Effectiveness of IGNOU Tourism Education Programmes for Human Resource Development and Sustainable Tourism in Varanasi

The present study is designed to investigate the impact of tourism education on development of human resource for sustainable tourism management in Varanasi region. Development of sustainable tourism refers to a process which meets the needs of present tourists and host communities while protecting and enhancing the needs in the future. Varanasi is the oldest living city and well known as cultural capital of India, located at the bank of holy river Ganga. The religious and spiritual city Banaras is famous for its Ghats and temples and it is also one of the most important pilgrimage centers for Jain, Buddhist and especially Hindus. It is claimed to be one of the ancient cities in India, the archaeological findings date back to 800 B.C. It is observed that approximately two (2) lakh foreign tourists and twenty (20) lakh domestic tourists visit Varanasi every year. As Varanasi has been covered under PRASAD and SWADESH DARSHAN schemes of ministry of tourism, a heavy budget allocation (approx-Rs900 Crore) for sustainable development of tourism has been made by the central government. According to budget statement, the provision of tourism infrastructure relates to the expenditure on creation of infrastructure facilities for Integrated Development of Tourist Circuits around Specific Themes, to beautify and improve the amenities and infrastructure at pilgrimage centres of all faiths (). Hence a lot of Job opportunity for professionals in tourism development will be made available in future.

Present study reveals that working professionals of tourism industry have no time to obtain professional education as their livelihood does not permit them for classroom study though they have showed keen interest to get oriented/trained with professional skill to avail of the opportunity. Hence IGNOU Programmes of tourism studies i.e CTS, DTS, BTS and MTTM were assessed as most promising to them. These programmes not only help them to realize their dreams, but also promote sustainable development of tourism industry in Varanasi.