maharashtra caravan tourism policy

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Maharashtra government clears policy to allow caravan tourism, parks

In a boost to tourism in the state, the maharashtra government has cleared the caravan policy, which will allow private players to get the vehicles for tourism and setting up of caravan parks in public and private places.

In a boost to tourism in the state, the Maharashtra government has cleared the caravan policy, which will allow private players to get the vehicles for tourism and setting up of caravan parks in public and private places. The decision was taken in the state cabinet meeting held on Wednesday. Maharashtra is the third state after Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka to get such a policy.

Specially built vehicles (home on wheels) used for the purpose of travel, leisure and accommodation are called caravans. A caravan park is a place where caravans can stay overnight in allocated spaces, providing basic or advanced amenities and facilities to the travellers. According to officials, the policy is expected to help provide an experience other than the traditional stays and family trips at hotels and resorts. It will allow appropriate use of no-development zones, promote tourism in remote areas and also create job opportunities in the state, they said.

Each caravan is expected to have facilities such as beds for stay at night, kitchen, toilet, sofa and table for comfort of the travellers and maintenance of proper hygiene. The state government has allowed use of different sets of caravans – single axle and twin axle caravans, folding caravan, camper trailer – under the policy. One of the essential pre-requisites for caravan tourism is the presence of sufficient caravan parks in the identified circuits.

“The policy is to allow privately owned caravans to be used on trips and encourage them. They will come under the tourism policy and will be eligible for all incentives in stamp duty and registration, electricity duty and Good and Services Tax (GST),” said Valsa Nair Singh, principal secretary, state tourism department.

The concept of caravan tourism has gained popularity across the world owing to the freedom and flexibility it provides while holidaying, along with itineraries and accommodation. It promotes family-oriented tours even in circuits and destinations, which don’t have adequate hotel accommodation. There are many places where the state cannot build any structure as they come under NDZ (no-development zone) or CRZ (coastal regulation zone) laws or near heritage sites or forest. “The areas where construction is not permitted by the law, caravans can be allowed and they can do well in these areas because one can go on a foothill, park the caravan and explore it,” she said.

The state government has also allowed setting up of caravan parks at public and private places by the owner or a developer. “We will be setting up caravan parking bays across the state. Like abroad, 10-15 caravans can be parked at a particular place. The land available from irrigation department, forest department, revenue department or MTDC etc. will be identified and developed as caravan parking bays having all the basic infrastructure water, electricity, security, safety. A memorandum of understanding will be signed with the private tour operator for its use,” the principal secretary said.

The state will also allow developing hybrid parks. It means a private tour operator can tie up with a resort for using its open space as a caravan parking bay. For instance, Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) can tie up with any caravan operator for it, she said.

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Pick from popular cities, maharashtra government passes caravan tourism policy.

The two-part policy comes with benefits like waiver of stamp and electricity duties, and a GST refund.

Published On Feb 19, 2021 06:00:00 AM

68,298 Views

The Maharashtra government Cabinet has passed a new policy that aims to promote tourism in the state. The ‘Caravan Tourism’ policy aims to provide safe travel and incentivise tour operators, while boosting employment opportunities for the tours and travel sector, which has been highly-impacted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Maharashtra’s Caravan Tourism policy meant to boost tours and travel sector
• Policy covers caravans and caravan parks
• Initiative to make remote tourist attractions more accessible

The two-part policy – caravan and caravan parks – will allow tourists to enjoy Maharashtra’s natural beauty and other attractions, and is also said to creating local employment opportunities in the tourism sector. The law identifies a caravan as a specially-built vehicle used for the purpose of travel, leisure and accommodation, while a caravan park is a place where such vehicles can stay overnight and provide amenities and facilities for tourists.

As part of the policy, the government will offer benefits such as a waiver of stamp and electricity duties, and a GST refund for tour operators. The caravans and caravan parks will have to be registered with the tourism directorate, which will train their promoters in marketing, management and hygiene aspects.

The government statement said family picnics can be arranged in places other than hotels and resorts, and no development zones can be utilised better. Furthermore, remote areas with tourist attractions will become more easily accessible.

The caravan parks can be set up in places that are well -equipped with basic amenities like water, road and electricity. Caravans can be parked in these places, which could be private or government-owned land. As part of ensuring maintenance and cleanliness, owners of caravan parks will have to ensure safety and security of travellers and provide them necessary facilities, including the differently-abled. Caravan parks can also come up on the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) guest house areas and open land belonging to the state-run body. The caravans will have beds, kitchens, toilets, sofas and tables and these vehicles in different sizes will be registered with the transport commissioner apart from the tourism directorate.

A registration fee of Rs 5,000 is required and licences for operators can be renewed on payment of Rs 2,000.

