Shillong, Aug 1: Following the aftermath of the Umtyngar incident near Sohra last week, where hundreds of Assam registered vehicles were illegally stopped for hours and sent back by local pressure group(s), the local tourist operators have ringed alarm bells after thousands of tourists began to cancel their booking in Shillong and elsewhere in Khasi-Jaintia Hills, putting of livelihoods of thousands at risk.

A delegation of the Meghalaya tour operators rushed to meet the Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma and Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh on Thursday to address the crisis stemming out of the incident, which has gone viral on social media, creating a domino effect.

While the cancellations were expected for few days after the incident, the situation has turned alarming as the cancellations are happening for all the way up to September and October.

President of Tourism Operators Association of Meghalaya, Banlum Blah, and the President of Meghalaya Rural Tourism Forum (MRTF), Allan West, said this incident has resulted in a 30% drop in accommodation bookings and has negatively affected the revenue of related businesses. The forum expressed concerns about increased cancellations as news of the incident spreads nationwide. The stakeholders condemned the actions of the pressure group(s) involved and called on the government to ensure law and order across the state to protect tourism.

Mentionably, on July 26, 2024, Hynniewtrep National Youth Federation (HNYF), a pressure group, barred tourist taxis and private vehicles with Assam registration from proceeding towards popular tourist destinations such as Sohra and Dawki at Umtyngar, demanding an influx checking mechanism as well as using only local taxis to ferry passengers to local tourist spots.

Following the incident, 30% accommodation cancellations was recorded the same day and 50% for next day.

“In the age of social media, a stray incident can impact us negatively. A small incident in Shillong can create fear throughout the country. From the tourism sector, we are concerned because we have invested a lot, not only money but time also for the last 10 years, we have slogged. Whatever we have done in last 10 years, cannot be taken down in just 1-2 days. We are concerned about these stray incidents that create a sense of fear in travellers,” West said while reflecting on the drastic effects of the incident.

Echoing similar sentiments, Blah said short term measures need to be taken since the whole country and abroad are aware that tourists here were harassed on 26th of July.

“So, many of them have started questioning us weather it is safe to come to Meghalaya. The peak tourist season is coming in the next two months, so some of them have started cancelling their bookings and some of them have started thinking of other destinations. Now what we have to do is, as a face saving for our state, we will have to create such an awareness that Meghalaya is a safe destination. So we have requested the govt to give enough publicity and awareness to the rest of the nation that Meghalaya is a safe destination and there is nothing to worry and they can start their bookings,” he said.

He further emphasised on the competition in the tourism sector and how other states have been promoting their tourism. “We should be aware that not just Meghalaya but other states are also equally putting efforts to market their destinations. So, we have a situation where we have to compete with other destinations in the country,” he said.

“We have told the government to ensure that such incidents should never occur again,” he added.

Meanwhile, to boost the tourism sector and make the tourists feel safe, they have suggested several measures to the government to implement. They are:

–              Establish a police outpost in Umtyngar and deploy mobile tourist police along key routes to ensure traveller safety.

–              Improve air connectivity by introducing midsize aircraft to connect Shillong Airport with major Indian cities and increase daily flights, including Sundays, to support onward travel.

–              Implement a shuttle bus service from Shillong Airport to Shillong City and Sohra.

The stakeholders emphasized the need for these actions to prevent future disruptions and support the tourism sector ahead of the upcoming festival season. They urged the government to respond swiftly and positively to their concerns.

Read: Mynriah VHC carry elderly woman on foot for over 2 hours for medical aid in remote Meghalaya

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