Mumbai: Maharashtra government has proposed to set up a Japanese style village near Ajanta-Ellora jointly with Wakayama Prefectural Government (WPG), to attract tourist footfalls from the Land of Rising Sun.
“Buddhism has made the two countries– Japan and India– close for centuries. I propose the establishment of a Japanese village near Ajanta-Ellora to further attract tourist footfalls from Japan and welcome our Japanese brothers with better warmth and hospitality,” Maharashtra Tourism Minister Jayakumar Jitendrasinh Rawal said in a meeting here yesterday.
“We would like to offer land for the establishment of this village. We must also organise special Japanese tours in Maharashtra,” he said.
The proposed village will incorporate Japanese hospitality and culture to make tourists and visitors from Japan feel at home, he said.
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Meanwhile, the Maharashtra government also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with WPG, under which the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is funding the Ajanta-Ellora Development Phase 3.
The MoU also highlights the joint efforts of Maharashtra and WPG to enhance mutual economic growth, promote agro and food processing between local enterprises through existing framework that both the governments have established.
“This MoU has strengthened the bilateral trade between India and Japan and has mutually benefited these two countries to strengthen their respective tourism prospects,” Rawal said.
The renewal of the MoU term and this association will help increase tourism inflow in Maharashtra and Wakayama through the agreement, Maharashtra Principal Secretary, Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Valsa Nair Singh said.
“It will further help maintain mutual cooperation between both the states for expansion of tourism ties to enhance economic growth and job creation,” she added.