Vrindavan, 2016.02.17 (VT): A few days ago, Amar Ujala reported that a record number of pilgrims had visited Mathura district during 2015. Representatives of the Mathura Chamber of Commerce and business community reported that each visitor spent an average of 200 Rs. on all kinds of expenses when here, contributing 6.5 billion Rs (approx. $100 million) to the local economy.
The report did not distinguish between different kinds of visitors or their provenance. Estimates of the number of foreign visitors run from 30 to 60 thousand.
Though the business representatives were exultant about the growth in the tourism business, 200 Rs seems like a very low estimate of expenditures. They also said that the average visitor only spends one day in the Dham. No doubt they have their sources, and one day visitors from Delhi and the zone in which day-trips are possible is no doubt the cause for this.
Spending on hotels, restaurants, transportation, deity articles and other specialties of the Dham are the main expenditures they named. Too many questions arise. Is money coming to ashrams in donations and so forth included in this calculation?
For example, Devakinandan Thakur’s huge program on the Bhaktivedanta Road must have cost millions of dollars, and a great part of that went to local businesses, including Devakinandan’s own profit for his mission. Even if only 100,000 people came (half the estimate given by the festival organizers), 200 Rs of economic fallout per person seems very low indeed.
Nevertheless, Mathura’s business community is in a festive mood with the approach of Holi as all kinds of tourism seems to be on the increase.
I spoke with an Argentinian couple who were strolling on the Parikrama Marg with their young son, and asked them how they liked Vrindavan. They were exultant. The mother, Krishna Shakti Dasi, who is affiliated with ISKCON, said that this was her sixth visit to Vrindavan, and she has been here for two months. Her only doubt is that the urbanization of Vrindavan is proceeding too quickly and she is afraid that its spiritual charm is in danger of being covered over.
I may be biased, but it seems to me that these are the kinds of “tourists” — Indian or foreign — Vrindavan should be seeking: those who have a respect for the true nature of the Dham and who will spend long periods of time, and of course spend money on clothing, housing and food and so on while here. Not only that, but they will also overlook many of the “deficiencies” of Vrindavan, i.e., the absence of all the trappings of modernity as a positive feature. Those who become permanent residents will also be a source of other like-minded persons who wish to pursue spiritual goals.
To attract them, Vrindavan needs to concentrate on remaining attractive as a spiritual center, and this should be the central idea of all economic development.
Those protesting the vehicle ban on weekends should take note.
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