Tag Archives: Odisha

Reuniting together, the members of Enterprising Knot of Travel & Tourism Associates (EKTTA) attended a workshop on ‘Facing the new normal’ at the State Convention Center (Lok Seva Bhavan) in Bhubaneswar. The workshop was organised by Odisha Tourism in association with Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management, Bhubaneswar, Odisha.  

Asit Tripathy, Chief Secretary, Odisha, has asked that the department of tourism to develop homestay facilities in remote areas untouched by hotel network. “Nature trail and experiential tourism is the current fad, and Odisha has much to offer in this sector,” he said. Tripathy has directed the tourism department to ensure quality, hospitality, hygiene and safety of tourists at these facilities.

Chief Minister of Gujarat, Vijay Rupani has announced Heritage Tourism Policy 2020-2025 for the state to boost international as well as domestic tourism. According to the policy, historical monuments, palaces, and forts constructed before 1950 could be converted into hotels, heritage museums, heritage banquet halls and restaurants provided that ‘basic heritage’ structure is not altered.

The Odisha government plans to organise cruises in selected water bodies of the state with participation of players in order to promote tourism. Proposals invited to develop daily cruise services at Mahanadi, Bhitarkanika, Satkosia Gorge and Hirakud reservoir. Last date for submission is July 10.

In a bid to boost tourism post lockdown, Odisha government has decided to identify and enlist land parcels suitable for the development of tourism projects across the State. The land parcels found suitable for tourism projects will be shared with potential investors. Once the land is identified and demarcated, it can be offered for hotels, resorts, restaurants, camping infrastructure, water sports, eco-tourism, adventure projects, museums, convention centres and amusement parks. As part of the initiative, the Tourism department has floated an Expression of Interest (EoI) from potential landowners. Land­ owners (individual or entity) possessing land parcels of minimum 20,000 sq ft with a clear title and free from encumbrance can apply. With Odisha Tourism growing at a fast pace resulting in increasing tourist footfalls and investments especially by the private sector, a number of measures are being considered to tap investment including potential tie-up between investors and local partners particularly those who own land suitable for varied tourism projects. If found suitable, the private investor can directly contact the landowner for purchase of land or joint development of the project. It will be a win-win situation for both.

The Government of Odisha has approved eight more investment proposals worth Rs.1,649.49 crore in the 89th State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) meeting, out of which two are hotel proposals. The projects were approved in food processing, chemicals, plastics, tourism, steel downstream and infrastructure and will create employment opportunities for 1,450 people. In the tourism sector, a project by M/s Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels Ltd. for expansion of its five-star hotel with an investment of Rs 150 crores, has been approved which will provide employment for 150 people and another proposal by M/s Kamat Hotels (India) Ltd. for expansion of its five-star hotel, with an investment of Rs. 52 crore has also been approved and it will provide an additional employment to around 160 people.

The Sun Temple at Konark, Odisha will soon be included in the list of iconic tourist sites, said the Union Tourism Minister, Prahlad Singh Patel. Last year, the government announced in budget to develop 17 tourism sites across the country under the Iconic Tourist Sites Development Project with a budget of Rs 5000 crore. Leaders and stakeholders from Odisha have since then demanding to include the Sun Temple of Konark in the list. No other destination from the state was included in the list. “The people of Odisha will soon receive the good news about Konark being included in the list of iconic sites. We will organise a special event to announce the inclusion very soon,” said the Minister while addressing at the concluding ceremony of two-day long National Tourism Conference at Konark. He also visited the Sun temple and reviewed the necessary preservation plans with the Archaeological Survey of India officials. Last year, there was a huge hue and cry about Konark not making it to the list announced by the Ministry of Tourism. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had requested the Union Tourism Minister to include at least two tourist places of importance from the state in the list of iconic tourist sites to be developed by the Centre.

The Hotel & Restaurant Association of Odisha (HRAO) is set to organise a state-level workshop on the development of tourism in western Odisha on June 20. The workshop, scheduled to be held at Hotel The Grand Siba in Sambalpur, will be attended by hoteliers, tour operators, travel agents and other stakeholders. Important decision makers, government officials, media and political leaders have also been invited to give their inputs for giving a boost to the tourism growth of Western Odisha. With the addition of Jharsuguda, Rourkela and Jeypore airports in the state, the association now wants to make Odisha a 21-night destination. “With the benefits of the new tourism policy, the HRAO is now willing to spread out with additional 5000 rooms in all tourist locations of the state, specially Western Odisha. Currently, we have the lowest number of star hotels (10 hotels) and classified rooms (670 rooms) in Odisha,” said J K Mohanty, Chairman – HRAO & IATO, Eastern Region.

Thomas Cook India has identified Odisha as a significant growth market for its foreign exchange business. To leverage this opportunity, the company has opened two forex counters at Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar, Thomas Cook India said in a BSE filing. Mahesh Iyer, CEO, Thomas Cook (India), says, “Bhubaneswar has been identified as a prime growth driver for Thomas Cook India and continues to deliver strong growth of 32 per cent YoY for our foreign exchange business.” The two new airport counters takes the company’s foreign exchange distribution in Odisha to a total of three outlets and further augments its network in east India to a total of 23 consumer access centres. Source: PTI

Under the ‘Adopt a Heritage Scheme’ of Ministry of Tourism, seven shortlisted companies or Monument Mitras have been given the Letter of Intent for the adoption of 14 monuments, which were presented at the closing ceremony of the three-week-long ‘Paryatan Parv’ at Rajpath Lawns, New Delhi. K.J. Alphons, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism, Government of India, said, “We had over 1200 events across numerous sites in the country, across schools, monuments etc. In the past 20 days, we have turned India into a land of celebrations with the help of our 18 sister ministries and thanks to the overwhelming participation of our own people.” SBI Foundation was shortlisted for the adoption of Jantar Mantar, Delhi, while TK International Limited would be adopting Sun Temple, Konark; Raja Rani Temple, Bhubaneshwar, and Ratnagiri Monuments, Jajpur, Odisha. On the other hand, Yatra Online Pvt. Limited would adopt Hampi, Karnataka; Leh Palace, Jammu & Kashmir; Qutub Minar, Delhi and Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra. Travel Corporation of India Ltd. was shortlisted for the adoption of Mattancherry Palace Museum, Kochi, and Safdarjung Tomb, Delhi. Adventure Tour Operator Association of India (ATOAI) will be adopting Gangotri Temple Area and Trail to Gaumukh, as well as Mt. StokKangri, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir. Special Holidays Travel Pvt. Ltd., along with Rotary Club of Delhi was shortlisted for the adoption of Agrasen ki Baoli, Delhi, and NBCC would adopt Purana Quila, Delhi. Arun Jaitley, Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister, Government of India, also the Chief Guest presented certificates to the ‘Best Participating Central Government Ministry and Best Participating State Government’ at the closing ceremony. The grand spectacle included cultural performances by different state troops, craft mela showing diverse handicrafts …