly indicated that they appreciate the value of an ethnic house. They have clear understanding about the charm that a home stay provides to the visitors. However all their efforts to change the design and material composition of the home stays have failed and they have been left with no option but to accept the concrete structures. This is very shortsighted thinking that reflects a lack of sensitisation about the essence of the home stay concept. The tourist is attracted to our villages for an experience of ethnic living, and ethnic architecture and design form very much a part of this experience. We are not saying that concrete is totally bad or advocating that all home stays should be made of mud and stone and bamboo. But we do strongly feel that a progressive design using elements of local ethnicity and a judicious mix of concrete and local materials would have made all the difference. The state has no dearth of talent in the field of architecture and design and some attractive and innovative models could have been developed. But rather sadly the effort has been more towards mass production of the home stay with the least effort - in this case with just one boring design in concrete. With over 900 home stays being built in the first stage and this number likely to go upto 1500 in the second stage, home stays would be under competition to attract tourists. A home stay with vernacular architecture would definitely be more attractive, but by then it would be too late to change for these 1500 home stays.

Which brings us to the notification on the Sikkim Registration of Home Stay Establishment Rules 2013. Section 3(3) (under the title Eligibility) states:  “The house under the scheme should confirm to traditional and ethnic architecture preferably using local materials like wood, bamboo and stone.”
If this be the case would not the concrete home stays being currently built become ineligible to be registered? Is not there a contradiction between policy and implementation here?
There is still time to make changes. By inclusion of the clause, the Government has recognized the importance of home stays that reflect local ethnicity and culture. This can be further strengthened by following certain correctional measures in the ongoing home stay construction works.  We therefore urge the planners and implementing agencies to review the work being done and incorporate ethnic design and variety in the home stays. We have a golden opportunity here to make our villages sustainably attractive to the tourist but in our hurry let us not waste the chance and regret it later..
Rajendra P Gurung
CEO, Ecotourism & Conservation Society of Sikkim [recvd on email]

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