PROJECT

ON
ECO TOURISM & GENERATION OF LIVLIHOOD
THROUGH THIS
AT
SUNDARBANS, WEST BENGAL

BY
VIVEKANANDA SEVAKENDRA-O-SISHU UDDYAN,

SOUTH 24 PARGANAS, WEST BENGAL

CONTENTS

1. Project Summary
a. Project Name
b. Organisation Details
c. Contact Person Details
d. General Organizational Objectives
2. The Project
a.
b.
c.
d.

Objectives of the Project

Beneficiaries
Project Implementation Area
Relevance of the project

3. Methodology
4. Activity Schedule for the Project
5. Project Outcome
6. Risk factors & Management
7. Project Monitoring and Evaluation
8. Sustainability
9. Estimated Budget

1.PROJECT SUMMARY
India, home to 1.21 billion people, exhibits diverse form of art and culture which has been
entrenched through a rich and 5000 years of history. This makes India a hot tourist destination in
the world. India has a thriving tourism industry which contributes 6.23% to the national GDP
and 8.78% of the total employment in India. In the year 2010, 17.9 million foreign tourists
visited India. Majority of foreign tourists came from USA and UK. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu,
Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan are the top five states to receive inbound tourists. Domestic
tourism in the same year was massive at 740 million.
Given the above figures and rich heritage of India, Indian tourism industry could be extended to
include various communities to give it a new dimension. This would lead to a mutual benefit
where in both tourists and communities would be at a receiving end.
Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving visiting fragile, pristine, and usually protected areas,
intended as a low-impact and often small scale alternative to standard commercial (mass)
tourism. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds for ecological conservation,
to directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities,
or to foster respect for different cultures and for human rights. Since the 1980s ecotourism has
been considered a critical endeavour by environmentalists, so that future generations may
experience destinations relatively untouched by human intervention.
Generally, ecotourism focuses on socially responsible travel, personal growth, and environmental
sustainability. Ecotourism typically involves travel to destinations where flora, fauna, and
cultural heritage are the primary attractions. Ecotourism is intended to offer tourists insight into
the impact of human beings on the environment, and to foster a greater appreciation of our
natural habitats.
Eco tourism is also related to community tourism. Community tourism (sometimes called
community-based tourism) is a form of tourism which aims to include and benefit local
communities, particularly indigenous peoples and villagers in the rural belt. In community
tourism, villagers may host tourists in their village thereby letting them feel their true culture and
more exploration of art and culture which, at times, remain unexplored and tourists end up
watching and visiting hyped and known places only.
Community tourism has certain features which ensure mutual benefit to both communities and
tourists.

It runs with the involvement and consent of local communities.

Gives fair share of profit back to community.
It involves communities rather than individuals.
It is environmentally sustainable.

It respects traditional culture and social structure.

In West Bengal, Sundarbans is a UNESCO world heritage site. The Sundarban National Park is a
Park for Tiger Reserve, and a Biosphere located in the Sundarbans delta in the Indian state of
West Bengal. This region is densely covered by Mangrove forests, and is one of the largest
reserves for the 400 Royal Bengal tigers. The Royal Bengal Tigers have developed a unique
characteristic of swimming in the saline waters, and are world famous for their man-eating
tendencies. Apart from the Royal Bengal Tiger; Fishing Cats, Leopard Cats, Macaques, Wild
Boar, Indian Grey Mongoose, Fox, Jungle Cat, Flying Fox, Pangolin, Chital, are also found in
abundance in the Sundarban.
The mangrove vegetation of Sundarban consists of 64 plant species and they have the capacity to
withstand estuarine conditions and saline inundation on account of tidal effects. In the month of
April and May the flaming red leaves of the Genwa (Excoecaria agallocha) the crab-like red
flowers of the Kankra (Bruguiera gymnorrhiza) and the yellow flowers of Khalsi can be seen,
which add a beauty to the surroundings. The sundarbans is a very popular tourist spot for visitors
all around the world. Every year thousands of tourists come to see the natural beauty of
Sundarbans. It is located in the district of South 24 Paragnas .
Vivekananda Sevakendra-O-Sishu Uddyan (VSSU), is an Ngo which is based at village Ullon of
South 24 Paragnas, West Bengal. The NGO has been working since 1983 for the economic ,
livelihood and community development of the area. VSSU is looking to start a Ecotourism

project at the Sundarban and also to promote cultural and agriculture based tourism. Its
purpose is to make aware the traveller about the rich culture of Bengal, to take them into
the Sundarban mangrove forest and ecological conservation, and also to directly benefit
the economic development and empowerment of local communities specially women
with a strong focus on Agri - based Eco tourism..

a.

