The Chittorgarh district in Rajasthan, which has one of the largest forts in India, is back to revamping its tourism sector once again. The district administration plans to introduce night tourism for the first time ever, a brainchild of District Collector Tarachand Meena. To promote night tourism, the main focus of the administration will be to make people visit the Chittorgarh Fort at night and engage them in exciting activities, said the officer, while speaking to Indian Masterminds.
ATTRACTING TOURISTS IN INNOVATIVE WAYS
After two waves of Covid 19 in the country, people are now trying to recover from the devastation and bring back some semblance of normalcy in their lives. And going out for leisure activities is a great way to unwind. This is exactly the idea behind the latest initiative of the district administration of Chittorgarh. To ask tourists to come and spend some enjoyable time in places steeped in history. The introduction of night tourism will add fillip to these efforts. Mr. Tarachand Meena said, “We are looking at tourists to come and stay in our district for a couple of days to explore the area and enjoy the historical spots. These efforts are being made to provide them with all the required facilities and activities.”
To allow tourists to visit the UNESCO recognized World Heritage Site, Chittorgarh Fort, at night, a strong security system is required to carry out the process smoothly. As the fort is surrounded by a 14-kilometer security wall, more security personnel are required to patrol the periphery. However, there is a shortage of enough security personnel in the tourism department and the District Collector has assured to bail them out. Mr. Meena said that more security personnel will be appointed with the help of CSR and Rajasthan Ex-Servicemen Cooperative Limited (Rexco).
NIGHT TOURISM TO START IN CHITTORGARH
To provide foolproof security to tourists at the Chittorgarh Fort at night, the district collector has written to Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for the installation of 50 CCTV cameras in the fort premises. Apart from this, he said, “Lighting work will be done at the fort along with starting a restaurant facility.”
This ongoing tourism work is not limited to the Chittorgarh Fort alone. The district administration wants to engage tourists in adventure sports and entertainment activities as well. Boating is being introduced inside the Bassi Wildlife Sanctuary while zipline is going to start at the hills near Chittorgarh. A musical fountain is being installed in the Gambhiri river culvert and golf cars will be operated in the fort premises so that tourists do not face any problem in commuting. New mobile towers are also being installed for good mobile connectivity. Revamping of another historical structure, the Mohar Magri, is also going on. Mohar Magri is a small structure near the fort that was raised during the invasion of Chittorgarh by Mughal Emperor Akbar in 1567.
FLOW OF TOURISTS WILL CREATE EMPLOYMENT
With the administration focusing on getting more tourists to the area, Mr. Meena thinks that it would “directly impact the increase of business and employment, and people who are in transportation, hotels and restaurants businesses will be benefitted.” However, the officer was quick to add that he wants people to visit Chittorgarh not only for the famous fort, but also for other equally important and beautiful tourism spots.
