SOHRA, Dec 9 (IANS): Cherrapunjee, a hamlet in Meghalaya popular among tourists as the place with the maximum rainfall in the country, will be promoted as a brand to boost tourism in the northeast, according to Chief Minister Mukul Sangma.
"During my tour of Europe last year, we were asked where we were from. When we said we are from Meghalaya in India, people did not recognise the name. But when we mentioned that we are from the state of Cherrapunjee, people instantly recognised the name," Sangma said Wednesday.
Addressing the inaugural ceremony of the Dec 8-11 Cherrapunjee Indigenous Festival 2010, he said tourism was the best sustainable avenue for economic uplift in the state.
"Selling Cherrapunjee (as a tourist destination) alone will not be enough. We need to integrate the northeast as a composite destination and work with other states," he said.
He said development of tourism in Meghalaya needed the direct participation of the people, especially the youths.
He said that the state's tourism ministry already has a policy of giving financial assistance to people who wished to develop tourism infrastructure, and more such benefits would be announced through the new policy.
