Tourism has emerged as an important socioeconomic activity. It is an important international industry and a leading economic driver of the 21st century service sector. Human Resource Development (HRD) is central to the sustainability-oriented tourism development initiative. It has been observed that over the years, there has been a change in the demand and supply pattern of human resources for the travel industry, with the demand in favour of more educated and specialized personnel. However, the development of human resources in tourism is subject to a number of obstacles, and is severely lagging in terms of professionalism. There is no evidence of any kind of HRD approach being followed by the tour operators/travel agencies. Skill shortage within the industry is an outcome of short-term management and lack of investment in people. The tourism workforce appears to be "uneducated, unmotivated, untrained, unskilled and unproductive". Thus, there is a need to enhance the image of the industry personnel through standard human resource management and development practices, which require the cooperation of the people involved in the tourism business. In this paper, an effort has been made to shed light on problems and challenges of HRD in the tourism industry in Karnataka.
"Travel
and Tourism" has always been an integral part of the Indian tradition and
culture. `Atithi Devo Bhav' (The Guest is God) and `Vasudhaiva
Kutumbakam' (The World is One Family) have always been the bywords for Indian
social behavior. The diversity of India's natural and cultural riches provide
the basis for a wide range of tourist products and experiences. The Government
of India has recognized tourism as a major growth engine for generating mass scale
employment and bringing about socioeconomic development to the have-nots. Thus,
tourism has been recognized as an `industry' on the recommendation of the National
Development Council in the Seventh Five Year Plan (1986-1990). Indeed, it is considered
and recognized as a tertiary/service sector of production (Javaid Akhtar, 1990,
SM Jha, 1994, Cooper C P, 1992).
The
phenomenon of tourism, however, is a direct product of technological and scientific
advancement coupled with industrialization, urbanization and population explosion
(Punia, 1994). Tourism is a human experience, a social experience, a geographical
phenomenon, a resource value, and a business industry. Its importance as an instrument
for economic development and employment generation, particularly in remote and
backward areas, has now been well recognized the world over (Malhotra R K, 1998).
It is regarded as a multifaceted economic asset (Selvam, 1989, Sharma K C, 1996)
and is one of such alternative development strategies available to the poorer
countries (Jithendran K J, 2002). |
