Residents of Purushwadi and Kohane, two non-descript villages, are enjoying the economic benefits of their villages turning into small time tourist destinations.
An innovative mix of countryside hospitality and big city business acumen is rapidly changing lives of locals in two of the state’s villages. Residents of Purushwadi and Kohane, two non-descript villages, are enjoying the economic benefits of their villages turning into small time tourist destinations, and that too without compromising on their bucolic lifestyle.
The two villages host urban travellers wanting to escape from the din and bustle of city life into the tranquility of the peaceful countryside. The village trips - a brainchild of Grassroutes with support from NGO Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR) - are proving to be a win-win bargain for both the hosts and the guests. For the guests, most of who are from cities, the trips provide an opportunity to experience the charm of village life. While for the hosts, it’s about using their innate hospitality for earning extra income.
Post the launch of this village tourism venture, income of 50 households in Purushwadi and Kohane has shown an average rise of 10-30%. And even better, the villagers are earning extra income during the slack, unproductive post-harvest period.
The villagers, who are at centre of the enterprise, have formed a committee to look into the nitty-gritty of the tourism ventures and to manage finances. All the requirements of the guests are looked after by the villagers from the grant available to them. Even though the ventures have been a success, instilling business acumen among the villagers was no easy task. Inir Pinheiro and Abhijeet Kavthekar, founders of Grassroutes, admitted that making the villagers completely independent in order to manage and sustain the tourism ventures was a daunting task.
“The idea was to put the villagers at the centre, to give them the authority to handle situations,” said Pinheiro. Grassroutes provided the initial investment with donor agencies and certain individuals contributing towards the villages.
As for the urbanites who visit the villages, they either put up tents or stay in homes of the villagers. Also, there are clean concrete toilets built for the convenience of the guests. Francis D’Costa, who runs a recruitment consultancy, had gone on one such trip and came back surprised. “I was taken by surprise that there were clean toilets. They were way cleaner than some of the toilets in the city.” D’Costa said.
There are many like Prithviraj Alva, a senior network analyst, who goes on these trips often. Alva has gone thrice to Purushwadi and twice stayed with the same family. “The villagers are so friendly and warm-hearted. Each time the experience was worth another trip,” Alva said.
The villagers even act as tourist guides and take the guests on village tours, which at times also include cultural festivals or fairs in the nearby villages. “The two main sections of people that we focus on are the youth and women. The youth act as tour guides and women as cooks and house keepers,” said Kavthekar.
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