Apropos of the news story, “VNY needs to go beyond regular destinations” (THT, May 25, Page 12), it is good to see tourism heavyweights throwing their weight behind VNY 2020, which is curiously peeping at us from just around the corner. We are still debating about 100 new destinations and new experiences from the same old places. By now, we should have been promoting them by inviting international media and tour operators to these new destinations and experiences. Since we are not running the VNY 2020 campaign for a national record or public amusement, we should also decide the additional revenue we want to earn from two million tourists. Rather than counting heads, it would be good if we can start counting billions of dollars. While eleventh-hour debates and brainstormings rage on, the most important questions remain. What would the tourists lose if they decide to give VNY 2020 a miss? Aren’t they the primary stakeholders? What would they lose by not visiting in 2020? What additional value would they get for helping make 2020 a grand success? Would they be rewarded with monetary compensation on their trip? For instance, will there be a visa waiver? Meanwhile, the government must promote 100 new destinations like Bardia National Park without any further delay. As everyone is aware, Bardia National Park is a great wildlife destination, but it has not seen more than 20,000 tourists a year, many of them domestic, for the past 30 years. How will VNY 2020 increase the tourist flow to this and other such destinations? Will the government build an airfield to cater to visitors to Bardia? It should not take more than a few months to put up a Meghauly-like airstrip here. Or, will airlines give 75 per cent rebate on the Nepalgunj flight, the nearest airport to Bardia, and a free shuttle service to the park, courtesy of the federal, provincial or local government? We can run successive VNY campaigns in the future focussing on Yoga and Meditation tourism, as suggested by a hotel industrialist. This time, we can focus solely on the promotion of wildlife tourism, which has also been suggested by tourism experts. Manohar Shrestha, Kathmandu Free camp This is with reference to the news story “Gandaki Province govt runs free health camp for senior citizens” (THT, May 26, Page 3). The provincial government has allocated Rs 6.6 million to run free health camps targeting the senior citizens in 11 districts. While it may seem like a novel initiative to launch such a programme for the senior citizens, it would be even better if the concerned ministry allocated the same budget to all the health posts/ centres in all the districts to run it on a regular basis. Free health camps are run occasionally, and all senior citizens may not be able to avail the services whenever they need them the most. If the same budget is earmarked to the concerned health posts/ centres, they can provide the same quality of services to the targeted group in a hassle-free manner. Aabha Poudel, Pokhara