The main objective of sustainable tourism is
- (a)To increase the number of tourists
- (b)To manage mass scale tourism and small scale travel
- (c)To manage tourism and environment while maintaining cultural integrity and ecological processes
- (d)None of the above
Correct — (c). Sustainable tourism, as defined by the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), is tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts while meeting the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities. Its core objective is to make optimal use of environmental resources and maintain essential ecological processes, to respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities (cultural integrity), and to secure long-term, fairly distributed economic benefits — i.e., to manage tourism and the environment together while preserving cultural integrity and ecological processes. Option (c) states exactly this balance.
- (a)To increase the number of tourists — Wrong — maximising tourist numbers is closer to mass tourism, the opposite of sustainability. Unchecked footfall causes over-tourism, resource depletion and cultural erosion, which sustainable tourism is designed to avoid.
- (b)To manage mass scale tourism and small scale travel — Wrong — this describes managing the scale of travel, not the objective. Sustainability is about balancing environmental, socio-cultural and economic impacts, not merely juggling large- and small-scale tourism.
- (d)None of the above — Wrong — option (c) is a valid, standard definition of sustainable tourism, so 'none of the above' cannot be correct.
Sustainable tourism applies the sustainable-development principle — meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs — to travel and tourism. UNWTO frames it around three pillars: environmental (protect ecological processes and biodiversity), socio-cultural (respect host communities' heritage and authenticity) and economic (viable, long-term, equitably shared benefits). Ecotourism, responsible tourism and community-based tourism are related, more specific forms.
The distractors tempt you with 'more tourists' (growth as the goal) and a scale trick. The keyword to anchor on is balance and maintaining — environment plus culture plus ecology together, rather than maximising the number of visitors.
- Sustainable tourism = tourism that meets present needs without compromising future generations (the Brundtland logic applied to travel)
- UNWTO's three pillars: environmental, socio-cultural and economic sustainability
- Aims: optimal use of environmental resources, respect for host communities' socio-cultural authenticity, and long-term equitable economic benefits
- Ecotourism is a nature-conservation-focused subset; Thenmala in Kerala is described as India's first planned ecotourism destination
- Equating 'sustainable' with 'more tourists' or 'more revenue'
- Confusing sustainable tourism with luxury or mass tourism
Definition/objective-based MCQ, or pairing tourism types (eco-, responsible, mass) with their defining features.
Sustainable development is described as the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. In this perspective, inherently the concept of sustainable development is intertwined with which of the following concepts?
- (a) Social justice and empowerment
- (b) Inclusive Growth
- (c) Globalization
- (d) Carrying capacity
Answer(d) Carrying capacity
Same underlying idea. Sustainable tourism's objective (managing environment while maintaining ecological processes) rests on the sustainable-development principle and the concept of carrying capacity that this UPSC item tests directly.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which of the following is best described as a nature-conservation-focused subset of sustainable tourism?
- (a)Mass tourism
- (b)Ecotourism
- (c)Medical tourism
- (d)MICE tourism
Answer(b) Ecotourism — responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and sustains local well-being.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The three pillars around which the UNWTO defines sustainable tourism are
- (a)Political, legal and administrative
- (b)Environmental, socio-cultural and economic
- (c)Domestic, inbound and outbound
- (d)Luxury, budget and adventure
Answer(b) Environmental, socio-cultural and economic — the balance of these three defines sustainable tourism.