PROJECT NAMElivelihood through this.

BUDGET-

2 .8crore.

DURATION-

1yr.

Project proposal on Eco tourism and generation of

b.ORGANISATION DETAILS
Vivekananda Sevakendra-O-Sishu Uddyan (VSSU), a registered society under West Bengal
Societies Registration Act 1961, has come a long way since its humble beginnings as a local
organization in 1983. Founded by Sri Kapilananda Mondal, VSSU began by providing basic
social development programs to the local community through education, environment and
healthcare endeavors.
Vivekananda Sevakendra-O-Sishu Uddyan (VSSU) was established in 1983 to empower distant
villages and weaker rural communities in the district of South 24 Parganas in West Bengal, India.
VSSUs arena of endeavours encompasses the people whose lives are subjugated by extreme
poverty, illiteracy, disease and other maladies. With versatile development concerns, VSSU
endeavours to bring about significant changes in the lives of the poor people. VSSUs different
concerns are microfinance, home for destitute children, educational institutes, library, training
centre for human resource development and several other productive units and agriculture. VSSU
firmly believes and is actively involved in building the social, economic and human capacity of
the poor. VSSU works in the coastal fringes of the Bay of Bengal, in the district of South 24
Parganas, West Bengal, India.

Vision: Community Development through Community Resources.

The cornerstone of VSSU is the belief that there are enough resources in the community itself to
promote growth. What is needed, however, is the mechanism to mobilize these resources. VSSU
therefore works as a patron to mobilize the community.

Mission: Poverty Eradication and Human Development through Microfinance.

VSSU believes that Microfinance is an excellent mechanism to enable the poor to establish their
own enterprise and to earn money, leading to financial stability and the development of
humanity.

NAME OF THE ORGANISATION

ADDRESS

VIVEKANANDA SEVAKENDRA-O-SISHU
UDDYAN
VILLAGE: ULLON
POST OFFICE: RAMLOCHANPUR

CONTACT NO

DISTRICT: SOUTH 24 PARGANAS

PIN: 743336
WEST BENGAL, INDIA
+91 3174 277451

c. CONTACT PERSON DETAILS

NAME OF THE PERSON
CONTACT NO
EMAIL ID

Kapilananda mondal
97357 06439
vssu.in@gmail.com

d. ORGANISATIONAL OBJECTIVES
The organizational objectives are concentrated on three main goals
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
LIVLIHOOD DEVELOPMENT
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

1. To work for the economic development of the people, VSSU provides Microcredit to
unemployed, poor entrepreneurs and to others living in poverty, who lack collateral and a
verifiable credit history. VSSU Microcredit is actually a part of microfinance, which is
the provision of a wider range of financial services like savings, credit and insurance to
the very poor.
2. VSSU carries out numerous Community Programs including:
The Education Program for nearly 700 children - it embraces 19 Crches, one Secondary
School (Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya) in partnership with India Central Government, a
Community Library built jointly with READ Global USA, and Scholarships provisions;
Home for Children Program for 37 children - to serve children who are alienated,
deprived and marginalized for any reason whatsoever, irrespective of caste, creed, colour,
sex, religion, or gender;
Sanitation, Hygiene, Health Programs, in order to supply basic needs of the community;

Food Program for the Destitute - to help elderly people who were abandoned by their
family and have lost their potential to work;
Social Forestry Program - VSSU has planted 140 square-kilometers of trees in the district
without any support.

3. Generating employment opportunities is an essential development initiative of the

organisation. To achieve this, VSSU is in the process of setting up the 'Jeebika
Foundation', an institution dedicated to promoting sustainable livelihood among low
income households. The foundation aims to connect these new employment opportunities
with its existing microfinance and community development services.

THE PROJECT
a. OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT
The main objective of the project is Community development through eco tourism approaches. The
organization aim is to generate employment opportunities among under privileged sector of rural west
Bengal through a Self sustainable eco friendly manner by using local rural resources for a better
tomorrow. The eco friendly initiative can achieve five different goals.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Develop a highly prospected Tourism in rural scenario.

