Chandigarh, June 5
On the occasion of World Environment Day, the Chandigarh Tourism in association with EonEcon Foundation conducted a conference-cum-interactive session on responsible tourism here today.
The objective of the conference was to promote consciousness about social, economic and environmental responsibility of tourism and hotel industry and how it could be cost-effective.
Chandigarh Tourism has adopted responsible tourism as a policy and the motive of this event was to impart information and guidelines to the key members, the hotel industry and the tour operators, who have a big role in taking forward this policy.
Director, Tourism, Vivek Atray, in his introductory address highlighted the need for interaction in tourism industry to realise their responsibility towards environment. He said the tourism industry was the most visible and most employment- generating industry in the world. "Thus, industry should think upon what it can do towards protecting the environment," he added.
Manmohan Singh, president of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Chandigarh, said tourism played a vital role in society and was the reflection of the culture and the people living there. "The hotel industry is contributing a lot towards the protection of environment, but there is much more to do in the way of reduction in water consumption and saving energy," he added.
Harveen Kour, project manager, EonEcon Foundation, gave a presentation on "Earth dead or alive--it’s up to you". She explained the current situation of environment in which people were living and also the impact of this current situation. She also discussed the factors that posed a threat to environment.