Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) is offering various tourism services to Infosys employees in Pune at concessional basis. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated this first-of-its-kind project, MTDC’s Tourism Pavilion at Infosys in Pune. Valsa Nair Singh, IAS, Principal Secretary, Tourism & Cultural Affairs, Government of Maharashtra, said, “Over 40,000 IT employees work in this campus and this pavilion will provide various tourism-related services under the banner of MTDC, to them on a concessional basis. We plan to provide one-two day short tours on every weekend, special heritage tours, souvenir shop, air tickets, train tickets, passport and visa facilities, adventure tours, all kinds of travel kits, a travel lounge area, selfie point and an experience to wear various Maharashtrian traditional costumes. We can provide bookings for amusement parks, hot air balloon rides, MTDC-backed Asia’s first scuba diving institute (PADI), jungle safaris, the luxury heritage train Deccan Odyssey, Helicopter rides in Mumbai and the opportunity to experience festivals.” Paraag Jaiin Nainuttia, IAS, Managing Director, Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation highlighted “Sixty per cent of employee strength is not from Maharashtra. We found an opportunity to introduce those to one of the great states of our country. Our aim is to provide them the best tourism facilities. MTDC has already invested around Rs 25 lac to set up this infrastructure.”

The Philippines recorded 22,121 Indian tourist arrivals during January-March, 2016, indicating an increase of 23.7 per cent, over the same period last year. As per reports, the Department of Tourism (DOT) Philippines has confirmed that there were 6,943 Indian visitor arrivals in March 2016, registering a growth of 8.23 per cent over March 2015. SanJeet, Tourism Attaché, Philippines Tourism Marketing Office India, has attributed the growth to DOT’s continuous efforts to promote the various attractions of the Philippines under the ongoing Visit the Philippines Again (VPA) 2016 campaign. He said that the Philippines expects to maintain a healthy growth through the rest of the year and hopes to close the year with 25 per cent growth.

Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) based low-cost airline, Air Manas, formerly operating as Pegasus Asia, is all set to start its third flight on the Delhi-Bishkek route from June 14. The airline already has two flights a week to-and-fro from Delhi to Bishkek. The return fare for the Delhi-Bishkek route is around $249.99. The airline just conducted a roadshow in Delhi along with the Kyrgyzstan Embassy. Sharad C. Goel, MD, Lark Logistics, GSA of Air Manas in India, said, “Air Manas has been operating in India for the last one year. We will be starting the third flight between the two countries from June 14, 2016. The demand from India has been increasing for Kyrgyzstan, which is only about three hours from Delhi. In fact we provide further connections to Moscow and Istanbul from Bishkek, which works to our advantage.”

India’s domestic traffic soared 21.8 per cent, marking the 20th month of double-digit traffic growth and the 13th consecutive month it has led the domestic markets. Growth is being propelled by the comparatively strong economic backdrop as well as by substantial increases in service frequencies, according to International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) global passenger traffic data for April. Demand for domestic travel climbed 4.1 per cent in April compared to April 2015, while capacity increased 3.8 per cent, causing load factor to rise 0.3 percentage points to 81.4 per cent. All markets reported demand increases with the exception of Brazil, which showed a 12.1 per cent decline, reflecting the country’s ongoing economic recession and political turmoil.  

A new tax called Krishi Kalyan Cess (KKC) will be levied at 0.5% on all taxable value of services with effect from June 1, 2016. Just like Swachh Bharat Cess (SBC), KKC shall be chargeable on the value of services and not on service tax. This means that along with 0.5% of KKC the effective service tax rate will become 15% on taxable service. The Krishi Kalyan Cess will not be leviable on services which are exempt from levy of Service tax as well as on services on which service tax is not leviable. In case there is any abatement or partial exemption available to a service, KKC shall be leviable on such amount which is arrived after deduction of said abatement or partial exemption. Service tax, SBC and KKC will have to be shown separately on the invoice. Separate accounting codes for payment of KKC will be released The central government seeks to levy and recover KKC @0.5% on value of outstanding amounts as on June 1, 2016. TAAI has advised all its members to collect their outstanding dues from their clients at the earliest and latest by May 31, 2016 to avoid recovery of additional 0.5% of KKC.

