With a view to infuse greater professionalism into tourist guides, the ministry of tourism has come out with comprehensive guidelines and a code of ethics for them. The new guidelines released last week lay down rules for selection and training, apart from the professional responsibilities of a guide.
If enforced strictly, these guidelines may change the romanticised image of a guide - best portrayed by thespian Dev Anand as Raju Guide in the eponymous classic Guide - from a street- smart professional to an ethical one.
The rules call for guides to be divided into four categories - general guides, general linguistic guides with fluency in foreign languages, expert guides with specialisation in different fields, and expert linguistic scholars with foreign language fluency.
Accordingly, different eligibility criteria have been prescribed. The basic requirement would be a graduation degree and fluency in English. The candidate should also have studied English as a subject till Class XII. Expert guides should possess a doctorate degree while the linguistic ones should have proven fluency in foreign languages.
The guidelines prescribe 20 years as the minimum age limit, with no retirement age cap. But after 65 years of age, a medical certificate has to be produced.
The candidates will have to clear an entrance test and those shortlisted will have to undergo compulsory training of 26 weeks or 13 weeks (in case they hold a doctorate degree). The courses will be conducted by the ministry's tourism institute.
After the successful completion of training, a guide will be given a badge for three years, which he'll always have to carry while on duty. Once chosen, they'll be prohibited from soliciting business from tourists. Turning up late for an assignment or refusing work would attract penal provisions such as fines and cancellation of licence.
Ministry officials say such conditions are necessary as guides work much more effectively as representatives of our country than all the publicity put together. Any adverse tourist experience, therefore, is likely to tarnish the tourist friendly image of the country.