Category Archives: States

The Finance Minister has announced that an app will be developed covering all relevant aspects of tourism. States will be encouraged to set up Unity Malls in state capital as the most prominent tourism centres to promote One District One Product, GI products, handicrafts and products of other states.

Rohan Khaunte, Goa’s Minister of Tourism, speaking at an event, shared that with a focus on the travel industry, Goa is exploring circuit tourism within the state, similar to the concept of the Golden Triangle.

Kerala has made a remarkable comeback by welcoming 1.88 crore domestic tourists in 2022, which is a record in the state’s history, Tourism Minister P A Mohammed Riyas said. Domestic tourism was given prominence in the programmes prepared to be implemented in the post-COVID period and the government achieved its target through coordinated efforts. “As a result, by the end of 2022, it had become the year which Kerala witnessed the greatest number of domestic tourists after its formation. A total of 1.88 crore domestic tourists arrived in the state in that year,” he said.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath launched a new global gateway for the state with the inauguration of the first VFS Global Joint Visa Application Centre (JVAC) and the VFS Global Academy in Lucknow. This spacious and comfortable facility equipped with modern amenities and services will have the capacity of processing approximately 1.2 lakh applications a year and will be of immense benefit to the citizens of Uttar Pradesh, who till now had to travel to other cities like New Delhi to submit their visa applications. 

While the industry is happy of tourism being mentioned in Union Budget 2023-24, tour operators in Himachal Pradesh have demanded to be brought uder a special package to boost tourism. Also, they asked for Bharat Bhraman schemes to be extended in the state in addition to ow-interest rates on loans for tourism business.

Welcoming all trade partners and potential exhibitors to Global Panorama Showcase 2023, Harmandeep Singh Anand, MD, Global Panorama Showcase, says, “We successfully completed four cities in the last quarter of 2022, we now welcome trade partners to GPS 2023 with Kolkata, pune, Chandigarh, Nagpur, Lucknow and Bhubaneshwar. We had over 300 buyers register for GPS Bhubaneshwar and we look forward to welcoming more to 6-8 more cities in the third and fourth quarter of 2023.”    

Marking the National Tourism Day on 25th January 2023 under the aegis of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, seminars, cultural events and other programmes are being organised by the Centre where several states are conducting events to promote tourism in their region. The Indian government established January 25 as the National Tourism Day to raise awareness about the importance of tourism for the country’s economy. The day is observed to cultivate awareness among the global community on the importance of tourism and its social, political, financial and cultural worth.

Sunaina Mehta, Joint director, Tourism, J&K, has said that, “We are looking forward that more investments take place as we are in the process of  outsourcing the assets and we look forward that better players come forward for PPP, so that some better avenues are also generated for earning livelihood for the youth of J&K and at the same time explore the potential at various destinations.”

Kerala Tourism Minister, Mohamed Riyas said that their focus will no longer be confined to beaches, backwaters and hill stations. “We now want to transform the whole of Kerala into an interconnected tourist haven where visitors get plenty of choices and diverse experiences.”

Speaking about various schemes offered by the government of Punjab, Gurkirat Kripal Singh, Secretary, Tourism & Cultural Affairs, said, “As the gateway to the nation for Central Asia, a lot of cultural exchange has happened in Punjab where a lot of events have taken place, of significant historical value. The government of Punjab is embarking on a series of new initiatives to achieve the ends from the point of view of Punjab. Of Punjab’s upcoming initiatives, adventure tourism, water tourism and caravan tourism topped the list.”