Local resource mobilisation towards a self sustainable programme.
Employment Generation for poverty alleviation.
Initiate a tourism business involving Eco friendly aspects.
Awareness creation by using Renewable energy sources for a greener & healthier tomorrow.

b. BENEFICIARIESThe number of direct beneficiaries will be 50 for the first year and 2 nd year it will be at least 75 and The
Ngo hopes it will increase in future with the expansion of project. Most of them will be women and will
be from the local community.

c. IMPLEMENTATION AREA West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous.[1] It
is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million
inhabitants. Covering a total area of 34,267 sq mi (88,750 km2), it is bordered by the countries of
Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh, and the Indian states of Orissa, Jharkhand, Bihar, Sikkim, and
Assam. The state capital is Kolkata (formerly Calcutta). West Bengal encompasses two broad
natural regions: the Gangetic Plain in the south and the sub-Himalayan and Himalayan area in
the north.
West Bengal is on the eastern bottleneck of India, stretching from the Himalayas in the north to
the Bay of Bengal in the south. The state has a total area of 88,752 square kilometres (34,267
sq mi). The Darjeeling Himalayan hill region in the northern extreme of the state belongs to the
eastern Himalaya. This region contains Sandakfu (3,636 m or 11,929 ft)the highest peak of the
state. The narrow Terai region separates this region from the plains, which in turn transitions into
the Ganges delta towards the south. The Rarh region intervenes between the Ganges delta in the
east and the western plateau and high lands. A small coastal region is on the extreme south, while
the Sundarbans mangrove forests form a remarkable geographical landmark at the Ganges delta.
The Ganges is the main river, which divides in West Bengal. One branch enters Bangladesh as
the Padma or Pdda, while the other flows through West Bengal as the Bhagirathi River and
Hooghly River.
According to the provisional results of 2011 national census, West Bengal is the fourth most
populous state in India with a population of 91,347,736 (7.55% of India's population). Majority
of the population comprises Bengalis. The Marwaris, Bihari and Oriya minority are scattered
throughout the state; communities of Sherpas and ethnic Tibetans can be found in Darjeeling
Himalayan hill region. Darjeeling district has a large number of Gurkha people of Nepalese
origin. West Bengal is home to indigenous tribal Adivasis such as Santals, Kol, Koch-Rajbongshi
and Toto tribe. There are a small number of ethnic minorities primarily in the state capital,
including Chinese, Tamils, Gujaratis, Anglo-Indians, Armenians, Punjabis, and Parsis. India's
sole Chinatown is in eastern Kolkata.
The official language is Bengali and English. Nepali is the official language in three subdivisions
of Darjeeling district. As of 2001, in descending order of number of speakers, the languages of
1 ^ a b "India: Administrative Divisions (population and area)". Census of India.
Retrieved April 17, 2009.

the state are: Bengali, Hindi, Santali, Urdu, Nepali, and Oriya. Languages such as Rajbongshi
and Ho are used in some parts of the state.
As of 2001, Hinduism is the principal religion at 72.5% of the total population, while Muslims
comprise 25.2% of the total population , being the second-largest community as also the largest
minority group; Sikhism, Christianity and other religions make up the remainder. The state
contributes 7.8% of India's population. The state's 20012011 decennial growth rate was 13.93%,
lower than 19912001 growth rate of 17.8%, and also lower than the national rate of 17.64%.
The gender ratio is 947 females per 1000 males.[2] As of 2011, West Bengal has a population
density of 1,029 inhabitants per square kilometre (2,670 /sq mi) making it the second-most
densely populated state in India, after Bihar.

South 24 Parganas district is an important district of West Bengal State with its district
headquarters in Alipore. It has the urban fringe of Kolkata on one side and the remote riverine
villages in the Sundarbans.

2 Population of West Bengal (80,221,171) is 7.8% of India's population

(1,027,015,247)

