Unregistered homestays running illegally in Mysuru district will be shut down after preparing a list of homestays that are being operated legally upon valid registration, said Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra.
Steps will be taken to close down the home stays that are unregistered. Registration is a must to run home stays, he added.
At the meeting of the Mysuru District Tourism Development Committee, here on Wednesday, Dr. Rajendra, who presided, said the number of illegal homestays has gone up and directed the Tourism Department to act against such facilities, taking complete information on their operations.
He also directed the Tourism Department to appoint officers from every department of the tourism committee and convene meetings once in three months inviting stakeholders of the tourism industry, towards the development of tourism and the sites.
An exclusive website for promoting Mysuru and its tourism potential was the need of the hour. This will help to provide information on the sites and other details to interested public and the tourists, Dr. Rajendra told the meeting.
Hotels, restaurants, and other facilities coming up have to first register under the Nidhi portal, the Deputy Commissioner told the city corporation and the Gram Panchayats under whose limits the facilities are operated.
The Deputy Commissioner addressed the meeting that the facilities needed for upgrading tourist sites have already been developed, taking up necessary works. For the works, the permission of the Deputy Commissioner is a must, he said.
Dr. Rajendra asked the officers to find out sites that are still unexplored and they need to be promoted. Their names would be included in the list of sites of tourist importance.
Attractive tourist packages can draw the visitors to the city. In this regard, the authorities have to work and come up with tour packages, he suggested.
Video promotion of sites was key for drawing the interest of tourists towards the sites. Even short videos will do, he said, adding that competition in this regard can be organised for bloggers and photographers on the city’s tourist sites by announcing attractive cash prizes. Based on the entries, a coffee table book on Mysuru tourism can be brought out.
He asked to promote the logo of Brand Mysore.
Mysuru recently got the new logo besides a tagline for brand promotion. A mascot called Gajju which features an elephant with Mysuru Peta and clad in panche or dhoti, has been created to portray and connect to the city. The logo is accompanied by the tagline “Our Heritage Your Destination‘‘. The logo includes two caparisoned elephants placed alongside the mythical bird “Gandaberunda”.
Tourism stakeholders and senior officials including Zilla Panchayat CEO K.M. Gayathri, and others were present.
