India must promote itself better, says civil servant turned U.K.-based tour operator

Former Kerala IAS officer turned U.K. tour operator discusses the need for better marketing of India's heritage destinations.

Inadequate marketing is the main reason for the relatively low foreign-tourist arrivals in India, despite the country having a diverse and vast array of heritage and other destinations. An apt example is the array of heritage monuments in the Muziris region at Kodungalloor in Kerala, which deserve better promotion, says Harjinder Singh, a Kerala cadre IAS officer who quit civil service over two decades ago, and is now a U.K.-based tour operator who organises tours to India.

Among the tenures, Mr. Singh held, he was the MD of KSIDC. “Muziris is one of India’s most important culturally rich heritage locales, which has among others the first mosque in India, apart from churches and synagogues. Yet another hidden gem is Kozhikode, which has a rich history and architecture but needs better promotion by the State and the Centre,” Mr. Singh said.

This shows the need for India to market itself better, failing which the country would end up with many negatives being highlighted in the West, he added. High Commissioners need not be effective in this count, and tourism officials must consult tour operators in foreign countries, before taking decisions. However, in the U.K., a large number of people ask about Kerala and it has over the years become a destination in itself, he said, while on a visit to Kochi to attend the recently concluded Kerala Travel Mart 2024.

He is however annoyed at mass tourism gaining prevalence in many destinations, including in Kerala, since it ‘messes up’ a place. “This is particularly true of Kerala which has become very popular among domestic who come in hordes. The focus must be on quality service and infra at destinations, rather than on being number one in tourist arrivals. Kerala is fortunate to have people work with total dedication in the tourism sector and no wonder that it has become one of the finest and most inclusive hospitality locales in India,” Mr. Singh said while cautioning against the obsession with more tourism products rather than improving the existing ones.

A native of Punjab, he is the Founder and MD of the U.K.-based tour company TransIndus India. Mr. Singh went back in time and said tourism in Kerala took off in a big way in 1999-2000, when one of the chartered tour operators that hitherto brought tourists to Goa, chose to focus on Kerala instead. Kerala Tourism grabbed the opportunity and began promoting the State where foreign tourists were confined mostly to Kovalam, Fort Kochi, Munnar and the Periyar. Soon after, the houseboat sector picked pace and is now a crowd puller.

Elaborating on his tourism journey, he spoke of how he shifted to the UK after taking study leave from the IAS and availed an education loan to pursue an MBA, during which time he did a project on the U.K.’s tourism market. It took five years to establish a travel business in his wife’s name. Being the son of an army officer, I knew much of India well, and my MBA project helped me get to know better of the UK tourism market. “I quit civil service six months before I attained pensionable age and returned to the U.K., on knowing that business was far more meaningful, especially since I felt there was an ‘element of pretence and politics’ in the civil service.”