How fair is the discontent over Bhutan’s new tourism policy?

In February 2020, a Lower House of the Parliament in Bhutan announced that from July 2020, visitors from India, Bangladesh and Maldives have to pay a fee of Rs 1200 per day. The announcement was met with cynicism and anger by the border people and some sections of the media. This fee considered a ‘Sustainable Development Fee’ is to check the mass inflow of tourism from the region to preserve Bhutan’s rich ecology and culture. However, it couldn’t be implemented due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic as Bhutan secured its gates to prevent the spread of the virus in the country. As the situation is gradually returning to normal, Bhutan opened its doors to tourists again on September 23 after a hiatus of two years. In this article, we briefly discuss the discontent emerging in the Indo-Bhutan border after the latter implemented the new tourism policy. 

‘High Value, Low Impact’

Bhutan’s Tourism Policy stands for ‘High Value, Low Volume’ to promote the country as an “exclusive travel destination based on the values of Gross National Happiness (GNH)”. The Royal Government of Bhutan believes that while tourism provides opportunities to deepen friendly relationships and promote cultural exchange it should be based on the principle of sustainability. Meaning tourism that is socially and culturally acceptable, environmentally and ecologically just and economically feasible. 

Bhutan’s Tourism Rules and Regulations – 2002 enumerates a plethora of guidelines that the tourists as well as those associated with the tourism industry in the country have to comply with. To uphold the country’s tourism policy, it levies a fee known as Sustainable Development Fee (SDF). The Tourism Council of Bhutan defines SDF as a “tourism fee levied on all tourists per person per night and…as a contribution towards sustainable development initiatives undertaken by the Royal Government to compensate for the negative environmental impacts associated with tourism”.