Singapore-based budget carrier Tigerair has announced a special ‘Fly to Singapore for free’ offer for Indian travellers on booking a round-trip fare that allows flyers to fly out of India to Singapore at discounted rates. The special round-trip fares have been announced for five Indian routes: Bengaluru (Rs 10999), Kochi (Rs 8,999), Hyderabad (Rs 9,999), Tiruchirappalli (Rs 9,999) and Lucknow (Rs 10,999). The offer is valid from 30 May, 2016 till 8 June, 2016. The applicable travel period for the offer is from 11 July, 2016 to 30 September, 2016. Commenting on the offer Leslie Thng, Chief Commercial Officer, Tigerair and Scoot said, “We are pleased to add on to the monsoon cheers in India and host our passengers. This offer is an example of how we strive to provide an added value for money to passengers through such promotions which makes their international trips more affordable. It reaffirms Tigerair as the most valuable airline of choice to fly to Singapore and across our vast network.”

Meenakshi Sharma, a 1988 batch officer of the IA&AS, has been appointed as Additional Director General, Ministry of Tourism for a period of five years. She will replace Usha Sharma, a 1985 batch IAS officer of Rajasthan cadre.

Madhya Pradesh Tourism has been sanctioned Rs 98 crores for wildlife circuit project, and Rs 75 crore for Buddhist circuit under the Swadesh Darshan scheme of the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. Tanvi Sundriyal, Additional Managing Director, Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation informs, “We have been sanctioned Rs 98 crores for Wildlife Circuit, Rs 75 crores for Buddhist circuit and Rs 98 crores in principle for Heritage circuit.” Sundriyal informs, “Wildlife circuit is the one in which we are adding value to the people visiting the wildlife places by giving them something extra. Buddhist Circuit looks at infrastructure development in various Buddhist oriented sites in Madhya Pradesh. These two have been completely approved but the third one, the Heritage circuit has got an in-principle approval. The places which fall under this circuit are Orchha, Khajuraho, Gwalior, Chanderi, Mandu and lesser known destinations in and around these places.”

Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC) has launched the revamped version of its official website www.delhitourism.gov.in. Keeping in mind previous year’s overarching theme of World Tourism Day, “One Billion Tourists – One Billion Opportunities,” DTTDC refurbished its website to attract more number of visitors to its website and encourage them to visit the city to explore the city and thus increase tourism in the state. The new look for DTTDC website was launched today by Padmini Singla, MD & CEO, DTTDC along with other senior officials of DTTDC at DTTDC Headquarters. Singla said, “Dotted with historical monuments and ruins, there is a lot that Delhi can boast about. The new look for Delhi Tourism official website will not only provide ease of access but will encourage tourists to plan their trip as per their preference.” The website’s features, such as ‘About the city, How to travel, Modes of transportation available, Best season to visit, Hangout zones, Cuisines, Events, Accommodations, Planning Itinerary, Packages, HO-HO Bus Service, Historic and Heritage Places to visit, Regular Walks & Tours, Museums and Dilli Haats, besides various other properties of Delhi Tourism like Garden of Five Senses, Azad Hind gram, GTB Memorial, etc. The e-commerce based booking services for the national & international packages offered by DTTDC and its travel partner provides various services like booking of Air Fare, Booking of Accommodation, booking of Car/Coaches, booking of Tour Packages & providing Travel Insurance. Downloadable Tourist Literature & Informations about the city and Photo Galleries to enable visitors to become acquainted with the city and encourage them to explore the rich heritage and magnificent monuments, savour various Indian delicacies and thus increasing tourism within the city. …

The Fern Hotels & Resorts has announced the opening of The Fern Hillside Resort, Bhimtal, a premium Resort nestled in the hills of Bhimtal and overseeing Bhimtal Lake. The resort offers 30 spacious rooms with a contemporary design. The room rates start from Rs 2250 plus taxes. All rooms are spacious and offer a beautiful view of the surrounding hills, equipped with all modern amenities required for a comfortable stay; the resort also offers a multi-cuisine restaurant, a meeting space, in-door activity options such as Pool Table, Table Tennis, board games. The Resort also arranges for adventure sport activities such as rappelling, river crossing, rock climbing, kayaking, paragliding, trekking and boating. Located in the pristine hills of Bhimtal at about 30 minutes drive i.e 20 kms from Nainital Lake and a short 5 minutes drive i.e 2 kms from Bhimtal Lake. Other places of interest include – Ghorakhal Temple, Kainchi Temple, Naukuchiatal and Sattal are all in close proximity to the resort. The unit is owned and promoted by Pawar Hotels and Resorts. The hotel is managed by Concept Hospitality, part of CG Hotels and Resorts portfolio.