Travel and hotel booking website Tripadvisor faced flak online after one of its tours went viral online. Titled “New Delhi Slum Walking Tour”, the walk aims to familiarise tourists with slum life in the Sanjay Colony. Priced at Rs 1800, the tour has been accused of capitalizing on the poor and their lifestyle for monetary benefit.
The walk is listed on the PayTM Insider app, and was first spotted by a Twitter user, Tanisha Sodhi, who shared a screenshot of the walk’s description. “Learn about the struggles of some of Delhi’s poorest inahibtants, and discover the rich culture and sense of community that has emerged among residents,” reads a part of the description.
While some users were enraged and thought this was “poverty for sale”, others spoke about how a walk like this will give more visibility to these areas. It is important to maintain the dignity of the residents in these places and observe without being intrusive, a detail that is also mentioned in the walk’s description.
Other users even spoke about how Tripadvisor should extend the benefits from the proceeds of this walk to the residents of Sanjay Colony. Overall, users were unhappy with how the company was making money off of some people’s misery.
What do you think of this walk? Does it capitalise on poverty or actually help the poor?
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