Mokokchung, April 6 (MTNews): Limalenden Longkumer of Mopungchuket village was announced the winner of Indian Responsible Tourism Awards (IRTA) 2022 in the ‘Grassroot Heroes’ category by The Outlook Responsible Tourism Initiative, at the Indian Responsible Tourism Summit and Awards, held at Kannada University, Hampi, Karnataka on April 6.
The IRTA Summit 2021-2022 celebrated the individuals and organizations who are leading the restart of tourism by re-imagining their business, infusing technology and innovation as best practices and weaving it all together under the theme “Reimagining India the Sustainable Way.”
Limalenden was awarded in recognition of his contribution to a ‘plastic-free’ Mopungchuket village and his attempt to make Mopungchuket village, the first zero-waste village in Nagaland. According to the IRTA citation, for two decades, he has been leading on afforestation, river restoration, waste management and responsible tourism without any financial assistance most of the time.
He is leading the Mopungchuket Community Tourism Society (MCTS), a body appointed by the village community to manage Mopungchuket tourism. According to him, although the pandemic hit the village tourism hard, it has only reinforced their belief that responsible tourism can augment sustainable development and they are now reorienting themselves to embrace the post-pandemic era sustainably through responsible tourism.
The Indian Responsible Tourism Awards (IRTA) have recognized and applauded champions of ethical travel across the country since 2016. The goal is to inspire and motivate the local fraternity, highlight replicable responsible tourism models, and spread the word through digital, social and print platforms.
Anand Singh, Minister of Tourism, Ecology & Environment, Karnataka, graced the 7th edition of Outlook’s Indian Responsible Tourism Summit & Awards 2022 on April 6 at Hampi, Karnataka.
The awards were given away in six categories, including Sustainable Leadership Homestays, Sustainable Leadership Hotels, Sustainable Leadership Travel Enterprises, Sustainable Leadership Conservation, Pathfinders and Grassroot Heroes.
“The Outlook Responsible Tourism Initiative is a rally to protect and preserve India’s heritage, be it a monument or an art form, an endangered bird or a musical tradition, out in the countryside or in one’s own backyard”.