It is the sixth most populous district in India (out of 640)[3] Agriculture, Industry and Pisciculture
are all at their peak in the district. In west side of this district situated Falta Special Economic
Zone.Various types of industry is situated in this Economic Zone.
According to the 2011 census South 24 Parganas district has a population of 8,153,176, roughly
equal to the nation of Honduras or the US state of Virginia. This gives it a ranking of 6th in India
(out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of 819 inhabitants per square
kilometre (2,120 /sq mi). Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 18.05
%.South Twenty Four Parganas has a sex ratio of 949 females for every 1000 males, and a
literacy rate of 78.57 %.
In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named South 24 Parganas one of the country's 250 most
backward districts (out of a total of 640).[4] It is one of the eleven districts in West Bengal
currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).[4]
A small village in the district of South 24 Parganas which is renowned as an economically
backward district of West Bengal is Ullon, where VSSU is working and trying to develop the
village and its surroundings since 1983. Vivekananda Sevakendra-O-Sishu Uddyan (VSSU), is
an Ngo based at Ullon providing basic social development programs to the local community
through education, environment and healthcare endeavors. VSSU is starting a project on Eco
tourism called V World at village Ullon. The proposed area is extended up to about 96 acre and it is
adjacent to the world largest Sundarban Mangrove forest and Bio sphere reserve. And it is only 60 km far
from central Kolkata and can be reached by train & National high way also within 2 hrs.

d. RELEVANCE OF THE PROJECT

Tourism contributes a lot to the GDP of the area. There are places all over the world which have important
and famous tourist spots. People go there , visit the places ,stay there and enjoy the surroundings .By
doing so they are also helping the local economy as well as promoting the local culture & arts.
Sundarbans is one such place which is a tourist destination for many people. People admire the land,
water bodies, and Wild & Natural beauty of Sunder bans. This project will help in more promotion of the
area. It will utilize the local resources and generate employement oppurtunities for local people . VSSUs

Agri. Based Eco tourism will attract more & more tourists & Visitors around the world. This will
lead to many new workplaces, more spending of money on local products and then enhance the
3 "District Census 2011". Census2011.co.in. 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-30
4 Ministry of Panchayati Raj (September 8, 2009). "A Note on the Backward Regions
Grant Fund Programme". National Institute of Rural Development. Retrieved
September 27, 201

Development of Local economy. In near future there will be too many scopes to create employment
around this project. The organization hopes to reach at least 50,000 visitors for the first year and double it
next year to enjoy and get more & more benefits from V worlds eco tourism project.
The V world will alleviate poverty by job creation which will lead to financial emancipation in future.
The V world will prove that the idle resources of rural Bengal can bring a financial revolution with a little
innovative effort.

3. METHODOLOGY
a. BASELINE SURVEY- The baseline survey has already been done by the Ngo .They
have identified the 50 beneficiaries for the project who are the local women residing in
the area.

b. AWARENESS GENERATION - Awareness generation of the local community will be

done by having meetings with the community people, Distributing leaflets among them,
installing hoardings at various places,having workshops & by showing them the audio
visuals of the proposed project so that they can understand the project .

c. THE V WORLD (RURAL ECO TOURISM PROJECT)

VSSU is planning an eco tourism project which include cultural centre, Conference hall,

festive Grounds, (Marriage & ceremonial Hall), Mini Cinema hall Food & amusement
park, artificial hill ,fountain & green forest ,rope ways, toy train, water ways & Boat
riding facilities, fishing lakes, temple, Cottage for visitors, and few mega structure of
attraction like Statue of Liberty, Red Fort, Tower Bridge, India gate, Light & Sound
programme . The tourism project cost worth is Rs. 30.00 Cr., and the organization had

already invested Rs.15 Cr (approx) for earth work, land development and canal
excavation .The organization is seeking funds of Rs 2.8 crore for a part of this project.
They wish to implement the project by using local human resources, mostly by women to
generate employment opportunities among under privileged, less educated local
community. VSSU dreams to bring up a sustainable development through such types of
project implementation & employment generation. The organization hopes to start with
50 acres of land for the first year and to reach 100 acres within 3 years.
VSSU is initiating an Ecotourism project involving visiting fragile, pristine, and
protected areas of the Sundarban and also to promote cultural and agriculture based
tourism. It will help in the economic development and empowerment of local
communities specially women with a strong focus on Agri - based Eco tourism.
VSSU will offer Visitors, tourists and trainees a place to stay and enjoy. A large attraction
of the program will be trips to the Sundarban ( 40 km far from proposed project area)
with Boarding, Loading & transportation facility at its Proposed Campus. Sundarban is
the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest with 29 islands in the world
and its only 30 km far from VSSU.
Besides VSSU is determined to make as much use of every natural resource as possible in
sustainable manner with active participation of Local human resource, one resource which the
organization has plenty of in the district is rain water and the Ngo has made a thorough plan for
the use of the rainwater. There are already several large water bodies /water Preserver to collect
and store rain water but our future plan is to use the constructed 1.5 km canal (with 80 ft breadth)
in proper manner for wellbeing of community and 10 acre Rain water harvesting Unit in different
plots of Projected area to serve Local community as well as the organisation will use it as Water
amusement Park with Food & festive park, cultural arcade including greeneries adjacent to
VSSU HQ. The water will be used in following areas:a. Mono and multi cropping with a Horticultural Production Cum Exhibition with Marketing
Centre.
b. Social Forestry Programme by 1, 00,000 (10 million) tree plantation with the aim of Greener
future to make an oxygen area. Mostly of which will be fruit plants including Coconut trees
to built a Local coir industry with the aim of employment generation.
c. Fish farming with new technology as well as opportunity to train others
d. Long canal will be constructed for water sports as part of VSSU initiative to make Ullon a
tourist attraction simultaneously increasing the oxygen in the water for the fish.
e. Finally, the construction of a Water Amusement Park with Air Cable (rope way) that can
carry tourists between Different points of Eco tourism Project with the power of hydro
energy.

