The Tourism Professionals Club, representing the tour operators of Kerala, has urged Kerala and Tamil Nadu Governments to take urgent steps to facilitate the smooth movement of tourists, as tourist movement between the two States has come to a halt in connection with the issues related to Mullaperiyar controversy.
Mr George Scaria, President, Tourism Professionals Club said the situation would create irreparable damages to Kerala Tourism in the coming years, as the Mullaperiyar issue has stopped almost all tourism entries from Tamil Nadu to Kerala and vice-versa during this peak season.
At present, operators are not in a position to operate tours. To worsen the situation, border check posts have stopped issuing permits to Tamil Nadu and and vice-versa. These actions will not do any good to tourism and will result in losing one season. Once the news reaches reached European markets, it will affect next year's bookings also. The entire industry is dependant on the tourism season and things will go beyond our planning, if the situation persists, he said.
He pointed out the vehicles from Tamil Nadu operators are not able to enter Kumily and or the State vehicles cannot cross Tamil Nadu. Tourists have to depend on local trucks to reach the border. It is advisable for both States to launch Tourist Police Help Desk in the border to help tourists cross the borders .
The association also requested the authorities to reinstate the issue of inter-State permits and resume the tours between the two States .