The Rajasthan region of India is to begin offering eco-tourism tours in a bid to boost its economy, it has been revealed.
Under initial proposals small groups of tourists would be taken to villages and offered local cuisine as well as a tour.
Rajasthan's cooperative minister, Prabhulal Saini, told IANS: "Initially, we have decided to start the project from two villages.
"We have identified 26 villages in 15 districts for this, and these villages would be named as tourist 'dhanis'," he added.
There are also plans to train village locals as guides, serving both to offer expert insight into each village's traditions as well as providing the villages with an source of income.
Recently, Sanat Kaul, managing director of Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation, told the Hindustan Times that tourism needs to be "environmentally sustainable".
India has been criticized by the international community for its lack of green credentials, but tourism projects such as the one in Rajasthan are helping to change its image.
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