The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is likely to provide a Rs 2,100 crore loan to the Tripura government for the development of urban areas and tourism in the state. Out of this, Rs 500 crore will be earmarked for tourism development.

Reuniting together, the members of Enterprising Knot of Travel & Tourism Associates (EKTTA) attended a workshop on ‘Facing the new normal’ at the State Convention Center (Lok Seva Bhavan) in Bhubaneswar. The workshop was organised by Odisha Tourism in association with Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management, Bhubaneswar, Odisha.  

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Alitalia organised a webinar for the Indian travel trade, where Aldo D’elia, Regional Manager, East Europe & Asia-Pacific, Alitalia, shared that Indian travel trade partners are important to them. “The pillar in the coming weeks would be flexibility and safety, which is our priority. Alitalia will be launching its Delhi-Rome flights I  March 2021.

Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel has said that the Medical and Wellness tourism is rapidly growing in the country and more than 130 countries around the world are competing for a pie of this global business. “The total number of inward medical tourists doubled in a span of just three years in India,” he said.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has said that pursuant to Supreme Court orders on ticket refund, 74.3% of total 55,23,940 PNRs amounting to Rs 3,200 crore have been refunded till now. Rest of the refunds are under process. 2,06,119 credit shells worth Rs 219 crore are created by airlines with consent of passengers, the Ministry said.

WTTC has urged that international travel can resume using proven processes without waiting for COVID vaccinations. “Waiting for vaccine and making it a requirement for travel will further delay the revival of the already ailing travel and tourism sector,” it said.  

Virgin Atlantic has cancelled its plans to start flights from Manchester to India due to COVID situation. The were scheduled to start from January 2021 from Mumbai and Delhi. Any customer who made their bookings through a third party or travel agent, should contact the airline directly.  

Tony Fernandes, CEO, AirAsia Group has confirmed that his company is reviewing its AirAsia India partnership with Tata Group. “We are in discussion with TATA group right now on whether to put money to continue business in India or expand to ASEAN. There will be some announcements soon,” he said during a CAPA Live session.

To motivate stakeholders to promote tourism destinations in the country, the Ministry of Tourism (MOT) has modified the guidelines of the Marketing Development Assistance (MDA) scheme for the promotion of domestic tourism. The new guidelines has made availing the scheme simpler with liberal norms and more financial assistance to eligible stakeholders such as tour operators, hotels and aggregators.