India Tourism, Singapore, is organising a series of webinars cum B2B sessions titled ‘India Tourism Reconnect’ in the ASEAN region on March 11, 16 & 18, in line with the global vaccination drive. The aim is to reconnect the Indian tourism industry with stakeholders in key markets and start preparing for resumption of business as and when it is announced. The virtual meets will start on 11th March with a focus on Philippines followed by Malaysia (16th March) and Singapore (18th March). Apart from the MOT and State Tourism Organisations, leading tour operators, luxury hotel chains, river cruise and luxury train operators are also participating in the B2B session of the virtual event.

TAAI in association with Gujarat Tourism is organising the TAAI Tourism Conclave at Statue of Unity, Kevadia from 9-12 March. The Conclave scheduled today is aimed to bring members together and brainstorm on importance of Domestic travel & new ways & opportunities for the industry. Jyoti Mayal, President, TAAI said, “TAAI is constantly involved with the government to establish correct procedures & support our membership to adopt transformation & to continuously improve our ability to explore, achieve & prosper.”

In an interaction with Mario Hardy, CEO, PATA, while speaking on opening borders in 2021, Arvind Singh, Secretary, Tourism, said, “Yes, there will be some sort of reopening. It all depends on the result of vaccination programme in India and abroad. However, I am sure that at least there wold be a partial opening of some regions of the world in this calendar year.”

Ashok Institute of Hospitality & Tourism Management (AIH&TM), a certified hospitality training institute under India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), has introduced a tailor-made program in ‘Entrepreneurship Development’ exclusively designed for graduates in the tourism & hospitality industry. The programme was formally inaugurated by Arvind Singh, IAS, Secretary (Tourism) at a webinar hosted by ITDC. Singh, said, “ITDC’s initiative to create entrepreneurs under its Entrepreneurship Development Programme is a very timely and welcome initiative with the support of Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) under their organizations namely National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT) & National Institute of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD). All interested graduates, diploma holders, and professionals who have lost their jobs will be approached for enrolment under the programme. These are very tough times for the industry and we are working towards the revival of the sector. I wish the programme all success”. The webinar was convened by Shri. G. Kamala Vardhana Rao, IAS, C&MD, India Tourism Development Council (ITDC) and had in attendance eminent officials, including Atul Kumar Tiwari, IAS, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Neelam Shami Rao, IAS, DG, National Institute of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD) and Gyan Bhushan, CEO ,National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology  (NCHMCT). Motivational talks and experiences were shared by Sh. Ritesh Aggarwal CEO, OYO Rooms & Sh. Abhinav Balyan, MD&CEO, Educator Extraordinaire Ltd. Under the ‘Entrepreneurship Development Programme’, graduates from hotel management institutes as well as recently unemployed and other experienced hospitality professionals would be provided with the non-financial support for running catering or hospitality-related establishments (canteen/café, Event Management, Manpower Services, Banquet services, …

Sunil VA, Regional Vice President, ISC and APAC, Oman Air, has shared that it’s the perfect time to have this kind of an event and it’s a great start since there are many cricket enthusiasts in the trade who have gone through a lot in the last 7-8 months. Register on http://bit.ly/VisitBritainCricketCarnival or contact Vartik Sethi on vartik.sethi@ddppl.com or +91 83684 28139.

Radisson Hotel Group has launched Radisson Individuals in India with the opening of Classic Grande Imphal. “We are excited to enter this new partnership launching Radisson Individuals in India. The hotel’s strong service standards, matched by our global expertise and robust distribution will co-create unparalleled experiences for guests looking to travel to the beautiful city of Imphal,” said Zubin Saxena, Managing Director and Vice President, Operations, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group. Overlooking the majestic Baruni Twin Hills and ridges, Classic Grande Imphal, a member of Radisson Individuals features 171 uniquely designed rooms.

In a bid to bring back the economy to normalcy and kick start the tourism industry, Government of Sri Lanka is thinking of allowing vaccinated travellers a hassle and quarantine free entry to the country from mid of April, according to reports. Initially, as a precaution, vaccinated travellers may be required to produce a negative PCR result obtained within 48 hours prior to landing. Such travellers might be allowed to walk out as usual. Vaccinated travellers, without a PCR result with him/her will be required to obtain a PCR test upon arrival and could be transferred to a nearby quarantine transit hotel till his/her result is out. All arriving passengers, including Sri Lankan passengers, might go through the same process. To consider as a vaccinated passenger, he or she should have had both doses of vaccine, where the type of vaccine requires two doses .

Global Panorama Showcase (GPS) has launched a one-year long virtual exhibition, called GPS Connect, for global exhibitors and buyers from across India, which will start in April. Harmandeep Singh Anand, MD, GPS, shares, “It’s a year-long platform, and one can come for one-day or as many days they prefer. This virtual platform can culminate into a hybrid and physical event in future as well, as an when we require. Also, it will not be limited to just Tier-II and III agents, but will have buyers from across India. We have a following of over 50,000 travel professionals and we are expecting at least 8000-10,000 of them to register for the same. The buyers just need to do one-time registration, whereas the exhibitors would be from around the globe. Meetings can happen without any fear of getting COVID, as no one needs to travel.”

Talking about the GST refund for international travellers, Rupinder Brar, ADG, Tourism, revealed that as part of the statute, it has already been brought under the GST statute. “We have to wait for international travel to resume for putting the pilot in place. India also has GST refund for inbound travellers as a statutory provision, just like getting a VAT refund in some countries. Just before COVID happened, there was progress made in terms of enabling it, but because we had to shut our borders to inbound tourists, running a pilot wouldn’t have made sense. People need to travel in the country and shop,” she added.

Speaking at The Art of Travel roadshow in Delhi, Rajeev Kale, President & Country Head – Holidays, MICE, Visas, Thomas Cook India, said, “Corporates have realised the importance of physical MICE events. MICE is an art and this art is going to be experienced by travelling. There is no alternative to a physical MICE event. It will bounce back heavily and we need to be prepared for it.”