Assam Tourism In Pact With IHCL To Set Up Hotel At Manas National Park

GUWAHATI: Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC) and Indian Hotel Company Limited (IHCL) inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Monday for setting-up hospitality projects at Manas National Park.

According to the MoU, IHCL's Taj Group will construct its Ginger brand hotel in Manas National Park, a UNESCO natural World Heritage Site.

The MoU was signed at Janata Bhawan in the presence of Tourism Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah, Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) chief Pramod Bodo and IHCL officials.

After signing the MoU, Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah said, "Earlier people feared to go to Manas but now the tourist flow has increased. Pramod Bodo has done a lot of hard work. We have succeeded in transforming terrorism to tourism. Today we have planned to construct a hotel by making an agreement with the Tata Group. We have also tried to improve the infrastructure so that more tourists could be attracted towards Manas."

He further stated that the hotel, under Taj Group's Ginger brand, will be constructed in an area of 3.25 acres of land.

The hotel will be of 70-80 rooms, Baruah informed. This hotel is expected to increase numbers of both domestic and foreign tourists.

The Indian Hotels Company Limited is an Indian hospitality company that manages a portfolio of hotels, resorts, jungle safaris, palaces, spas and in-flight catering services. The company is part of India's Tata Group.

Wildlife species like tigers in the over 900 sq. km Manas National Park once faced the threat of being wiped out, with insurgent groups using the jungles as their hideouts or as a transit to their camps in neighbouring Bhutan. Continuous felling of trees and destruction of forests also added to the loss of biodiversity and even conservation projects could not be implemented by the government agencies as well as the NGOs due to fear of militants.

With all insurgent groups in the Bodoland region now giving up arms and conservation efforts stepped up in the past few years, wildlife species are making a comeback and so have the tourists and wildlife enthusiasts.

A recent estimation in Manas found 3,220 Hog deer, 1,656 wild buffalos, 1,174 Indian bison, 804 Sambar deer, and 2,613 elephants. The survey also found 48 one-horned rhinos in the national park, which were introduced through translocation, mainly from Kaziranga National Park and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary.

Also read: Assam Teacher Meenakshi Goswami Conferred With National Awards To Teachers 2022

Also watch: