TerraCurve.com: Go beyond green. | Responsible travel news, places, people and events.

Now Trending:

Kerala Tourism Watch: Close down golf course in India

  • Share
  • Share in Google Buzz
  • Share this

Golf courses in Kerala, India are being increasingly brought in to focus due to the environmental and social problems that they engender.

feature photo

Kerala Tourism Watch, a coalition of civil society activists and local communities, along with Equations and Kabani – the other direction, have urged the Kerala government to close the Trivandrum golf club and abandon its golf course. The coalition believes that the environmental and social impacts warrant a more fundamental approach of dissolution rather than changing the ownership from private to public.

The golf courses are being increasingly brought in to focus due to the environmental and social problems that they engender. Everywhere in the world, golf courses have been a major threat for local communities primarily in terms of uncontrolled ground water depletion. Trivandrum golf course for example has been reportedly consuming lakhs of liters of water every day to maintain the grass turf. Conservative estimates by various international agencies show that an 18-hole golf course would consume 50 lakh liters of water a day, enough for nearly 10,000 families in a state like Kerala. We must remember that the water consumption by the Coca cola plant at Plachimada had been 5 lakh liters a day. It is hardly surprising that the arrears towards water charges of Trivandrum Golf Club ran in to several lakhs of rupees. At a time when the common people in the city face acute water shortage, maintaining a golf course with direct and indirect state subsidies violate principles of social justice.

The argument that the golf courses would promote tourism in the state is completely unfounded, accordling to the coalition. Studies have shown that tourists visiting destinations in developing countries, including India, belong to the low spending segment of international travelers, and that it is unlikely that they will be interested in golf. Alternatively, they feel that golf courses will not be an adequate incentive for high spending travelers to visit destinations in poor countries, and that allowing golf courses to flourish disregarding their environmental and social impacts will only serve the interest of the local elites.

The coalition demands that government should take back this valuable property and sees this opportunity to convert it into a bio diversity park. The coalition strongly condemns the attempt by club authorities to use the tourism façade to legitimise their elitist biases and vested interests.

Even further, the coalition is demanding that existing courses in Trivandrum and Kochi be immediately closed down, as well as shelving the proposed one in Nedumbassery, noting that the Nedumbassery project involves land acquired by evicting local people in the name of Nedumbassery International Airport. Tourism department and government of Kerala should pay attention to the concerns raised by national and international movements which oppose golf courses on environmental and social grounds.

For more information, visit www.keralatourismwatch.org.

  • Share
  • Share in Google Buzz
  • Share this

Tagged as:

, , , , , , ,

Buzzing on Google @TerraCurve Buzz

loading..
blog comments powered by Disqus

Subscribe Destinations and Tourism

Latest Headline

Eco tours in Yellowstone and Australia help raise environmental awareness America’s Schools Program and Sustainable Travel International have partnered to offer eco-friendly trips to raise awareness within the travel industry for local economic development and the natural and socio-cultural environments. Full story

Subscribe Airlines and Transportation

Latest Headline

Powwownow vs. The Airlines Business travel can wreak havoc on the environment and corporate social responsibility – not to mention corporate budgets. One UK conferencing company aggressively answers criticism ofbusiness travel alternatives. Let the fight begin! Full story

Subscribe Awards and Events

Latest Headline

New York welcomes the return of Go Green Expo The premiere event for eco-friendly products and services kicks off its NYC run for 2010 on March 19-21 – a place for business leaders, eco-minded consumers and their families to explore the latest in every aspect of green living and sustainable business practices. Full story

Subscribe Society and Lifestyle

Latest Headline

Disney inspires 1 million volunteers Disney Parks’ “Give a Day, Get a Disney Day” campaign has officially reached the ambitious goal of 1 Million People Inspired to Volunteer in 2010. Full story

Subscribe Business and Politics

Latest Headline

Bridging the environmental gap: Abu Dhabi sets its ‘Eye on Earth’ Building on recent successes, popular tourism destination Abu Dhabi is calling for an ‘Eye on Earth’ Global Summit to address an array of global environmental issues. Full story
Brighter Planet Eco Green Hotel Go Green Expo NaturCert