Rajasthan Government has signed 20 Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) for projects worth over Rs 963.65 crores to develop tourism and hospitality industry in the state. Apart from these 31 MoUs were also signed and these projects are expected to generate 26,678 jobs in the sectors of Industry, Agriculture, Urban Development & Housing (UDH), Mining and Tourism. The proposal received for the projects are spread all over the state like Jaipur, Bikaner, Alwar, Neemrana, Kota, Baran, Sawai Madhopur,  Udaipur, Kishangarn, Jodhpur, Pushkar, Masuda (Ajmer district), Chittorgarh, Mordi (Banswara district), among others. The MoU signing ceremony was presided over by Vasundhara Raje, Chief Minister, Government of Rajasthan. Raje said that during the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit, they signed 295 MoUs amounting to Rs 3.21 lakh crores cutting across sectors. She added that the aim of the state is to keep the momentum going and continue to facilitate investment in the state. The state government has already cleared investment proposals worth Rs. 12,493 crores in the past two years. It has also cleared investment proposals worth Rs. 4,452.81 crores since the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit in November 2015.

Starting April 1, Thai Airways will operate additional daylight flight TG324-TG323, on the Delhi-Bangkok route, increasing frequency to 19 flights a week from 18 flights previously. The price for this flight starts from Rs 12,437++. The new day flight will offer greater options to passengers travelling to Australia and Auckland. The late night flight, TG316 will operate with aircraft type 773 offering capacity of 34 seats in Business and 330 seats in economy, early morning flight TG332 will operate with aircraft type 787 offering capacity of 24 seats in business and 240 seats in Economy and day light flight TG 324 will operate with 777-200 offering capacity of 30 seats in business and 279 seats in Economy.  Total capacity per week will be 5941 seats from Delhi. THAI is currently operating from 6 cities in India i.e. Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai and Banglaore offering 52 flights a week. The airline also operates seasonal flights from Gaya and Varanasi between October-March. “It is our endeavour to ensure that our passengers enjoy a comfortable and happy journey on Thai, we are constantly working to improve our service as per changing demands and customer’s expectations, from upgrading aircrafts to world class ground services at Suvarnbhumi airport, changing F&B options as per service route requirements, entertainment and shopping on board; convenience of web purchase and online services, THAI is dedicated to customer satisfaction,” said Viset Sontichai, Director Thai Airways for India Subcontinent.

IndiGo has launched three new daily non-stop flights on the Delhi–Dehradun route, and will further connect Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad as a one stop flight. Fares for Delhi to Dehradun flight is Rs 1,126, while Mumbai to Dehradun via Delhi would cost Rs 4,069, Bengaluru to Dehradun via Delhi fare is Rs 5,078, Hyderabad to Dehradun via Delhi is Rs 4,253. Dehradun is not IndiGo’s 35th domestic and 40th overall destination. The airport at Dehradun, the state capital of Uttrakhand, also serves as the gateway to nearby cities of Mussoorie, Haridwar and Rishikesh. The airline has also connected Chennai to Bengaluru and Kolkata to Jaipur with its third flight, while also commencing additional daily non-stop flights between Kolkata and Delhi, Hyderabad and Chennai, Delhi and Bengaluru, Delhi and Chennai, Bengaluru and Thiruvananthapuram & Pune and Thiruvananthapuram. In addition, IndiGo will also connect Jaipur to Hyderabad with the launch of its second daily non-stop flight, with effect from March 15, 2016. Fares for Chennai to Bengaluru flight is Rs 1,674, Kolkata to Delhi Rs 4,036, Hyderabad to Chennai Rs 2,129, and Delhi to Chennai Rs 3,633.

With effect from March 21, 2016, Jet Airways will launch a new daily flight between Delhi and Muscat, Oman, at fares starting Rs 15, 782. The addition of this new flight from the airline’s strategic hub in Delhi will further strengthen the airline’s growing international network and enhance flight connectivity from Northern India, SAARC and ASEAN and to the Gulf region. India and Oman are linked by historical maritime trade linkages and the important role of the Indian expatriate community in the development of Oman. With the launch of the new flight, Jet Airways will operate a total of four daily flights between India and Muscat. This includes flights from Mumbai, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. Gaurang Shetty, Senior Vice-President, Commercial, Jet Airways, said, “It is indeed a proud moment for us at Jet Airways to launch our maiden international flight between Delhi and Muscat. This is a significant milestone for enhancing the strong ties between India and the Sultanate of Oman. With the launch of this flight, Jet Airways guests from Northern India, SAARC and ASEAN regions will have the option of travelling to Oman via Delhi.” The airline will deploy a Boeing 737-800 aircraft on these new services, offering Premiere and Economy guests an in-flight product that is among the best in its class, warm service, as well as delectable cuisine and convenient schedules.

