Janakpur visitors cannot get local guides

By Vijay Kumar Sah,Dhalkebar, Jan. 24: Janakpur is a city that needs no introduction. The birthplace of Goddess Sita, the spiritual centre of the ancient Mithilanchal, a pilgrimage site for millions of Hindus of the world and the capital of the present Madhes Province of Nepal, Janakpurdham attracts thousands of tourists every year. Yet, there are less than a handful of registered tour guides in the entire sub-metropolitan city.

According to a report published by the Janakpurdham branch of the Nepal Rastra Bank, more than 20,000 international tourists visited the city in the first six months of the current fiscal year. Of them, 90.69 per cent were from India, 1.83 from China and 7.48 per cent were from other countries. But most of them probably only visited the famous Ram Janaki Temple and left because they did not have proper guides showing them around, assumed local Balram Sah.

“In fact, they probably did not have any guides unless they brought one with themselves from outside the city,” he said. “The city lacks local tourist chaperons.”

As a result, sites like the Ram Temple, Ram and Sita’s wedding altar, Bhootnath Temple and numerous other temples, ponds and places of religious and cultural significance go unnoticed.

Former tour guide and an English language teacher Sudarshan Lal Karn worried that many visitors were being shown around by taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers, which could lead to them getting inaccurate information about the city’s heritage and developing a false perception of its culture.

“This is unfortunate,” he said. “They do not know how to cater to foreign tourists and properly promote the city and the country.”

There are more than two dozen tour companies currently in operation in Janakpur. However, only a few offer guided tours. “This is because we are not able to find professional guides,” Ritesh Sah, manager of the Swen Tours and Travels Company explained. “There are maybe only four guides in the sub-metropolitan city. This is not enough to cater to the increasing number of tourists coming here year after year.”

In light of this situation, Nepal Academy of Tourism and Hotel Management (NATHM) has decided to conduct tour guide training in Bardibas, Mahottari. Shivendra Mallik, chief instructor at NATHM, informed that the training aimed to produce local guides who are able to take tourists around the city and disseminate accurate information about the important places.

Mallik also said that the training would teach participants English and other international languages. “Communicating with tourists in their languages will help develop tourism in the whole of Madhes province,” he shared.

Hira Gautam, chairman of the Madhes branch of the Nepal Hotel and Tourism Entrepreneurs Association, said that they were working to identify and promote the tourism destinations of Janakpur. “Tourist guides have an important role to play in this so we welcome any training programmes,” he said.