June 7, Chandigarh:
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday approved organizing a series of cultural fairs across the state to showcase the state's rich culture, art and heritage so as to promote the state as a world-class tourist destination.
The Chief Minister took the decision in this regard while presiding over a meeting of the Tourism Department at his office in the Punjab Civil Secretariat-1 here today.
Meanwhile, participating in the discussion, the Chief Minister said that the aim of this step is to increase the arrival of tourists in the state and establish Punjab as a world-class tourist destination in the coming years. He said that these cultural events will give a big boost to the tourism sector of the state And Punjab will emerge prominently on the world tourism map. Bhagwant Mann said that this step will play an important role in boosting tourist traffic in the state as well as making the young generation aware of the state's rich heritage.
The Chief Minister said that the holy land of Punjab is capable of attracting tourists/pilgrims due to its centuries-old illustrious history and rich cultural heritage. Expressing regret, he said that due to the negligence of the previous state governments, the huge potential of Punjab in the tourism sector has remained untapped. Bhagwant Mann instructed the tourism department to prepare a complete schedule for holding these cultural fairs regularly so that it can emerge as a grand event.
The Chief Minister said that such cultural events should be organized across the state and participation of maximum number of people should be ensured. Bhagwant Mann hoped that this important event would help in attracting tourism on a large scale through responsible maintenance and appropriate development of tourism resources. He said that there is a great potential to develop the state as a world-class tourism destination, for which concrete efforts are being made by the Punjab government.
The Chief Minister said that through these cultural fairs, there will be a boost in utilizing the untapped potential in the tourism sector of the state. He asked the tourism department to prepare a complete blueprint for the organization of these cultural fairs so that the tourism sector can flourish. Bhagwant Mann said that promoting economic activities in the state is the need of the hour. With which change can be brought in people's lives. He instructed the officials to prepare a detailed schedule for conducting such cultural fairs on a large scale so that the glorious heritage of the state can be conveyed to the coming generations.