Popular tourist spot Khajuraho shuts down as traders, guides call a strike

Khajuraho, one of the most popular tourist spots in Madhya Pradesh, has been experiencing a virtual shutdown since Wednesday. Reportedly, tour operators and tourist guides have called in a strike to protest for better rail and air connectivity.
Owing to the strike, the streets of this touristy place carried a deserted look, and foreign tourists were seen trying to get water from a pump in the town. While tourist guides were not assisting tourists, travel agents did not provide vehicles to travellers, thereby creating a lot of hassle for them.
Khajuraho located in Bundelkhand’s Chhatarpur district (which is around 370 km from Bhopal) is a popular spot among European tourists and is listed among the UNESCO World Heritage sites.
The prime focus of the protestors includes the demand to run high-speed trains like Vande Bharat Express, Shatabdi, or Gatiman to connect this region with other global tourist spots, such as Varanasi and Agra. The protestors are also demanding better air connectivity to Khajuraho, which can be done by converting the thrice-a-week Delhi-Varanasi-Khajuraho flight into a daily flight at affordable prices. Reportedly, the demands are being made to boost footfall of foreign tourists in the region, which has been registering a decrease for years.
Referring to this development, a travel agent stated that this indefinite strike was their last effort to save Khajuraho Tourism. However, the ASI (Archaeological Survey of India) head said that their prime work is to look after and preserve monuments and facilitate tickets to tourists, and that they don’t see any problem on the part of tourists in viewing the monuments.