Category Archives: States

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has asked officials to prepare a roadmap for reviving the tourism sector while utilising the budget allocated to the state tourism department. In a review meeting of the tourism department, Gehlot stressed on effective marketing and promotion of key tourist destinations, fairs and festivals of the state at international level.

Sharing details of his meeting with Goa CM as well as its Tourism Minister, Nilesh Shah, President, TTAG, says, “Our team met the CM along with the Tourism Minister, Chairman GTDC, Chief Secretary, Tourism Secretary, and Director Tourism of GTDC. We have requested them to conduct an image-rebuilding exercise for Goa to undo the negative publicity received by the state during the last two to three months which has affected the image of Goa as a safe and secure destination.”

Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi, Minister of Tourism, Odia Language, Literature and Culture, Government of Odisha said the Chief Minister is expected to soon announce financial packages for the tourism sector.On the other hand, members of several travel associations have urged the Telangana government to take measures to provide relief to the sector.

M Mathiventhan, Tourism Minister, Tamil Nadu has taken a decision to go ahead with the ongoing work to upgrade amenities and make tourist spots safe from COVID-19 so that these sites are ready to receive tourists, mostly domestic, when they start to travel. The minister took the decision after a review meeting he chaired. A project report is being prepared for upgrading Mamallapuram at a cost of ₹441crore under iconic site category and to develop Rameswaram and surrounding tourist sites at a cost of ₹40crore.

Amitabh Kant, Chief Executive Officer, NITI Aayog, has said that Maharashtra’s Aurangabad needs both an international airport as well as a state-of-the-art convention centre to boost tourism in the region. Kant announced this at his recent two-day visit to Aurangabad Industrial City (AURIC), and added that while other newer cities took time to establish, Aurangabad already has ready infrastructure.

A recent Tweet by Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) suggests that an RT-PCR report is no longer required to enter the state. Tourists are, however, requested to enter their particulars on http://covid19epass.hp.gov.on before entering Himachal. HPTDC is also offering a 30% discount on bookings at all its hotels.

The Uttarakhand government has approved a compensation of Rs 29 crore for the state’s tourism industry reeling under the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the compensation package, Rs 10,000 would be provided to registered travel and adventure tour operators, tour and rafting guides. The government will also waive off the interest on loans for homestays.

The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has issued detailed guidelines to unlock the state, which also paves way for the entry of tourists into the region. There will be no restrictions of entry of tourist in J&K whether by road, rail or air apart from undergoing a COVID-19 antigen test. Restaurants in hotels can remain functional for in-house guests.

All popular holiday destinations in Kerala may soon be declared as complete “vaccinated zones” as the state government is mulling to provide COVID-19 jab to everyone in the tourism sector. “We are mulling to make famous tourist destinations in the state 100% vaccinated zones by July 15 with the support of the health department,” said Kerala Tourism Minister, PA Mohammed Riyas.

Representative heads of six travel trade associations from Gujarat met the State Tourism Minister Jawahar Chavda on June 8 to urge for support to the trade for survival and revival in these challenging times. The six associations include the state chapters of TAAI, TAFI, IATO, ADTOI and Global Travel Agent Association (GTAA) as well as state-specific trade association of Tour Operators & Travel Agents Association of Gujarat (TAG). The minister heard the delegation out and has promised to look into the issue.