To say that virtual events will take over is a myth, feels Sandeep Nagpal, VP & Head of Marketing, Cvent India. He says, “Virtual will go hybrid. While physical events will happen, the same events will be viewed by thousands virtually. That is an opportunity both for planners as well as hotels. There are a lot of venues in the world that are transforming themselves into hybrid venues.”

Encouraging his members to register themselves with MoT and as MSMEs, Jitul Mehta, Chairman, Western India, TAFI, says, “I have been talking about MoT and MSME since the last five years. These topics are very close to my heart and I shall continue to focus on them for our members. There are benefits in terms of the government schemes for accredited tourism entities and how MSME registration can help them obtain business loans at a lower rate with minimum documentation. Being registered as a MSME could also help to recover outstandings from corporates.”

Representatives from ‘Invest India’ gave a brief presentation on their tourism vision plan they are jointly developing with Ministry of Tourism at the recent ‘Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav’ that took place in Ladakh. The presentation included short, medium and long-term plans for various segments such as adventure and wellness tourism in Ladakh.

Principal Secretary, Tourism, Surendra Kumar visited the newly-constructed Nimantran restaurant in Bhubaneshwar and reviewed the preparation. The soon to be inaugurated restaurant is an initiative of Odisha Tourism to promote Odia cuisine. The restaurant chain will be operated by Odisha Tourism Development Corporation through a dedicated wing.

RARE India has added 18 new hotels, of which seven are based in North and West India, five in South and Western Ghats while six hotels are located in the North Hills, Terai, East India and the Himalayas. With these additions, RARE India now has 86 hospitality and destination brands across 18 states in the Indian subcontinent, all of which offer experiential stays and immersions that place a great emphasis on community engagement and strive to preserve and protect the planet. The new hotels and experiences in the RARE India Community include: North & West:Khem Villas in Ranthambhore (Rajasthan); Premkunj in Udaipur (Rajasthan); Dera Amer near Jaipur (Rajasthan); Killa Bhawan in Jaisalmer (Rajasthan); Mihir Garh near Jodhpur (Rajasthan); Rohet Garh near Jodhpur (Rajasthan); The Rohet House in Jodhpur (Rajasthan) South & Western Ghats:Gratitude Heritage, Kariappa House and Grand Hotel D’Europe in Puducherry; Dhole’s Den in Bandipur (Karnataka); Cabo Serai in Cabo de Rama (Goa) North Hills, Terai, East & Himalayas: Karan Mahal in Srinagar (Jammu & Kashmir); The Apricot Tree Hotel in Nurla (Ladakh); Atali Ganga in Rishikesh (Uttarakhand); The Mandala House in Devprayag (Uttarakhand); Neeralaya in Manali (Himachal Pradesh); Ging Tea House in Darjeeling (West Bengal) Shoba Mohan, Founder, RARE India, said, “We worked away through the pandemic lockdowns, creating value and awareness for the RARE India Community hoping that when the world opens up for travel, our community of hotels, carefully chosen for their experiences and attitude towards sustainable luxury and community engagement, will be known globally and will be on the travel-list of Indian travellers discovering their own country and the subcontinent. This not only meant stepping up our marketing strategy to improve sales but also create better distribution of our hotels and …

The Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT) Abu Dhabi will be organising a webinar titled, ‘Rediscover MICE in Abu Dhabi’ on Tuesday 7th September, 2021 at 3pm IST. One of the panelists on the webinar is Roula Jouny, Executive Director, Tourism 365. Speaking about their focus, she said, “Post COVID, we see a huge potential to develop the MICE business to Abu Dhabi from India following the strategic partnership between the two countries, the frequency of the accessibility of the destination through both airlines Etihad and Emirates as well as the important commercial exchange between the two countries.”

M!CEtalk Digital Conclave, powered by Cvent India, on rebooting Indian MICE landscape will be held on 25th August, 2021 at 11am. Panelists include Nikhil Desai, MD, Goa Tourism Development Corporation; Sabbas Joseph, Founder-Director at Wizcraft International Entertainment; Rajdev Bhattacharya, Global Head (Travel & Hospitality) & Business Head, WAY2GO and GM, Global Travel Services, Wipro; Arif Patel, Regional VP, Sales & Marketing, Hyatt India; and Sandeep Nagpal, VP & Head of Marketing, Cvent India. To register write to jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call 9650196532.        

TAAI recently organised its first virtual workshop on wellness and tourism through its initiative, Women in TAAI and Travel (WITT). Rolled out only last month, WITT’s membership has now reached 300. Keeping in mind the issues and challenges faced by the women in the industry, WITT decided to organise its first workshop on wellness. Jyoti Mayal, President, WITT & TAAI said, “Within a woman is the power to create, nurture, and transform. We should remember that wellness is not simply the absence of illness or stress, but a broad practice of internal and external behaviours even when experiencing challenges.”  

The Department of Tourism, Odisha held a kick-off meeting on the preparation of an integrated tourism Master Plan for Chilika at Paryatan Bhawan. The tourism department has engaged Oman-based Bharath Engineering Innovation Design & Consulting to prepare this plan. This will include developing new tourism products like cruises at Chilika Lake, Hirakud Reservoir, Mahanadi River and Bhitarkanika. Shacks at prominent beach destinations are also being operationalised.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman has launched the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) that will include the government’s four-year plan to monetise its brownfield infrastructure assets. For this project, the Centre has finalised Rs 6 lakh crore worth infrastructure assets that will be monetised. The list includes a range of assets. Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, has said, “15 railway stadiums, 25 airports and the stake of central government in existing airports will be up for monetisation.”