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Durga Puja – Bengal’s annual cultural extravaganza - is likely to be used as a platform to woo foreign tourists.
West Bengal government is mulling over promoting the revelries of Durga Puja - like showcasing of fresh fashion on the streets, pandal hopping, revisiting the rich cultural legacy of the Pujas of Zamindar families - among the global tourists.
Once a religious festival, Durga Puja or Puja turned into a cultural extravaganza over the last few decades. While it has been adopted by other ethnicities crossing barriers, the five-day festival has slowly attracted patronage from fraternities such as celebrities, corporate houses beyond its religious identity.
Taking a cue from the Rio Carnival, fetching million visitors to Brazil, the state government is now planning to market the five-day Puja to overseas markets.
“We are actively considering the plan to start a carnival in Kolkata during the Durga Puja days. We should be ready with a detailed plan by May,” Vikram Sen, Principal Secretary to State Tourism Department, told Business Line.
In a recent buyer-seller meet to promote east as a destination organised by CII, this idea was discussed with more than 70 global participants comprising tour operators and travel writers.
Merchandise
According to Manab Pal, Chairman, Tourism Sub-Committee, CII Eastern Region, discussions are on between the state Tourism Department and CII for selling T-shirts printed with images of goddess Durga, miniature of Durga idol and other artefacts related to the festival.
“We have also suggested the tour operators to allow a tourist to mingle with local people on the streets and let the person become a permanent tourist to Kolkata,” Pal said.
If Kolkata gets at least 10,000-20,000 foreign tourists in the first year, the city can prepare itself for a bigger number of foreign tourists and create infrastructure accordingly, he pointed out.
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