The Delhi Government is going to rationalise taxes in the tourism sector and major announcement regarding this can be expected in the upcoming Delhi Budget 2016-17, said Kapil Mishra, Delhi Tourism Minister. He also revealed that the Government is working on a major Delhi Festival, a 15 day long cultural event in Delhi to be held in the month of November on the lines of Dubai Festival. The Delhi Government will start major destination branding activity this year as well. “We have completely changed our event organising policy and are also planning 10 smart streets which will be made into tourist hubs in the city. We are revamping all monuments. This year a massive and aggressive Delhi branding will be launched. We are working on rationalising the taxes and this budget will bring good news for the industry,”  he said while addressing the HRANI Conclave on February 27, 2016 at Le Meridien, New Delhi. The HRANI Conclave addressed issues of hoteliers and restaurateurs of Delhi and put across suggestions to the Delhi Tourism Minister. Luv Malhotra, President, HRANI, said, “There are three primary issues which we are addressing with the Tourism Minister at an open forum. The Luxury tax levied is a major issue. The exorbitant charges on environment tax which we have to pay as restaurateurs and hoteliers for which discussions are on in the court and ease of doing business are other issues.” Malhotra mentioned that as of present the industry requires 40 odd  licences, certifications and clearances to function which are only 5 when compared to countries like China and Malaysia. The Minister further added that the Government is keen to work closely with the Tourism and Hospitality industry to …

Kerala Tourism’s Muziris Heritage Project, a conservation undertaking based on archaeological findings on the ancient Spice Route linking India’s maritime contacts with contemporary ancient civilisations, has been inaugurated by President of India Pranab Mukherjee in Kodungallur (Thrissur). Realising the cultural significance of this ancient maritime trade route, Kerala Tourism has launched the ‘Spice Route’ tourism initiative linking 41 countries in Asia and Europe with India, particularly Kerala. The President also released a coffee table book on the Spice Route, which in first-ever by a tourism board, is also available on Kindle. Addressing the gathering at the launch, Mukherjee said that the project should spread the message of Indian cosmopolitanism far and wide adding to the country’s soft power across the world. “Kerala has through the ages demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt to new traditions and values in every sphere of human thought and endeavour. Participation of people in planning and implementation of the project will further ensure full utilisation of the economic and employment prospects that growth in tourism will bring to the region,” he said. Kerala Minister for Tourism A.P. Anilkumar said the Muziris project would open doors to the immense opportunities in educational tourism, which is a growing industry across the world. The project is an effort to conserve and showcase a culture that had existed for over 3,000 years, when Kerala had established itself as a major centre of spice trade with the ancient port of Muziris as its hub. The port was the centre of trade between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean regions. Also present on this occassion were Governor of Kerala Justice P. Sathasivam and Chief Minister of Kerala Oommen Chandy.

Sarovar Hotels & Resorts has opened a brand new property ‘Kalyan Hometel’ in Vandalur-Chennai. A contemporary business hotel, with 108 rooms and suites, was formally launched by Anil Madhok, Managing Director, Sarovar Hotels & Resorts. The room rates start at Rs 3,450++. Speaking on the occasion, Madhok said, “The existing demand-supply gap in this industrial town offers huge opportunity for hospitality brands. This allows us great prospect for our brand Hometel which is designed to provide unmatched facilities at value for money price. We are happy to associate with the Kalyan Grand Stay Pvt. Ltd. who is taking initiative to invest and promote this destination which has great potential. Hotels in Tier II and III cities are seeing major hospitality developments and will continue to be some of the most attractive locations for our future investments. Some of our new openings this year include Sarovar Portico hotels in Dehradun, Bhavnagar, Bengaluru and Raipur and we will be soon reaching out to newer destinations like Amritsar and Greater Noida.” K. Saravana Prakash, Managing Director, Kalyan Grand Stay Pvt. Ltd., said, “Facilities at the hotel include an all-day dining with bar and a fitness centre compliment the overall guests experience. Banquet & conference spaces along with business centre make it a perfect venue to host trainings, workshops, product launches, exhibitions, weddings and other social events. We are glad to partner with Sarovar Hotels & Resorts and we look forward to providing a memorable stay to business travellers to Vandalur”.

Highly dissatisfied with the Union Budget,  Sunil Kumar, President, Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), says tourism has been again been put on the back burner. “It is a big tragedy for an industry that has so much to offer many countries of the world. Wonder when India will consider this industry as an important economic success strategy.” Kumar reiterates that the budget does not meet up to the expectations of the industry, which has been projecting innovation with wide reforms and a more dynamic India. “There were expectations on Service Tax reliefs; boost to tourism sector; incentives for foreign exchange earnings, and these appear to have missed out. The income tax relief should have been on most classes, but is only done for lower slabs. The focus on Voluntary Disclosure is not too strategic and may not yield good results. Whatever must happen in the areas of travel, tourism and aviation, will not be dependent on this budget at all. In fact, the new 0.5% cess is going to add liability to all. The new budget has hardly any positive impact on our industry, which is sad,” he says. “For Travel industry to grow, especially during a time when the challenges are too many and the industry does require a boost, government must address the issues concerned, including sustainability. For this industry being a very large employer of people and generator of huge revenues for government in the form of taxes, government’s attention is rather disappointing,” Kumar added. Unless the government firmly reviews the challenges of all stakeholders in this industry, it will not be able to support the growth that is available in plenty. The TAAI President says …

Guldeep Singh Sahni, President, Outbound Tour Operators Association of India (OTOAI), says the only positive point in the Budget is making non-functional airports operational. “It is a very neutral budget, and there is nothing in it for the tourism industry. The only positive point is that the government is considering making non-functional airports operational, which would give a boost to inbound tourism. However, nothing substantial is there for the travel industry,” he says.

Rajan Sehgal, President (Northern Region), Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), said, “There is hardly anything for the travel industry in this budget. The only positive thing in this Budget is that the Finance Minister has addressed the connectivity issue by saying that there are 160 airstrips in India which can be developed. Many small destinations are not easily accessible for tourists and this announcement would give fillip to domestic tourism. We are still waiting for more details. However, there is no direct mention of anything positive for the tourism industry.”