CWG gets tongues wagging

With the Games around the corner, travel agents are brushing up their language skills to connect with the tourists

Malay, Sinhalese, Tamil -- no we aren't talking cuisines here; these are some of the languages travel agents in the Capital are trying to soak up, in view of the Commonwealth Games.

The government is expecting around one lakh tourists during the games and in a bid to attract them, travel agencies in the national capital, as well as other cities, are trying to learn about new cultures, traditions, and of course, languages. Professionals have been hired by the agencies to provide requisite training to their personnel.

Abhyay Kumar from Silkroad Travels, an agency in Pitampura, said: "Till now we were only dealing with Korean tourists. But looking at the Commonwealth Games, we are preparing to handle tourists from other countries. To provide our best hospitality, I have taken classes to learn traditions, culture and language of some of the countries from where we are expecting the maximum tourists. The classes are held twice a week and in return I impart similar training to other employees."

There are 54 Commonwealth nations, of which visitors from UK, Australia and Canada form the largest part of India's tourist inflow. India has already received 5.11 million tourists this year. 0.5 million came from Commonwealth nations.

Agencies located in cities like Kolkata also want a piece of the pie. Rupak Chatterjee, owner of Crazywanderers, a travel agency said: "Most of the tourists who will be coming to India for the Commonwealth Games will stay back for a month or two to see other destinations apart from Delhi.

This will give a fair chance to all of us to display our hospitality. Till now we have been mostly dealing with Korean, Chinese and Japanese tourists. But as teams from these three countries are not participating, we need to brush up our skills with the languages of other countries as well. Speaking in their mother tongue really helps in connecting with them."

"From January onwards, I have been taking classes from a local teacher here. He is teaching me Tamil, Malay and Dhivehi, which are widely spoken in Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Maldives respectively. Apart from that I am also taking time out to develop my personality and English speaking skills," Chatterjee added.

The Delhi government has already implemented a programme to teach English to those individuals who will have maximum contact with tourists. This subset includes cab drivers, waiters, gatemen, and service staff. According to sources, 2,000 drivers have already received training. The city plans to train a thousand people per month, leading up to the Games.

In addition to Delhi, the centre plans to expand the programme to other tourist destinations including Agra and Mathura in Uttar Pradesh, Bhopal and Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, Gaya in Bihar and Puri in Orissa.

Games Trivia

In view of the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2010 in Delhi, the Home Guards and Civil Defence Directorate has initiated a programme to train its personnel in spoken English. British Lingua, a Delhi-based English language training institution is aiding the personnel to polish their communication skills.

The tourism ministry is likely to waive off 50 per cent of the visa fee charged from the visitors of Commonwealth nations as an incentive to boost foreign tourist arrivals. The expense will be borne by the tourism department.