Kolkata: A group of 19 girls who completed a government training course in 2006 to work as guides for women tourists are yet to get licenses as the Tourism Ministry has not yet conducted a mandatory examination, though two seasons have passed and the course has been discontinued.

"Despite promising us licence by September 2006, the authorities are yet to hold the examination mandatory before issuing licences," said Shatarupa Moulik who underwent the training with 18 others after cracking an entrance test.

"Two winters when tourist flow peaks in Kolkata and the eastern region have gone by without work. We cannot venture out for want of the license despite having adequate training," Aparna Dey, another girl who underwent training, rued.

Trained under Project Priyadarshini, the girls were supposed to get a license to work as guides to women tourists in the states of eastern region - Sikkim, Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Orissa and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The authorities in Tourism Ministry office here said they have no idea as to when they would be able to conduct the examination.

Assistant Director BB Mukherjee said: "We have written to the headquarters in New Delhi to get permission to hold the examination. Their nod is yet to reach here."  

Debashree Saha, who claimed to have met the officials concerned more than 10 times, said, "Now the officials here are asking us to contact the Delhi office on our own."

Launched in December 2005, the project was aimed at bringing in more women to serve the tourism industry.

The 19 girls began their four-month course in May 2006. "No more batches of students were admitted and the course has been discontinued," Mukherjee said.

"Why had they admitted us at all? We could have completed courses conducted by the state government and got license. We have not joined other course in the hope of getting license from here," the angry girls said.

The officials also refused to comment on the fate of the girls who underwent the course from other centres like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Guwahati.

Source : PTI