TAJ MAHAL TOUR FOR $6

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32016, 17 June 1969, Page 16

TAJ MAHAL TOUR FOR $6

New Zealanders travelling via New Delhi to Britain can see the Taj Mahal as well for only $6, according to the director of the Government of India tourist office in Australia (Mr M. S. Sethi).

This, he says, is the total cost of the 250-mile round trip by bus, a guided visit to the Taj, and a first-class lunch at Agra. Mr Sethi said he became interested in the possibility of more New Zealanders touring India when he realised how many passed through on their way to the United Kingdom. “They are already there, without it costing one cent more in transportation," he said. “And since the devaluation of the rupee about two years ago India offers probably the best bargain in the world tor the tourist’s money.” On an extended tour, the cost would be between $9 and $l2 a day for everything except air fares. This included first-class accommodation — luxury at the $l2 rate—food, airport transfers, tips and guide fees. The guides were all university graduates—the minimum qualification was a degree in history followed by three months special training. For tourists who did not want to spend so much but still seek comfort and good food, there were tourist lodges, with bathrooms attached to each bedroom, for $2 a day. Overland bus travellers could camp in the lodge grounds free of charge. Mr Sethi, who is in Christchurch on his first visit to New Zealand said that last year there was a 32 per cent

increase in travel to India by New Zealanders. “The numbers are not much, but we appreciate the trend,” he said. This is understandable, because tourism is India’s fifthlargest earner of overseas exchange although the country’s balance of trade improved by s2om last year, there was still a deficit.

“Every developing country has a deficit," Mr Sethi said.

“Many people think that India is still Kipling’s India. Twenty-two years ago, when the British left, there was not one major dam in the whole of India.

“Now we have more than 200 hydro-electric stations and hundreds more under construction, and we have the

world’s largest and highest dam.”

Few people realised how rapidly India was advancing, he said. Not only did it have a complex of nuclear power plants, but the latest, at Tarapore, had been completely designed and built in India. The country mined its own uranium and produced its own isotopes for nuclear fuel and for medical and agricultural use. India was self-sufficient In most heavy engineering fields and was now competing with Britain as an exporter of sophisticated machine tools. There were many popular misconceptions about India, he said. One was that it was always hot. But India had a delight-

ful winter, and from October until the end of March the weather was sunny but crisp. In later months, tourists flocked by the thousand to the Himalayas. Last year 105,000 visited Kashmir Valley. Another misconception was that India as a poor country lacked good tourist facilities. But the British had insisted on comfort during their 150 years in India, and these facilities had since been greatly improved. In addition a number of international hotels had been built and others were under construction.

This development had been greatly helped by low-inter-est long-term finance from the India Tourist Development Corporation. The loans were available for building, modernising or furnishing anything which would attract

tourist trade. India was under complete import control, he said. Apart from food, imported only by the Government, no consumer items of any sort could be imported.

“Not one cent’s worth of consumer goods,” he said. “No footwear, no clothing. Not one motor car. Not even any cosmetics.” One consequence of this last ban was that India was not only manufacturing its own cosmetics but had built up a thriving export business from the industry. In view of these exchange difficulties, what chance was there of a reciprocal tourist trade? There was much Indian travel overseas, Mr Sethi replied, but not tourist travel. Indians went on business or to learn from other countries. “There will still be many, more years to wait before Indians can afford to have a jolly good holiday abroad,” he said.