Amid apprehensions being raised by the non-government organisations and various other quarters that there would be an increase in sex tourism during the Commonwealth Games-2010, the ministry of tourism has conveyed its concerns to the ministry of home affairs (MHA) and also the Delhi government.
According to sources, Union tourism secretary R.H. Khwaja met with Delhi lieutenant governor Tejendra Khanna on August 21 and discussed the issue. The issue has also been taken up with the Delhi police, as well as with the MHA officials. Delhi police spokesperson Rajan Bhagat said that as far as this issue was concerned, the police always takes action as and when the information is received. He added that it is an ongoing process.
The ministry is, meanwhile, hopeful that with several stakeholders voluntarily accepting the code of conduct for safe and honourable tourism, which was adopted on July 23, the problem should be curbed to some extent. The ministry has also taken up the issue with other agencies concerned to formulate strategies for preventing a rise in sex tourism.
The code, besides several other measures like training and generating awareness, will also include signing of a “pledge” on September 27 inculcating all the aspects of the code for safe and honourable tourism.