'Tourism sector should be under cultural ministry'

State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid has called for the tourism sector to be brought under the umbrella of the cultural affairs ministry in line with the rest of the world, reports bdnews24.com.
Tourism currently falls within the purview of the civil aviation ministry but Khalid believes that the change will result in greater efficiency and coordination in the sector.
The state minister came up with the remarks while speaking at the inauguration ceremony of a two-day workshop on 'archaeology in the capital's Lalbagh Fort on Friday.
KM Khalid said, "It's not that the ministry with which the tourism sector is attached at present is performing badly. But bringing tourism under the auspices of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs will speed up the work in the sector and result in better coordination of activities."
Khalid referred to a recommendation made by the parliamentary standing committee on Ministry of Cultural Affairs to support his call.
The parliamentary panel on September 25 suggested merging the 'two sectors' into a single ministry to ensure 'development of cultural heritage and tourism industry' in the country. He also cited the close links between archaeological relics and tourism to make his case for the merger, explaining, "Tourists visit the Taj Mahal or the Victoria Park whenever they travel to India.