A delegation led by TAAI AP and Telangana Chairman Nagesh Pampati met Telangana Tourism Minister, V. Srinivas Goud and submitted representation seeking a revival package for the tourism industry. The minister has assured government support in reviving the sector. The delegation urged the minister and sought his support to advise the banks to offer tourism industry interest-free loans upto Rs 25 Lakhs to be repaid back in the next three financial years.

AirlinePros international is pleased to announce a partnership with Dex Group, an established name in India’s Travel & Tourism industry, with over 50 years of experience in Indian Aviation. This is extremely complementary to our existing network and significantly expand our presence in key cities across India. As the aviation industry makes a slow restart, partnerships are key to ensure sustainable growth, to provide superior results in terms of increasing revenues and reducing costs for all our existing and potential clients. Achma Asokan, CEO commented “Our vision to be the most trusted and innovative network for servicing the aviation industry involves global partnerships as the DNA that runs through our raison d’etre. Our local partners bring to AirlinePros International the opportunity to connect innovative ideas, cultural diversity, expertise and professionalism to add unparalleled value to AirlinePros, our Global Partners and Clients. We have been exceptionally fortunate to have continued our global expansion throughout the pandemic, adding many new relationships. So, our global teams are prepared and ready for the “Aviation Restart and Resurgence Phase.” Our India operations are particularly special due to the huge untapped potential that exists and the immense strengths of our partner, DEX Group, having been pioneers in the industry in India.” Ramesh Marwah, Director Dex Group commented, “We are proud to partner with AirlinePros and are extremely happy to join strengths with one of the most professional & globally recognized aviation network group. As a long-established business with a pan India presence, the opportunity to work with a global organization is a perfect fit for us both. For Dex Group to partner with AirlinePros seemed like an opportune move as our two organizations share similar values …

In a statement, IATO said that it is hugely disappointed that its request for rationalising GST and cascading impact it causes on the tourism industry was not even discussed in the GST Council meeting. The apex-inbound tourism association hoped that the government and GST council would sympathise and do its bit in providing relief to the tourism sector.

Uttarakhand Tourism Minister, Satpal Maharaj has set up a committee to find land for the construction of an international airport between Dehradun and Haridwar. The state Tourism Secretary has also been asked to examine procedures required for the construction of an international airport. Besides, District Magistrates of Dehradun and Haridwar have been asked to help the department during the process.

Vishwas Makhija, President, ATOAI has said that his association is finding ways forward to create new Chapters at the state level. “We have identified five states where we will go forward with our detailed Chapter formation and have ATOAI-representative on the ground in every state. There will be 2 liason each from the local association, state government and tourism authorities,” he said.

Kerala’s West Coast Canal project traversing through 11 districts is all set to be a tourism water highway. Around 50 tourism spots will be created along the banks of the WCC corridor from Kovalam in the south to Kasaragod in the north with the involvement of local bodies. The government aims to connect the existing canal network with the rest of the state.

The government has further enlarged the scope of the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ELGS) by including the aviation sector. The government also removed the loan outstanding ceiling of Rs 500 crore on sectors like hospitality, travel and tourism, leisure and sporting, and civil aviation, which means that even bigger entities with even higher outstanding loans in these sectors can avail of the ECLGS scheme.

Madhya Pradesh Forest Minister Vijay Shah has said that the state has reopened national parks and tiger reserves from June 1 till June 30. The parks and reserves were shut amidst COVID-19 restrictions for the last 2 months. He said that travellers will have to follow COVID-19 guidelines during their trip. Madhya Pradesh is home to several tiger reserves such as Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pench, Satpura and Panna.

Keeping in mind the prevailing tough times where the tourism sector has been one of the worst hits, the Outbound Tour Operators Association of India (OTOAI) has waived off the annual membership fee for the financial year 2021 – 22. The Association had reduced the fees by 50% for the financial year 2020 – 2021. The move is a testament of the fact that the association recognises and empathises with the challenges being faced by the outbound tour operators in India today.   Riaz Munshi, President, OTOAI said, “This is not the time to make money or fill up reserves. We understand the plight of our fellow industry colleagues and this gesture is our way of showing our solidarity to them. The outbound from India has been severely affected and it will indeed take a while before things go back to normal. The second wave has hit all businesses, especially tourism (which had started to pick a little in December / January) severely and different entry laws/requirements by different countries has made outbound travel very challenging. I would also like to urge people in the travel fraternity to get themselves vaccinated at the earliest possible so that whenever tourism opens, our customers do not hesitate to reach out to us and it will also send out a positive message to the world.”

Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), New Delhi office has announced its 1st virtual ‘Korea Travel Expo’ B2B event for India market from 22nd- 24th June 2021. Participants will get a chance to interact with over 15 top Regional Tourism Boards, Attractions and DMCs of Korea, which are already confirmed to exhibit in the event. The ‘Korea Travel Expo’ is aimed at reconnecting Indian travel agents to their previously known suppliers and also a variety of new exhibitors who are looking forward to connect with the Indian market for the very first time. Interested travel agents can register themselves at www.koreatravelexpo.com, email Jaspreet at jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call +91 9650196532.