A Push to Responsible Tourism via Vaikom’s Paddy Fields

VAIKOM:
A stroll along the thin soil strip that separates the velvety green paddy fields scintillating in the tropical moon shine. As you walk under the moonlight, the gentle night breeze shall caress your hair; the humble street lamp shall shine on your cheek and, the rustic native farmer will accompany you on your tour around the vast paddy fields. What more reason can a globetrotter have to come back again to the backwaters on every vacation of his ?
The Responsible Tourism Mission of the Kerala Government is all geared up with a pledge to conserve and protect the natural biodiversity, backwaters and the heritage paddy fields of the Kumarakam region. Kerala Tourism has, in fact, charted out a comprehensive tourism package to promote and conserve the backwaters and paddy fields, with its unique ‘Experience the Life Cycle of A Paddy Field’ campaign. The campaign is launched in places where the visitors can be a part of the various stages of paddy cultivation like tilling, sowing and reaping; all at the same time in one place.
More than offering the chance to be a part of all stages of paddy farming, the campaign also intends to share the culture and tradition of the land with the backpackers who travel to Kerala for an ethnic experience. The state-wide initiative is centered around Kanjiram-Malarikal region with an objective to protect the rivers and water bodies revived under the Haritha Keralam project.
K Rupesh Kumar, Responsible Tourism Mission Coordinator, said: “The Ayemanam village tour package encompasses the construction of a 2-km walk way, amidst the paddy fields. The walk way would be dotted by solar street lamps and wooden benches, in a bid to promote the charm of the night strolls”.
The villagers would also be imparted training to accompany and guide the visitors around, he added. urther, the department is also ensuring that the infrastructure is strictly eco- friendly. For a minimal fare, tourists are taken to the nooks and corners of the village by road and waterways to provide them with an experience of the traditional art and craft, which in turn double up as a source of revenue for the villagers and the panchayat.
According to Rani George, Secretary, Department of Tourism, the Responsible Tourism Mission has the potential to create as many as 1,50,000 employment opportunities in the tourism sector in a span of 5 years. All projects under the Mission aim at ensuring extra income and livelihood for agricultural laborers, traditional industrial workers and marginalized communities in these areas and to also give equal importance to the social-environmental parity”.
Thiruvapp, which had the privilege of getting to launch the Jalaayanam-Gramayatra for the first time, was visited by more than 6000 tourists on a daily basis, for the Vayalora-Kayalora Fest conducted recently on the behalf of the campaign, P Balakiran, Director, Kerala Tourism, said.
A brainchild of tourism in Kumarakam, Jalaayanam-Gramayatra, a water centric campaign has also been introduced in Thiruvarpp, a paddy-rich region between Kumarakam and Kottayam. The campaign intends to preserve the water bodies by evading encroachments and making them free of pollution. It promotes eco- friendly activities like boat rowing, fishing and toddy farming. The tourists are taken on boats to visit the ethnic centers and craft houses of the area.
Kanjiram-Malarikal, a sister project, further extends to exploit the tourist potential of the Kanjira- Malarikal area which enjoys abundant paddy fields spread across Kodur, Meenachal and the Vembanad backwaters. A collective intention for water conservation is backed by various panchayats, other organizations and the Meenachal-Meenanthara- Kodoor river re-linking projects. A tourism information centre at Kanjiram has been proposed to be opened soon.
Additionally, setting up of eco-friendly tents for one-day halts near the paddy fields is a related project in the pipeline. According to K Rupesh Kumar, if the project aids the locals to draw an income, an also protect and conserve these natural resources, it shall automatically become a collective responsibility.