Four reasons that scripted a success story.

Express News Service
First Published : 18 Jun 2009 08:20:49 AM IST


THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Here are four reasons, picked by former Tourism Secretary Amitabh Kant, that has made Kerala Tourism a success story. The vision of CPI ministers, the entrepreneurial spirit of Keralites, the presence of three airports and the long periods of service offered to civil servants in the Tourism Department.

Amitabh Kant, currently Principal Secretary and Special Commissioner in charge of Kerala in Delhi, was interacting with the media on Wednesday as part of the promotion of his book `Branding India: An Incredible Story’, his debut as an author.

`I have not worked with P S Sreenivasan when he was the Tourism Minister. But my predecessors speak very high of him. I have worked with E Chandrasekharan Nair and have found him to be a visionary. Both these ministers were clear about what they wanted and let their officials do their job,’’ Amitabh Kant said. Both these CPI ministers also gave civil servants extended terms in the Tourism Department. ``My predecessors K Jayakumar and T Balakrishnan, then myself and now Venu have got long periods in the Department. In other states, say Uttar Pradesh or Gujarat, a civil servant gets on an average three months in a particular post,’’ Kant said.

The presence of three airports was the other big boon for the state.

`There was the Thiruvanathapuram airport. Then, thanks to the initiative of V J Kurien, the airport at Kochi happened. And when I was Kozhikode Collector, Karipur airport was opened,’’ the bureaucrat said.
But it was the ``entrepreneurial spirit’’ of the Keralites that came in for the highest praise from the Kerala cadre officer who hails from Uttar Pradesh. He even attributed the success of the `God’s Own Country’ slogan to this spirit.

`You cannot call Kerala the God’s own country and then offer an experience worthy of hell. It was a set of daring and innovative entrepreneurs who bridged the gap between the `God’s Own Country’ myth and the situation on the ground. The slogan could not have passed the test of time had it not been for them,’’ Amitabh Kant said. Kant was referring to people who were smart enough to spot an opportunity and set up tree houses, houseboats and budget hotels.

He profiles some of these people in his book `Branding India: An Incredible Story’. `This flavour of entrepreneurship is not something I have seen anywhere else in the country,’’ added Kant, who was also Joint Director in charge of India Tourism.

According to Amitabh Kant, tourism brought Kerala back to its roots.