A novel GIS-based MCDM approach to identify the potential eco-tourism sites in the Eastern Dooars region (Himalayan foothill) of West Bengal, India

The present study was designed to assess the capability of the novel Multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method such as Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) along with Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) in identifying the potential site of ecotourism in the Eastern Dooars region of West Bengal, India. Two popular objective weighting methods such as Entropy and Criteria Importance through Interaction Correlation (CRITIC), were used to minimize the subjectivity of AHP methods. The suitability map obtained from these applied methods showed that the northern and north-eastern parts, namely Kalchini and Kumargram blocks, were identified as the highly suitable zone for ecotourism development. Finally, the obtained suitability map was validated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and Area Under Curve (AUC) analysis. The AUC value of ROC was more than 0.80 for all the applied methods, indicating the reliability of all the applied models.