Category Archives: Associations

Curtain Raiser Event for ATOAI’s 16th Annual Convention Concludes Successfully Co Hosted by the Department of Tourism Govt of Arunachal Pradesh. The Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) hosted an inspiring Curtain Raiser for its 16th Annual Convention at The Park Hotel, New Delhi, setting the stage for an extraordinary event scheduled to take place in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh, from 3 to 8 December, 2024. This evening’s event highlighted Arunachal Pradesh’s vast potential as a global adventure tourism hub while emphasising ATOAI’s commitment to sustainability and responsible tourism practices. The event began with an engaging address by Ajeet Bajaj, President, ATOAI, who emphasised the transformative potential of sustainable adventure tourism. “Arunachal Pradesh is India’s Last Shangri-La and our next big adventure destination. This convention will set the stage for responsible adventure tourism and showcase how sustainability is the future of our industry. This convention promises to be a milestone event, further positioning Arunachal Pradesh and North East India at the forefront of adventure tourism in India and the world,” he remarked. This sentiment was echoed by Oken Tayeng, MLA and Convention Chairperson, who called Arunachal “a playground of possibilities” and underlined the need for a sustainable roadmap to unlock its adventure tourism potential. Adding to the evening’s momentum, Arun Srivastava, Joint Director General, Ministry of Tourism, highlighted the importance of collaboration in developing adventure tourism in India. He noted, “India’s natural assets make it a top contender for global adventure tourism and Arunachal is a shining gem of the country.” Ranphoa Ngowa, Secretary of Tourism, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, further emphasised the state’s readiness to host global adventure seekers, pointing out its unique combination of untouched rivers, dense forests …

Peter Semone, Chair, PATA said, “To boost IVAs in Asia Pacific, we need to prioritise India & China as source markets as these markets offer greater potential than traditional Western sources. He identified South East Asia as a key emerging market. Meanwhile, PATA Travel Mart 2025 will be held from 26-28 August in Bangkok, Thailand.

During FHRAI’s HR Summit, KB Kachru, President, HAI, highlighted that India sends 30 mn outbound tourists but receives only 10 mn inbound which is a mix of NRIs and Bangladeshi, three times lesser than other countries. “To make India inevitable, we should aim for much higher inbound numbers in coming years,” he said.

The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI), the third largest hospitality association in the world, in collaboration with the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT) and the Hotel & Restaurant Association of Northern India (HRANI), successfully hosted the HR Summit on Education and Career in Hospitality on 14th November, 2024 at Hotel Le Meridien, New Delhi. The event was inaugurated by Gyan Bhushan, IES, CEO, NCHMCT, and brought together over 200 industry leaders, educators, and government representatives to discuss the future of hospitality education and career opportunities in India. FHRAI hosted the HR Summit with over 200 industry leaders, educators, and government representatives. The summit focused on major challenges in hospitality, such as the shortage of skilled workers, low student enrolment, and high employee turnover. FHRAI shared a report on the key challenges facing India’s hospitality sector. Discussions emphasised the need for collaboration between industry, educational institutions, and the government to close the skills gap and build a stronger workforce. The summit had three important sessions on career opportunities, improving enrolment and retention, and managing human resources in hospitality. FHRAI, NCHMCT, and HRANI discussed the importance of skill development, as the hospitality sector is expected to create millions of new jobs in the future. The summit focused on key challenges including the shortage of skilled workers, low enrolment in hospitality courses, and high employee attrition rates. Stakeholders discussed strategies to address these issues, including improving the quality of hospitality education, bridging the skills gap, and creating more sustainable career pathways for aspiring professionals. Gyan Bhushan, IES, CEO, NCHMCT & Senior EA(T), Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, said, “I believe today marks a truly …

Referring to the manpower shortage in the Indian hospitality sector at the FHRAI’s HR Summit, Pradeep Shetty, VP, FHRAI said that many skilled employees have exited the industry after the COVID-19 pandemic. “A workforce gap remains, with an estimated need for an additional 100,000–150,000 skilled workers annually,” he said, adding that with projections for India’s hospitality industry to nearly double by 2029, reaching an estimated value of $475.37 billion, we have tremendous growth potential.

Sharing news about expanding SKAL India reach, Sanjeev Mehra, President of SKAL India, shares “We want to expand across India with a focus on eastern India like Guwahati, Siliguri, Patna and Ranchi. We are also looking at cities like Srinagar and Surat which are already registered. Ahmedabad is also coming up. We also have few more pockets in South India where we are coming up with more clubs. We are also looking Amritsar as another point in Punjab.”

According to its secretary general, MP Bezbaruah, the Hotel Association of India is considering asking the government to provide incentives to small hotel operators for adopting sustainability practices. While big luxury and five-star operators are leading the way on this front, the smaller members of HAI are lagging behind due to the cost of taking up the initiatives.

Praising FHRAI’s new Centre of Excellence, Pradeep Shetty, President of FHRAI, says, “This has been a long-standing desire of our federation, as we have often faced challenges when approaching the government regarding policy issues, regulatory bottlenecks, compliance burden, and the overall ease of doing business One of the major gaps we identified was the lack of comprehensive data to support our claims and recommendations. With the Centre of Excellence, we aim to address this gap head-on.”

Speaking about the significance of research and data in the tourism industry, Suman Billa, IAS, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Tourism said, “Being in the sector which is vast and multifaceted, it is essential to have accurate and comprehensive data to inform our decisions. While government data provides a solid foundation, it often captures only one facet of the entire landscape. To truly understand the dynamics of the tourism and hospitality sectors, we must triangulate this data with insights from industry bodies, international organisations like the WTO, and other reliable sources.”

ADTOI successfully concluded its 2024 elections, resulting in the appointment of a new Managing Committee consisting of six Office Bearers and eight Managing Committee Members. Ved Khanna of Tourwala Enterprises has been elected as the new President of ADTOI for the 2024-2026 term, succeeding PP Khanna. After assuming the office, Khanna said, “We aim to organise a special drive to encourage our members to go for MOT approvals, make efforts with authorities for simplified GST structure for better trade practices, open more ADTOI chapters for increased participation, collaborate with State Tourism Boards for promotion of local destinations, and put more emphasis on cultural and culinary tourism. Efforts are underway to have grand conventions, trade shows and tourism conclaves at regular intervals.” Responding about the possible challenges he might face, Khanna said, “I see no big challenges in the process besides minor barriers which I am sure we would overcome.”