Hundred of guests invited to the Konark Festival fumed over the hospitality of the OTDC staffs during a dinner. After witnessing the festival, they had a dinner in OTDC restaurant. However, the manner the restaurant staffs treated irked the guests.
The guests have now raised questions on hospitality of the Odisha Tourism whose ethics have long been based on ‘Atithi Debo Bhaba’ (guests are equal to God). On the opening day of the Konark Festival, more than a hundred of guests, including artists, journalists, besides eminent personalities were invited by the Tourism Department. OTDC buses carried them to Konark from Bhuabaneswar and Puri besides other places. At the end of the festival, the guests were taken to Chandrabhaga beach by busses for visiting the sand art exhibition. Before return they had their supper at the nearby OTDC restaurant.
However, a rude reminder for guests was that they had to wait in a queue before the food counter for half an hour with plate in hand. In the middle of the dinner, many guests walked to counter for supplementary dishes as no waiter came to their tables. Many complained of food scarcity while seeking for second time. Even some guests preferred to enter private eateries watching a shameful condition here. For serving so many guests there were few waiters in the cafeteria.
“I was ashamed to watch the hospitality of OTDC towards its invitees. If it is for us then what would have been for the tourists,” questioned Bijay Mishra, a Puri based senior journalist. “Really it was sad to join the dinner hosted by OTDC. I was better to choose a private restaurant than entering here,” commented tabla-artist Sankar Behera, who returned home emptied stomach. He charged the higher authorities of Odisha tourism for mismanagements.