That seemed to be the theme of a SAARC seminar on hygiene management in hotels, with director general (Tourism) Ashok Pradhan asking the participants to prepare a manual on maintenance of hygiene standards in the tourism industry and guaranteeing the protection of consumers' rights.

In a two-day seminar in the capital held recently, Pradhan suggested that steps should be taken to ensure not only the safety of the customer's belongings, but also the customer himself from diseases emanating out of improper sanitation, housekeeping and waste disposal.

S S H Rehman, president of Hotels Association of India, said about 625 million business travellers and tourists travelling each year globally "run a risk of being exposed to food-borne diseases".

"Moreover, other factors such as jet lag, fatigue, disruption of eating patterns and low level of immunity to new environment decreased their resistance and increased their susceptibility to fall ill," he said, andstressed the need for maintenance of hygienic standards in hotels.

Peacocks in peril in Rajasthan

The national bird peacock is faced with a serious threat to its survival in parts of Rajasthan as it is allegedly being killed by tribals who feed them with poisoned grains, warns a wildlife organisation People for Animals (PFA).

In a district-wise survey conducted from January to April this year, PFA's state unit had spotted sporadic incidents of peacock killing in the districts of Jodhpur, Sawaimadhopur, Nagaur, Dholpur, Bundi, Kota, Chittorgarh, Bhilwara and Udaipur by tribals of Kanjar and Kalbelia castes, PFA's state president Babu Lal Jaju said.

Peacock feathers, bones and meat are being sold for consumption and making ornaments in tribal dominated areas.

Operation Monsoon

A three-month drive to control poaching during the period when the Corbett tiger reserve remains closed has been launched by the reserve's authorities, beginning July 15.

Called `Operation Monsoon', it is aimedat keeping a stringent check on poachers who, earlier, used to take advantage of the time the park was left unguarded, Corbett Tiger Reserve director Mohammad Ahsan said.

Poaching and deforestation, besides forest fires, are now threatening the pristine beauty of this unique tiger reserve in the Kumaon Himalayas.

Increased poaching has been noticed by wildlife experts in the outer belt of the Kumaon Himalayas, encompassing the areas between Ramnagar, Ranikhet and Bhawali.

The road connecting Ramnagar and Khairna bridge through Betalghat is frequently used by poachers. Poached articles are mostly transported in light motor vehicles which are rarely checked. Last year, a number of tigers were found dead in the vicinity of the Corbett Tiger Reserve -- poisoned.

Tigerlink, a linkage of concerned people and organisations across the globe to save the tiger, says the poisonings seem like they were motivated by the peripheral inhabitants whose relatives and domestic stock have been attacked by the tigers,but who have been denied legitimate compensation by the forest department.

Golf courses are `eco-unfriendly'

Consuming an average of 1,500 kg of agro-chemicals every year and water which can quench the thirst of nearly 20,000 people, golf courses are far from eco-friendly, and the sport anything but green, allege environmentalists. While the use of pesticides kills wildlife and pollutes the groundwater level, consumption of large amount of water is a "shame" when there is a shortage of the natural resource in our country, they warn.

"On top of that soil erosion renders the land more prone to natural disasters caused by wind and rain," says a report by Vatavaran, an environmental NGO.

"If a country like Japan can ban development of golf courses why can't India -- where in Delhi alone about 1400 acres of land is used by golf courses -- for as a sport which caters to a minuscule section of the society, golf does more harm than good," it says.

But, golf course managers term these charges as"routine"and instead insist that golf resorts complement the natural vegetation around it and are in one word `eco-friendly'.