Category Archives: Associations

The new team of TAFI Northern India Chapter, which will serve for a term of two years from 2023 to 2025, consists of Khushvinder Sarna as Chairman, Dinesh Kumar as Secretary, Rajiv Agarwal as Treasurer, and Naveen Gupta and Charu Arora as Committee Members.

ATOAI Seminar & Adventure Tourism Roadshow scheduled to take place on 13th July in Mumbai. This eagerly awaited event promises to be great chance for adventure enthusiasts, travel professionals, and industry stakeholders from India, to come together, exchange knowledge, and develop connections within the adventure tourism sector. Offering an ideal platform for participants to share best practices, learn from industry experts, and explore different world of adventure travel altogether. With intend of enhancing skills in selling products, attendees will have the chance to attend interactive sessions dedicated for best practices and effective sales techniques. These sessions will provide valuable insights in marketing and selling experiences, enabling participants to reach new heights in their business ventures. Certified First Aid, CPR & Wilderness Responder & Responsible Adventure Travel course is a two-day program of 16 hours. It is certified course aimed at providing participants with the necessary skills to respond to emergency situations in the wilderness. 30 participants were certified. Ajeet Bajaj, President, ATOAI, expressing his excitement, said, “We are excited to bring together adventure travel enthusiasts, industry professionals, and stakeholders at the ATOAI Seminar & Adventure Tourism Roadshow. This event aims to promote best practices, provide valuable insights, and facilitate networking opportunities within the adventure tourism community”. “We look forward to creating a platform that encourages the growth of adventure tourism in India and showcases the incredible adventures our country has to offer,” he furthermore added. Key Highlights Chance to meet authentic sellers of adventure products. With range of exhibitors showcasing their offerings, attendees will gain first-hand knowledge of the thrilling adventure tourism experiences available in India. Adventure Sports Cover 360 is ATOAI Adventure Insurance and Rescue Partner for these regional …

The TAFI Western India Chapter has announced its new team that has been elected unopposed. Jay Kantawala is the new Chairman, Arun Iyer is the new Secretary, Dharmesh Shah is the new Treasurer and Satbir Singh Narula is the Committee Member. The new team’s term will start post the association AGM to be held this evening.

Gajesh Girdhar has been elected as the National Coordinator of NIMA. He shared, the association is now focusing on driving more membership and expanding the team. “Our main goal is to attract a larger number of individuals from tier III and tier IV cities. We anticipate a growth rate of 20 to 25% from these areas. We aim to increase our overall membership by 50%, with 25% of that growth coming from these cities”. In order to achieve this, the association is actively promoting its membership through various activities. “Our MICE forum, which has been successfully running for the past two years, has generated significant interest in membership. The positive word-of-mouth from last year’s event in Jaipur and this year’s event in Amritsar has led to an increase in online applications for membership,” he added.  Furthermore, the associations’ regional coordinators are also making dedicated efforts to attract new members from remote areas. Their commitment and hard work are crucial in bringing in more memberships. NIMA is currently focusing its efforts on the upcoming convention at Resort World, which will take place from August 6th to August 10th. This event is supported by Singapore Tourism, IHG Hotels and Resorts, Resort World Cruises, and Yorker Holidays. 

SC Kamra, Advocate & Taxation Consultant, IATO questioned regularity with which govt. reduced turnover threshold from ₹500 cr to ₹10 cr. “Industry apprehends it to be ₹5 cr, taking tour operators’ compliance cost of e-invoicing,” he added.

According to the global tourism body, WTTC has forecasted that the sector will grow its GDP contribution to ₹ 36.8TN by 2033, approximately 7% of the Indian economy and will employ over 58.2 million people across the country, with one in 10 working in the sector. 

Riaz Munshi, President, OTOAI believes that policy contradicts the government’s slogan of “ease of doing business” in India. “It is relief now, but situation is complicated. If such policies continue to emerge, it will be difficult to conduct business.

Reacting to the recent TCS amendment, Ajay Prakash, President, TAFI, questioned, “If luxury car attracts only 1% TCS then why is travel fraternity victimized?” He added that the change will provide breather but won’t take away the fact that scheme was hastily implemented.

Global international scheduled seat capacity on offer for the week to 19-Jun-2023 reached 59.9 million seats. Capacity reached a new pandemic era high (97.6% of 2019 volumes).

Julia Simpson, President, World Travel and Tourism Council, emphasized on need of smart visas. “Paper visas is thing of past. India is moving quickly in the e-visas space but it can move faster towards smart QR coded visas like Dubai,” she said.