Source: Thgim.com

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Context

A parliamentary panel has urged the Tourism Ministry to establish SOPs for the timely completion of tourism projects to enhance efficiency and infrastructure development.

PRASHAD Scheme and Spiritual Tourism Circuits

The Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) was launched by the Ministry of Tourism in 2014 to develop and improve pilgrimage sites across India.

Key Objectives:

• Strengthen infrastructure (roads, sanitation, water supply).
• Improve connectivity (road, rail, air).
• Conserve culturally and spiritually significant sites.
• Promote eco-friendly and sustainable tourism.
• Create livelihood opportunities for local communities.

Funding:

• Fully public-funded for eligible components.
• Additional contributions through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Public-Private Partnerships (PPP).

Spiritual Tourism Circuits: Under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme

• Focuses on developing thematic tourism circuits, including Spiritual Circuits to boost religious tourism.
• Out of 23 Spiritual Circuits, five remain incomplete, including two in Kerala.
• Delays are mainly due to lack of clearance from Temple Authorities.

Challenges and Committee Concerns

• Slow progress under both PRASHAD and Swadesh Darshan schemes.
• Only 21 out of 45 PRASHAD projects have been completed, despite the scheme running since 2014-15.
• COVID-19 contributed to delays but the committee noted project mismanagement and lack of prior approvals as key issues.

Recommendations for Improvement

• Develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for timely project completion.
• Obtain prior approvals from temple authorities before initiating work.
• Strengthen the Detailed Project Report (DPR) stage to avoid cost and time overruns.

The Parliamentary Committee’s push for structured SOPs aims to speed up project execution, ensuring that India’s pilgrimage and spiritual tourism sector reaches its full potential.

Sources:

HINDU