The Bangladesh Tourism Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022 has been placed in Parliament to make the existing law more effective and time-befitting one, aiming to boost revenue from the tourism sector.
State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Md Mahbub Ali Khan placed the bill in the Parliament on Monday (January 17).
The bill was later sent to the parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism for further scrutiny. The parliamentary watchdog was asked to submit its report within a month.
Md Mahbub Ali Khan said that the fresh law was drafted aiming to increase the authorised and paid-up capital of the Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation.
The draft law proposes that the authorised capital of the Bangladesh Tourism Corporation shall be Tk 1,000 crore from existing Tk 15 crore while the paid-up capital will be Tk 400 crore from Tk 5 lakh.
The existing law stated that the Board shall consist of a chairman and not less than two and not more than four the whole tenure, and directors to be appointed by the government.
With a four-member board of directors fixed by the existing law, BPC now faces difficulties in taking prompt decisions in coordination with other ministries and departments concerned.
The proposed law said the 11-member board of directors will be formed with senior secretaries, secretaries and representatives of the ministries and departments concerned. Two representatives to be nominated by the government from non-government organisations, who are directly and institutionally associated with the tourism industry.
The definition of a tourist has been changed in the draft law. According to the existing law, a person spending more than 24 hours but less than six months away from home for travel or leisure purposes is considered to be a tourist. The time has been extended to one year in the draft law. However, if the person is away for work, he or she will not be labelled as a tourist.
Jatiya Party’s MP Fakhrul Imam objected to the bill in the Parliament saying that the existing law has a minimum time limit, which is absent in the draft law. He also raised objections on a few other issues.
According to the government, the law is being amended to reduce unemployment, create new jobs, increase income and expand the scope of tourism corporations through the development of the tourism industry in Bangladesh.
The cabinet secretary said the council was being redesigned to facilitate the implementation of the multi-dimensional work of the tourism corporation. The bill authorises the creation of regulations to govern tourism corporations.
