Category Archives: MOT

Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog, speaking at the ITM 2021 inauguration assured that the government intervention for tourism is necessary and would come at the right time. “Tourism cannot grow in isolation, but will grow with many other sectors, and the infrastructure-focused budget is going to be a catalyst of that growth. Government is fully aware of the challenges of the sector,” he said.

Arvind Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, in his address at the ITM Virtual 2021, said, “After I joined the ministry, I made my customary calls to all senior dignitaries in the Government and the feedback I got was that the top leadership of the government is looking at tourism sector to be one of the major drivers of the economy in the post-COVID world.”

Meenakshi Sharma, DG, Tourism, will be moving from Ministry of Tourism, according to a circular by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet. She will now be joining the Comptroller and Auditor General of India and will be availing promotion. She will join as Additional Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General. Sharma joined MOT in May 2016as ADG and was promoted as DG in May 2019.

ADTOI, with support from MOT, is all set to kick-off its 10th Annual Convention today with support from Ministry of Tourism at Kevadia, Gujarat. The inauguration ceremony will start at 5pm today, and will be graced by the presence of Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State, Tourism & Culture. The business sessions will begin tomorrow, which will see Arvind Singh, Secretary, Tourism addressing a session on ‘Role of Aviation in Promotion of Tourism’. Rupinder Brar, ADG, Tourism will moderate a session on ‘Technology is Future-Travel Real from Virtual’.

Arvind Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism revealed that to fund the various schemes implemented by MoT during FY2021-22, the Ministry of Finance has earmarked Rs. 2026.77 cr in the Union Budget 2021-22, which is 61% higher than the revised estimates of 2020-21. He added out of this, Rs 950 cr will be used for tourism infrastructure and Rs 670 cr on promotional activities. The rest of the allocation would be used for funding other schemes like capacity building for service providers, champion service sector scheme etc and to meet the establishment expenditure of the Ministry.

Sharing updates on the tourism highlights in the Union Budget 2021-22, Arvind Singh, Secretary, Tourism, revealed that developing expressways will offer better connectivity to tourist sites and in turn will contribute to the development of the tourism sector. He added that construction of the 3500km highway will start in Tamil Nadu next year, which will include Madurai-Kollam Corridor and Chittoor-Thatchur Corridor. He highlighted that AAI Airports in tier-II and III cities, NHAI toll roads, and railway infrastructure will also strengthen the tourism might of the country. The new aesthetically-designed Vistadome LHB coach on tourist routes will give a better travel experience to passengers. Singh also highlighted various initiatives to maintain health and hygiene in the country mentioned in the Budget, including vaccination drives, Urban Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0, and opening of wellness centres in urban as well as rural areas.

Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel in a written reply to a query in Lok Sabha said that no plan for setting up a vaccine certification programme for foreign tourists has been announced yet by the Government or the Ministry of Tourism. In response to another query, the minister asserted that no MOT project or scheme has been deferred or stalled due to COVID-19.

Just like international marketing campaigns, domestic marketing campaigns of MOT will be specific to every region across the country. Rupinder Brar, ADG, MOT, says, “What is of interest to a 20-year-old or someone older can be different, hence, even for travelling within India, the basic principles of marketing and promotion will be followed by us.”

Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel, in a written reply to a query raised in the Rajya Sabha, said that MOT spent more than Rs124 crore in the last three years on media campaigns for tourism promotion in the country. Between 2017 and 2020, campaigns in the print media, television, online, radio, theatres and via SMS were run.

Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel in a written reply to a query in Rajya Sabha said that the government is not considering any proposal to provide a special incentive to the tourism sector to overcome COVID impact. When asked about details for planning such an incentive, the minister said, ‘does not arise’ to the query.