Outlook Hosts The Very First Indian Responsible Tourism State Awards Rajasthan 2022

As the Sun shone brightly over the Rajasthani capital on the&nbsp14th of December, the Outlook team geared up to host the very first Indian Responsible Tourism State Awards along with the Rajasthan Government as part of the Outlook Responsible Tourism Initiative with Clarks Amer, Jaipur as the hospitality partner. Over the last 7 years, the Outlook Group has been hosting India's only Responsible Tourism Awards, the Indian Responsible Tourism Awards (IRTA) to recognise and celebrate best practices that transform destinations and positively impact local communities. And these State Awards are a step towards taking the same intent of furthering the message of sustainability to every nook and corner of the country.

The question for the day was - How do we make the Rajasthan Experience a genuinely responsible and sustainable one And as the Summit started after the Welcome Address by Soity Banerjee, Project Editor, Responsible Tourism, experts in their fields across Environment, Wildlife and Culture came together to share their journeys with making tourism sustainable in their own capacities. Sharing about &ldquoCreating Tangible Value for Intangible Cultural Assets&rdquo, the Summit had Amitava Bhattacharya, Founder-Director of BanglaNatak.com and Gopal Singh Chauhan, Founder of Rajasthan Kabir Yatra. Speaking on, &ldquoSetting Milestones for Built-Heritage Conservation&rdquo, the Summit heard Harsh Vardhan, Principal at Studio Lotus and Divyarishi Ranawat, Proprietor of Kankarwa Haveli. Ideating on &ldquoLong-Term Strategies for working with and in nature&rdquo, the Summit welcomed Dinesh Durrani, Founder-Secretary of Sariska Tiger Foundation and Ravindra Singh Chouhan, owner of Jagnath Wildlife Safari.

The Summit was followed by a lunch break which featured local specialties like Gatte ki Sabzi, Dal Baati Churma and Lal Maas. The break was also used as a platform to bring in local artisans who were encouraged to showcase their crafts like puppetry, lac bangle making, bandhani, hand made paper etc.

The second half of the day was kickstarted by a mesmerising musical performance by the Mirs, a community with a celebrated folk music history from the Bikaner region of Rajasthan.The performance was followed by special notes by Apurv Kumar, owner of the Clark Group of Hotels, who shared sustainable practices followed across the hotel chain and Anil Oraw, Regional Director (North), Ministry of Tourism, who shared how individual contribution is essential for the success of sustainability in any industry. After this, Indranil Roy, CEO of Outlook Group, spoke about the Outlook Group&rsquos commitment towards sustainable and responsible tourism and officially unveiled the Awards along with the other dignitaries. Then the event was graced by the presence and Keynote Address by Gayatri Rathore, Principal Secretary, Rajasthan Tourism, who encouraged involving the local communities and ensuring that they are active stakeholders in tourism. She laid emphasis on making tourism beneficial for the people at the grassroots level. The Principal Secretary's speech was followed by a Special Address by Dr. Rashmi Sharma, Director, Rajasthan Tourism, who shared how we can contribute to the local economy and the measures taken by the Rajasthan Government to actively implement, measure and monitor responsible practices and urged both private and public stakeholders to come together to sensitize travellers.

The much-awaited awards, celebrating pathbreakers and leaders, were announced and awarded across seven categories, Sustainable Leadership Homestays, Sustainable Leadership Hotels, Sustainable Enterprises in Eco-Fragile Landscapes Travel Operators, Heritage Conservation, Wildlife Conservation, Sustainability Champions Pathfinders and Sustainability Champions Grassroots Heroes. The jury for the Awards included Ananda Banerjee, Author, & Director & Chief of Communications & Campaigns, Wildlife Trust of India, Dharmendar Kanwar, Travel Writer, Environmentalist & Heritage Conversationist, Jose Ramapuram, Executive Director, Evolve Back Luxury Resorts, Raj Basu, Founder, Help Tourism, & Advisor, Rural Tourism & Homestays to several Indian States, Bhutan, Myanmar & Nepal and Vishwas Makhija, Founder, India Insight Tours, & Member, Executive Committee, ATOAI. The day ended with a note of gratitude by Shrutika Dewan, Director, Brand & Marketing, Outlook Group.

The Outlook Group intends to keep fighting the good fight for sustainability and build more awareness around responsible tourism by collaborating with other State Governments in educating, recognising and rewarding efforts in their own States.

Award List -

Overall Winner Kankarwa Haveli

Sustainable Leadership Homestays

Gold -&nbspRaptor&rsquos Inn

Silver -&nbspRawla Bisalpur

Special Mention -&nbspCountry Retreat

Sustainable Leadership Hotels

Gold -&nbspTaj Aravali

Special Mention -&nbspAman-i-Khas

Sustainable Enterprises in Eco-Fragile Landscapes Travel Operators

Gold -&nbspVedic Walks

Silver -&nbspVirasat Experiences

Heritage Conservation

Gold -&nbspKankarwa Haveli

Silver -&nbspIndra Vilas

Special Mention - Ram Krishna Mission

Wildlife Conservation

Silver -&nbspJagnath Wildlife Safari

Sustainability Champions Pathfinders

Gold -&nbspManvendra Singh Shekhawat

Silver -&nbspSanjay Kaushik

Special Mention -&nbspDaulat Singh Shaktawat

Sustainability Champions Grassroots Heroes

Silver -&nbspAnirudh Shukla

Silver -&nbspDr. Rao Ajit Singh

Special Mention -&nbspBrigadier Nandlal Verma