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• Maharashtra announces Caravan Tourism policy to boost leisure tours

• Updated On Feb 18, 2021 at 09:43 AM IST

Against the backdrop of COVID-19 and need for safe travel, the Maharashtra Cabinet on Wednesday approved a new ' caravan tourism' policy that seeks to provide incentives to tour operators and at the same time boost employment opportunities in the pandemic-battered sector. The policy, aimed at addressing safety concerns of travel enthusiasts, was cleared at the weekly cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray . The policy has two parts - caravan and caravan parks - allowing tourists to enjoy the state's natural beauty and a range of other attractions, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said. Advt It will also boost employment opportunities in the tourism sector, which has been badly affected by the pandemic, it said. A caravan is a specially-built vehicle used for the purpose of travel, leisure and accommodation . A caravan park is a place where such vehicles can stay overnight and provide amenities and facilities for tourists. Benefits like waiver of stamp and electricity duties, and GST refund will be provided to tour operators under the policy, the statement said. Caravans and caravan parks will have to be registered with the tourism directorate, which will train their promoters in marketing, management and hygiene aspects, it said. The CMO statement said accommodation facilities for tourists and private investment will get a boost under the policy. Family picnics can be arranged in places other than hotels and resorts and no development zones can be utilised better, it said, adding that remote areas with tourist attractions will become easily accessible. Caravan parks can be set up in places which are well equipped with basic amenities like water, road and electricity, the statement said. Caravans can be parked in these places, which can come up on private or government land. Owners of caravan parks will have to ensure safety and security of travellers and provide them necessary facilities, including for the differently-abled, the statement said. Advt Caravan parks can also come up on the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) guest house areas and open land belonging to the state-run body. The statement said caravans will have beds, kitchens, toilets, sofas and tables and these vehicles in different sizes will be registered with the transport commissioner apart from the tourism directorate. Registration fee will be INR 5,000 and licence of operators will be renewed on a payment of INR 2,000, it said. In another decision, the cabinet gave a go-ahead for setting up a skilled university while centres of excellence in all the six revenue divisions of the state. These will function as divisional centres of the university, the statement said. The cabinet also approved the Pimpri-Chinchwad-Nigdi elevated line of the Pune metro project. The existing Pimpri-Chinchwad-Swargate route has been amended for the purpose and the extended line will cost INR 946.73 crore and have three stations, the statement said.

• Published On Feb 18, 2021 at 09:35 AM IST

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Maharashtra cabinet clears Caravan tourism policy

About the Author

Bhavika Jain, senior correspondent with The Times of India. While her primary beat is the BMC, she also keep tab on stories relating to other beats like heritage, environment and health. When she is not scouting for news stories, she usually watch films or try out new places to eat. Read More

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'Maharashtra's caravan policy aims to promote tourism, generate jobs'

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government's 'caravan tourism' policy aims not only to provide a different experience to travel enthusiasts, but also promote tourism in the state's remote areas and create job opportunities, an official has said.

The Maharashtra cabinet on Wednesday approved the caravan tourism policy that seeks to give incentives to tour operators and at the same time boost employment opportunities in the pandemic-battered sector.

Valsa Nair Singh, principal secretary of the state tourism department, said in a statement on Thursday, "The policy is expected to provide a different experience other than the traditional stays to the people who love to travel. It will promote tourism in remote areas and also create job opportunities."

Travel enthusiasts can explore Maharashtra, which has an array of colorful shrines, historic caves, golden beaches lined with swaying palm trees, forests, heritage sites and hill stations, she said.

The caravan policy allows private players to get vehicles for tourism and set up caravan parks at public and private places.

It is an attempt to make the state even more popular in terms of tourism, she said.

A caravan is a specially-built vehicle used for the purpose of travel, leisure and accommodation.

These caravans will be equipped with facilities like beds for stay at night, kitchen, toilet, sofa and table for comfort of the travellers.

A caravan park is a place where such vehicles can stay overnight, where basic or advanced amenities and facilities, such as water refill, battery charging and disposal of sewage, is provided.

These caravan parks will be set up in the buffer zone of a forest, near a dam or the base of a hill fort.

Food courts will be available there and information regarding local sightseeing spots will be provided.

As per the caravan policy, the state government has allowed the use different sets of caravans like single-axle and twin-axle caravans, folding caravan, camper trailer, the statement said.

"We will set up caravan parking bays across the state.

The land available from irrigation, forest or revenue departments or the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) will be identified and developed for this purpose.

These places will have basic facilities like electricity, water, security, safety.

A memorandum of understanding will be signed with private tour operators for its use," she added.

Talking about the initiative, Dhananjay Sawalkar, director of directorate of tourism, said, "The caravan policy will also cater to the seasonal and the festive demands, particularly when there is a Kumbh Mela in Nashik or Pandharpur Yatra (annual pilgrimage), etc.

" There is a lot of demand from travellers for accommodation, especially in small towns.

So this caravan facility will cater to the demand, he added.

"We have allowed setting up caravan parks along the major highways in Maharashtra.

So, for overnight stay also these caravan will be useful," he said.

According to Sawalkar, the transport department has given an incentive on the vehicle taxes, particularly those who are going to invest in caravans.

On the similar line, the tourism department is also giving incentives in the form of state GST, electricity duty, stamp duty, and commercial water charges.

All these benefits will be given to the caravan parks.

Apart from that, the tourism department will facilitate them to purchase land and also provide training and help for the marketing of these caravans, he said.

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