We strongly believe that by the help of above stated metrics & facilities and supplementary
Sundarban Mangrove Forest Visit programme, VSSUs Agri. Based Eco tourism will bring
success. VSSU is highly expecting to have Sponsorship or partnership to facilitate and make it
more attractive to the tourist, Visitors around the world. This will lead to many new workplaces,
more spending of money on local products and then enhance the Development of Local
economy.
Our methodology will be to attract tourist from all over the world and different part of India including
Kolkata and suburban. The nature park will have multi cuisine restaurant, festival grounds, theatre hall,
Children & Adults Amusement, Sports items, gaming zone to accelerate inflow of tourists. The
programme would be to transport tourists from Kolkata to The V world and then take them to Sunder
ban to explore Wild beauty of it. Then return to V world and spend 1 /2 nights at the cottage and
rejuvenate their life to bring mental satisfaction . The Eco tourism project will focus on mobilisation of
local rural resources. The organization is planning to use the natural resources in three different ways, by
using financial resources, Natural resources and Local human resources.
The project is about to implement in a rural scenario and thus the organisation will utilize the local
resources, the local agricultural land, water bodies, and Wild & Natural beauty of Sunder ban. With this
the organization hopes to generate employment for local people, mostly women. It would concentrate on
Bio Village & organic Farming , There will be a bio-village with Agri production centre where
agricultural products would be manufactured and then sold to the visitors.

4.ACTIVITY SCHEDULE

ACTIVITY
AWARENESS
GENERATION
PROMOTIONA
L ACTIVITIES
ECO TOURISM
PROJECT
MONITORING
&EVALUATION

MONTHS
1
2 3

10

11

12

5. PROJECT OUTCOME
1. Promotion of tourism & increase in the numbers of tourists visiting the area.
2. Awareness generated among the people regarding the benefits of rural and agro based tourism.
3. Local resource utilization towards a self sustainable programme.
4. Employment generation for the local people.
5. More livelihood opportunities will lead to lower the poverty level of the community.

6.RISK & RISK MANAGEMENT

1. Since the project involves a huge investment so, the organization will have to see that the funds
allotted for different purposes are properly used.
2. Sundarbans is a high tidal area, it is not safe to go there during that period, so the visits have to be
planned accordingly.

7. MONITORING & EVALUATION

Monitoring and evaluation includes input and output monitoring, process monitoring,
performance monitoring and impact assessment. Monitoring would be a continuous assessment
of use of inputs and services. Both external & internal monitoring will be done . The
organization will monitor each and every activity involved in the project for its proper
functioning. A team of experts will evaluate the outcome of the project at the end of the year
after getting record of each and every detailed activity.

8. SUSTAINABILITY
Sustainability will come from the continuity of project implementation and expansion year after year.
Next to Kolkata there are hardly such types of tourism projects. And The Ngo does hope to expand this
eco friendly programme with innovative approaches and methodologies. What the organization need is
just to adopt new eco friendly technologies and publicize it in a vast way to attract visitors & tourists. A
leisure zone with green cottage, Food Park, water amusement park, festival grounds, theatre hall, Art
Gallery, Horse riding, Fishing, boating, meditation zone etc within 60 km from Kolkata with a
challenging and affordable price will make it a self sustainable programme. A oxygen village of 50 acres
maintained by devoted full time local women worker, professional management, in addition explore

natural diversified wild beauty of Sundarban and growing trend of being eco friendly nature of Visitors
will make the project self sustainable and successful.

9. BUDGET
Attached in the excel sheet