Places That I Remember Visiting

 Some unusual places first.

Mount Rushmore, South Dakota, where 4 Presidential faces are carved into a mountain, in the U.S.. 

Kodikkarai, on the east coast of Tamilnadu, a nice drive from the deep.

Daman, on the West Coast, a tipplers' delight for those from the Dry state of Gujarat. Daman is a Union Territory which does not have Prohibition.

Tirunelveli, in the deep South again, known for its halwa- a gooey, colourful sweet that is made really well. Calicut also made something similar, I remember.

Chilika Lake, in Orissa/Odisha, that I visited in 1991, with a friend. The waters were choppy, and our boat was not confidence-inspiring.

Pulicat Lake (another Salt Water lake) and the Dutch Cemetery. The Cemetery is badly kept, but worth a visit. The lake, even more worthy of a visit and a boat ride. Near Chennai.

Ethipothala waterfall is near Nagarjuna Sagar dam in Telangana, and the waterfall is visible from a tourist cottage set up opposite.

Jog Falls, Karnataka. Majestic in the rainy season. Climbed down to the base a couple of times..it's a steep climb back.

Aviation and Tourism

There is a draft aviation policy at last. It is around 10 years too late, but never mind.

Is it so tough to see that easy aviation makes for a lot of benefits in spinoff mode? Ancillary industries grow. But the biggest boost is to another big industry-tourism. Compared with some other countries in Asia, India's tourism industry is minuscule. Compared to its potential, given the amazing things we have in India, it is even worse. Even domestic tourists are scared to go where no tourist has gone before. Mostly due to lack of access by road or rail. I have discovered many destinations only because I happened to live nearby. Hampi is one, Jog Falls another. Both are magnificient, and should be on everyone's bucket list. What if it was a short flight away from Bangalore, reasonably priced? I will bet that thousands more would visit both.

I can cite many more examples. Lonar crater (formed after a meteorite hit) in Buldana district of Maharashtra. Almost the entire North-east, Bhedaghat with its unique Marble Rocks, Dandeli forests, Tiger reserves like Bandhavgarh, Kanha. In fact, there are known examples of chartered flights coming in to Goa from European countries. They could go to a few other places if we had more working airports.

Taxes can be reduced on smaller airports, and other incentives given to make that happen. This can directly touch lives of service providers like hotels, taxi operators and restaurants in smaller towns, and increase pride in the country by showing off the best of it to both domestic and international travellers. Roads take time to build. Airlines can start much faster!

Hope this policy translates into quick action.