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<p>One of the oldest and most resilient types of travel is religious tourism, which focusses on sacred places like rivers as well as places of worship. In Assam, India, the Brahmaputra River acts as a physical and spiritual center around which tourism and religious activities emerge. This study examines the perceptions of local stakeholders on river-based religious tourism on Umananda Island in Guwahati. The study’s methodology combines quantitative survey analysis (descriptive statistics and chi-square tests) and qualitative (thematic coding) approaches. The findings reveal that religious tourism is perceived as a source of income, cultural pride, and environmental concern by community members, boat operators, and temple officials. Nonetheless, issues with waste management, riverbank erosion, and seasonal variations in visitor numbers continue. Based on the tourist records of the Sri Umananda Temple Management Committee’s (2024) and Assam Tourism data, tourist arrivals are peak between November and February, but fall drastically during the rainy season, demonstrating strong seasonality (Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, <CitationRef CitationID="CR10">2022</CitationRef>). The study highlights the potential for sustainable management through conservation initiatives such as the Golden Langur Relocation Program, integrated waste management, and stakeholder coordination. In the global context, Umananda Island forms a part of rapidly growing religious tourism sector, expected to reach USD 254.3&#xa0;billion by 2030. This highlights the potential for integrating environmental stewardship, cultural preservation and economic development.</p>

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“Brahmaputra river-based religious tourism: a study of local perception on Umananda Island, Guwahati, India”

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年10月11日

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  • Barnali Mahanta,
  • Teresa L. Khawzawl

摘要

One of the oldest and most resilient types of travel is religious tourism, which focusses on sacred places like rivers as well as places of worship. In Assam, India, the Brahmaputra River acts as a physical and spiritual center around which tourism and religious activities emerge. This study examines the perceptions of local stakeholders on river-based religious tourism on Umananda Island in Guwahati. The study’s methodology combines quantitative survey analysis (descriptive statistics and chi-square tests) and qualitative (thematic coding) approaches. The findings reveal that religious tourism is perceived as a source of income, cultural pride, and environmental concern by community members, boat operators, and temple officials. Nonetheless, issues with waste management, riverbank erosion, and seasonal variations in visitor numbers continue. Based on the tourist records of the Sri Umananda Temple Management Committee’s (2024) and Assam Tourism data, tourist arrivals are peak between November and February, but fall drastically during the rainy season, demonstrating strong seasonality (Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, 2022). The study highlights the potential for sustainable management through conservation initiatives such as the Golden Langur Relocation Program, integrated waste management, and stakeholder coordination. In the global context, Umananda Island forms a part of rapidly growing religious tourism sector, expected to reach USD 254.3 billion by 2030. This highlights the potential for integrating environmental stewardship, cultural preservation and economic development.