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Bauddha mahotsav takes off... but flounders

Archna Sachdeva in Sarnath

'A sarkari affair'. 'Good idea but bad execution'. 'An attempt to saffronise Buddhism.'

Brickbats. Lots of them. They flew faster than bouquets at the first Bauddha mahotsav , organised with great fanfare at important Buddhist sites of the country.

Touted as a path-breaking programme by the Union tourism ministry to put 'Buddhist circuits' in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar on the world tourism map, the 16-day festival from October 24 to November 8 left many wondering if this mix of religion and tourism would work.

While local Buddhist leaders were sceptical about the effect such extravaganzas would have on the quiet, religious environs of this suburb of Varanasi, and other similar places, travel agents were upbeat about the idea and its potential for changing the face of Indian tourism.

Union Tourism Minister Madan Lal Khurana, credited with pushing through the scheme, was confident that Buddhist sites like Rajgir, Sarnath, Bodhgaya, Kushinagar and Kaushambi could be developed into major attraction spots.

''If the Vatican and Mecca can draw millions of visitors from all over the world every year, why should not we develop our sites and attract tourists from the predominantly Buddhist south-east Asian countries?'' Khurana asked.

Gerard Bogrand, a French tour operator, in Sarnath to film the proceedings, felt that the tourism ministry was on the right track.

''Leave alone the south-east Asian states, even a country like France has some two to three million people involved in Buddhist seeking. A large number of them would be potential visitors to India," the Paris-based operator said.

However, while the tourism ministry's idea was good in principle, its execution was found wanting, Bogrand said. ''Logistics is the main problem here. From food to toilets to communication facilities, not much care seemed to have gone into ground-level preparations. It would be better if the government involves some tourism professionals in such ventures,'' he added.

The officialdom's apathy offended some Buddhist invitees from overseas also. Monks from Myanmar, following the Theravada sect, found that no arrangements had been made for them to have their food before noon, as prescribed by religion.

''There are many followers of the Thervada sect in India also. Thus, the officials should have known about our requirements. But, they seemed to be busier in looking after the various ministers attending the function than the delegates that they had invited,'' said U Maung Shwe, the leader of the Myanmar delegation.

That the criticism of the festival being a largely 'sarkari affair' had struck home was reflected by Uttar Pradesh Tourism Minister Kalraj Mishra, who said efforts would be made from next year to make it a ''public function''.

He said Rs 10 million was spent on developing the Sarnath-Gaya sector for the event this year. The allocation for next year would be increased.

UNI

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