BGSBU organises two day National Workshop
Rajouri: Centre for Hospitality and Tourism, School of Management Studies at the Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University, Rajouri organised a two-day national workshop on the theme of ‘Practicing Responsible Tourism’.
The workshop, supported by World Wide Fund for Nature, India and Department of Wildlife Protection, Government of Jammu and Kashmir, was aimed at bringing together different stakeholders of tourism sector to create awareness and train them on aspects of sustainable tourism including natural resource management, biodiversity conservation and best practices in tourism.
Speaking on the occasion, Vice Chancellor BGBSU, Prof Javed Musarrat said that the varsity was an apt location for deliberations on eco-tourism.
Prof Musarrat emphasized upon the role of practicing green washing in protecting eco-tourism. He explained that as decomposition of plastic is not easy, its rapid accumulation especially that of layered plastic, must be a serious concern for all of us.
Prof Musarrat said that BGSBU had adopted a resolution of a ‘clean campus, green campuses.
He said that the university was committed to work for the conservation of the biodiversity of the Himalayas.
Chief Guest on the occasion, Talat Parvez Rohella, Secretary higher Education, spoke about the sanctity of the places across the Himalayan region and argued that it was a treasure for the people of J&K.
Parvez informed that there was a variety of places including glaciers, lakes, among others in a small chunk of land in the Pir Panjal region, suggesting that there is a treasure of tourism in the region.
He emphasised the need for running awareness programmes among children regarding the eco-system and dependence of human survival on the natural environment.
Earlier, Prof Iqbal Parwez, Dean Academic Affairs presented the welcome address. Prof Parwez expressed his gratitude to the dignitaries for visiting the university campus and gracing the workshop with their presence despite being engaged in very busy schedules.
He stated that BGSBU had grown rapidly over the last several years, and spoke about the recent achievements and the on-going works in the campus.
Prof Rehmani, in his remarks, said that Himalayas were central to the scenic beauty of the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
He said reserving them was vital for the sustainable development of the state.
Prof Sandeep Kulshrestha , Director IITM emphasized the need for region-specific strategy for ensuring responsible tourism.
Dean School of Management Studies, Prof Naseem Ahmed presented the opening remarks and set the agenda for the workshop.
Highlighting the importance of Himalayas for the world population, Dr Pankaj Chandan claimed that 29 per cent of the whole world depends on waters coming from Himalayas.
He said there was a need of debate as to how to save Himalayas from degradation. Dr Pankaj highlighted the role of local community and academic debates in preserving Himalyas and expressed happiness over initiatives taken by the BGSBU in this regard.
Registrar BGSBU, Dr Ashfaq Ahmed Zarri, presented the vote of thanks. He expressed his guests gratitude towards the guests for participating in the national workshop.
Prominent among those who participated in the workshop included , Seema Bhat, Vice President Ecotourism Society of India, Prof Sheeba Hamid, Prof Nimit Chowdhary, Hamid Shah, Director Industries and Commerce Kashmir, Ahtasham Imtiaz, Vaibhav Sharma, Qaiser Qaunian.
The opening day of the workshop was attended by academicians, researchers, environmentalists, tour operators, hoteliers and other service providers, government officials from the departments of Tourism and Wildlife, students and research scholars.
On the occasion, BGSBU signed two MoUs –one each with IITM and WWF-India.
Dr Insha Amin conducted the proceedings of the event.
KV News
