Crackdown begins on illegal travel agencies in Odisha’s Puri

In a decisive step to protect tourists in the Puri pilgrimage town, police launched raids against unregistered and unauthorised tour and travel agencies on Tuesday. The crackdown follows multiple complaints of cheating and harassment, and aims to regulate the tourism sector with proper documentation and licensing.

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According to official sources, Puri Police has initiated a large-scale crackdown on illegal tour and travel agencies operating without valid registration or licenses. This is part of an effort to stop the exploitation of devotees and tourists coming to Puri, a concern that has grown with the unchecked mushrooming of such agencies in recent months.

Puri SP Pinak Mishra confirmed that the raids are being conducted based on some specific complaints. Many tourists have reported cases of misbehaviour, cheating, and overcharging, often at the hands of unauthorised operators.

Several individuals with no tourism background have opened travel agencies, some of whom are allegedly involved in anti-social activities. Police have found that many agencies lack trade licenses from the municipality or permission from the Tourism Department.

Raids are going on across different police station limits in the town, and SP Mishra stated that no official count of travel agencies currently exists with the police. However, all station heads have been directed to carry out checks in their jurisdictions.

The police have also announced that unregistered agencies will be given time to comply by registering and submitting all necessary documents. The primary objective is to ensure that tourists visiting popular destinations in Puri are not subjected to fraud or harassment.

The move has been welcomed by the residents, including temple servitors, who see this as a necessary step toward restoring discipline and dignity in Puri’s tourism scene.

“Based on specific complaints, we are verifying the tour and travel operators in Puri, who primarily book tickets or taxis and auto-rickshaws. The main aim of the crackdown is to curb the mushrooming of illegal tour and travel operators in every nook and corner of the town. We got complaints that tourists are being subjected to harassment,” the SP said.

“They (the tour and travel operators) are running it as a syndicate. We have directed the entire city police, who are carrying out raids in an organised manner,” the SP added.