Government can't tell tourist what to eat or drink: NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant

Amid Indian states prohibiting consumption of alcohol and beef, NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant averred that such restrictions will adversely affect nation's tourism industry.

Kant asserted that it is not government's business to decide what tourists should eat or drink.

"Indian states can't get into what a tourist want to eat and drink. Just not possible...what he wants to eat and drink is his individual business and not the states' business," he said while addressing the World Economic Forum here.

Answering to a poser that whether the states banning beef and alcohol have failed to realise that a country needs to extend every facility required by the tourists if they want to flourish, Kant said, "I have been a long term believer on couple of things. Tourism is essentially civilisational in character, one can't have garbage and filth and say that we have great heritage sites. So, India must focus on cleanliness. It is number one. Number-2 it's about seamless experience."

"I have said it all the time that for a tourist...its about creating experiences. In the evening he wants to relax and he wants to chill out and therefore you need to create that evening experience for (him) in terms of Indian culture," he added.

Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Daman have announced their plans to ban sale of liquor, while Gujarat, Bihar, Nagaland and Manipur are already dry states.