Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani visited Nadabet on India-Pakistan border and inspected various border tourism development works under the ‘Seema Darshan’ project. It is being developed at an estimated cost of Rs 125 crore and is expected to be completed before 15 August, 2021. Under this project, the Gujarat Tourism Corporation has completed the work of shelter development near Nadeshwari Mata temple. Tourism amenities are being developed in four phases.

Highlighting the importance of yoga on International Yoga Day, Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State for Tourism & Culture (I/C), said, “We know that the discussion around the world regarding mental health as well as post-Covid wellness – if anyone has a permanent solution for that it is India – whether it is in the form of Yoga, Ayurveda or Ayush.”

Despite the adverse impact of the pandemic, Thomas Cook India (TCIL) has witnessed sequential business recovery during the last nine months of fiscal 2021. This has resulted in sequential reduction in operating losses. The fund infusion TCIL received from its parent Fairfax of Rs 436 crore of optionally convertible cumulative redeemable preference shares during March 2021 has also mitigated impact of operating losses and provided support to its liquidity. Madhavan Menon, Managing Director, Thomas Cook (India), said, “The reaffirmation of the rating from CRISIL is a reassurance of our sound business fundamentals and financial management, despite the headwinds brought on by the pandemic. Factored in equally, is our strong brand equity and leadership positioning in the forex and travel businesses; as also the strong support from our parent Fairfax. Our consistent efforts at reimagining our businesses coupled with effective cost management have played a key role in navigating through the past 15 months and we will continue to focus on innovation and digitisation as we build momentum towards recovery.”    

The Resolution Plan submitted by the Jalan Kalrock Consortium for the corporate insolvency resolution of Jet Airways (India) Ltd was approved earlier today by the Hon’ble National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Mumbai Bench. The Consortium awaits the written order by the National Company Law Tribunal approving the Resolution Plan and shall inform all stakeholders on next steps for the revival of Jet Airways. NCLT asks the DGCA, Aviation Ministry to decide on slots within 90 days. A two-member bench of the NCLT pronounced its final ruling on the Kalrock Capital and Murari Lal Jalan consortium resolution plan for Jet Airways on June 22. Jalan had claimed that the consortium intends to get Jet back in the skies within four to six months of getting the approval. NCLT says the airline will have no historic right over landing slots.

The Yaas relief and health check-up camp organised by ETAA Eastern India Chapter in association with CAS, NatureMates and The Rotary Club of Calcutta (South Central) was completed smoothly in June 2021 in Mousuni Islands, Sunderbans despite the challenges of the bad weather, flooded roads, partial lockdown, and unavailability of public transport. Koushik Banerjee, Chapter Chairman (East India), says, “This couldn’t have happened without the co-operation of the forest department. The local people of Mousuni islands amazed us with their hospitality, humility and discipline.”

The Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) has announced that it will hold its national elections in July 2021 via electronic-voting for the safety of its members. The term for the team coming in this election would have been 2020-2022, but due to the delay this team will only have an effective term of 2021-2022. As per regular procedure, TAFI was supposed to have its national elections in 2020. However, due to COVID its chapter elections were delayed, which affected the national elections. The final dates will be announced soon.

Research is the very cornerstone of Phillip Island Nature Parks (Melbourne) operations, informing wildlife management and environmental programs within the Parks and helping us to understand and respond to threats to Phillip Island’s wildlife.   Phillip Island Nature Parks’ research program is diverse in scope, covering both terrestrial and marine domains. Its functions include producing evidence-based information to guide the development of policy and wildlife management programs specific for Phillip Island, and with application regionally and internationally.   Our research team is an authority on little penguins, seals and other seabirds. Little penguin research on Phillip Island has been ongoing for over 50 years – one of the longest continuous seabird studies in the world.   In the 1980s, the future of the penguin population was uncertain. A housing estate on the peninsula was presenting many dangers to the colony; Little Penguins were being killed by cars, foxes, dogs and feral cats. Their habitat was being destroyed by houses, fire and weed invasion.   A scientific paper prepared by Phillip Island Nature Parks’ research staff predicted that, if nothing were done, the world’s most famous colony of Little penguins at the Penguin Parade could be extinct on Summerland Peninsula by the year 2000. This colony was the last remaining of the original 10 penguin colonies on Phillip Island prior to European settlement, and the findings set off alarm bells across the community and Government.   A major program of revegetation and regeneration commenced, and still continues today. The penguin colony began to rebuild and grew from 12,000 to 30,000 breeding birds. More and more of the Peninsula is being used for nesting as the penguin habitat is progressively re-established and …

Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) has appointed Deveekaa Nijhawan to lead the International PR and Communications team, to assist in marketing the destination in key markets as part of the country’s strategy to become a world-leading tourism destination.   Her remit covers key markets including India, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia and United Arab Emirates with a focus on engaging and penetrating travel trade and consumer media. Nijhawan is a senior PR professional with over 10 years’ experience in PR & Communications in the hospitality sector. Nijhawan says, “I am very excited to join QNTC and embrace this new challenge. I am looking forward to developing and implementing a holistic integrated PR and Communications strategy to position Qatar as a popular tourist destination, while promoting the country’s rich cultural heritage and diverse offerings.”   As part of the national strategy, Qatar National Vision 2030, QNTC is on a journey to welcome six million visitors a year by 2030, by improving and expanding the country’s tourism proposition with visitor experience at its core. Nijhawan will support the international marketing strategy, while Qatar continues to grow and improve tourism assets, enhance the end-to-end customer experience and invest in service excellence across every touchpoint.   She will execute QNTC’s tailored global communications campaigns, with a focus in key markets. Chief Operating Officer of Qatar National Tourism Council, Berthold Trenkel, says, “We are thrilled to welcome Deveekaa to the team. She will play a pivotal role in delivering our ambitious tourism development strategy. Her extensive PR and Communications experience and knowledge of global markets will help us engage with travellers as we prepare to welcome tourists back to Qatar.”   QNTC’s commitment to developing bespoke …

Representative heads of six travel trade associations from Gujarat met the State Tourism Minister Jawahar Chavda on June 8 to urge for support to the trade for survival and revival in these challenging times. The six associations include the state chapters of TAAI, TAFI, IATO, ADTOI and Global Travel Agent Association (GTAA) as well as state-specific trade association of Tour Operators & Travel Agents Association of Gujarat (TAG). The minister heard the delegation out and has promised to look into the issue.  

Members at a recent educational seminar conducted by Indiatourism Mumbai that was attended by more than 50 participants, requested to re-open e-visas for foreign tourists. NS Rathor, Chairman (Western Region), IATO, says, “Since international travellers start planning six months in advance, this would be the tight time to open up e-visas which would allow them to plan for the upcoming tourist season. It is important that our next steps are planned so that inbound tourism can open up smoothly and safely.”