Tag Archives: President

Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI), the apex body of restaurateurs and hoteliers of Western India, has initiated a full-fledged social media campaign on the recent issue of liquor ban. “Through the social media we will convey a few facts that, in normal times, would have been apparent. In the current state, unfortunately, facts are obscured by surround sound. The facts to be considered are alcoholism is a disease and a social evil; drunken driving is a crime; and, hotels and restaurants serve alcohol. What is of significance is that these facts are not correlated. Any arrow of continuity that may exist is forced. The compulsive alcoholic will find ways and means for consuming alcohol and he will continue to drive after drinking. Just as locking up girls at home is not a solution for preventing rapes, banning hotels from serving liquor cannot be a solution for ending the menace of drunk driving. Drunk driving is a crime, and it should be treated as one,” says Dilip Datwani, President, HRAWI. HRAWI will run a series of hashtags on Facebook that will try and explain some of the common misconceptions. “One million jobs, Rs. 200,000 crores loss to the exchequer, possible closure of 15,000 establishments is not a small thing. It is a huge social cost to pay. And we would not have minded being sacrificed if the ban were to yield any results. But reality is that all the job losses and other damages would be wasted. Statistics prove that there is a correlation between drunk driving and enforcement; and not between drunk driving and number of restaurants and bars. If true, there would be no drunk driving …

Pronab Sarkar, President, IATO, has said that the members of IATO are unhappy with the transport tax hike by the Transport Department of Haryana Government in the state. Addressing the monthly luncheon meeting of IATO, he said, “The transport tax in Haryana has been increased by 1700% from April 1, 2017. He said that while the government has increased this tax after four years, but such a steep hike is unacceptable. We will be meeting the Haryana Chief Minister as well as the Union Finance Minister to request them to implement any increase gradually.” Starting April 1, commercial vehicles entering Haryana would have to pay Rs. 3000.

The Skål Delhi chapter has announced the Executive Committee for the term 2017-19 in which Sunil Gadhiok, who was earlier the Vice President, has now been elevated to the post of President. Similarly, the new core committee members include Greesh Bindra, Vice President; Ranjit Vig, Secretary; Ajay Bhatnagar, Treasurer; Sanjay Datta, Immediate past President; Homa Mistry, Member; Ankush Nijhawan, Member (Director Young Skål); Rajinder Rai, Member; Tekla Maira, New Member; Rohit Khosla, New Member, Sunny Sodhi, New Member. Speaking on the focus of the new committee, Sunil Gadhiok said, “With the commencement of the new team, we will continue aiding memberships to the chapter which currently stands at a 200-member strength. Skål Delhi is the second largest Skål chapter globally and our aim is to take it to the top. The Young Skål chapter has also been initiated and we would like to drive memberships to nurture talent and shape them into strong leaders of the future. In terms of club activities, members can expect more team-building activities and events that are in sync with the current happenings, along with expert speakers to give more value for the membership. CSR has always been one of our priorities and the emphasis will continue for the coming term.”

Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak has announced the launch of multiple entry e-visa valid for 15 days for Indian nationals. The announcement came a day after Guldeep Singh Sahni, President, Outbound Tour Operators Association of India (OTOAI), met Dato’ Seri Mohd. Nazir Abdul Aziz, Minister of Tourism & Culture, Govt. of Malaysia, along with Raghuvinder Singh of D Pauls Travel and suggested that e-visa facility being offered to Indians should be made multiple entry. The suggestion led the Minister to take action and decision was taken within a day, and the Malaysian Prime Minister announced, “I would like more Indians to visit Malaysia and I have informed the Prime Minister that we have decided to allow no visa fee, online application approval within 48 hours and multiple entry to be accorded for Indian nationals.” The Malaysian Prime Minister met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his official visit to the country on April 1. Sahni said, “Thanks to Datuk Seri Mirza Mohd Taiyab, Director General Tourism Malaysia, Dato Daljit Singh, Indian Community Relations Advisor to the Minister of Tourism and Culture, Malaysia, Datuk Siew Ka Wei, Chairman Tourism Malaysia and Sulaiman Suip as the new Director, North & East India operations, for their contribution. We acknowledge Hon. Dato Seri’ Mohd Nazir Abdul Aziz and his team for taking action so quickly.”

Star Cruises has announced the new homeport deployment of SuperStar Gemini to Laem Chabang in Thailand. It will be based in Laem Chabang International Terminal beginning 17 December, 2017 through to 27 April, 2018. Ang Moo Lim, President, Star Cruises, said, “We are excited to announce Star Cruises’ return to The Land of Smiles with the deployment of SuperStar Gemini at Laem Chabang. Our long history with Thailand stretches all the way back to 1995 when we first called upon Phuket and,today, we are proud to be able to call Laem Chabangour new home come 17 December this year. Thailand has the largest number of tourists of all ASEAN countries and the two airports of Bangkok serve more than 85 million passengers every year,” added Ang.“This is a perfect location for fly-cruise passengers and we will work closely with inbound agents to package cruises with land vacations – providing tourists yet another reason to visit Thailand.  We will make Bangkok the “Gateway to IndoChina” due to its superior air and tourist infrastructure.” During her deployment, SuperStar Gemini will embark on three-night cruises to Sihanoukville and Ko Samui, departing every Sunday, two-night cruises to Sihanoukville, departing every Wednesday, and two -night cruises to Koh Kong Island, departing every Friday.

Vistara signed a five-year agreement with Airbus Group India Private Limited to provide training services to Vistara pilots for the A320 type aircraft. The two companies inked the agreement at the launch of Airbus India Training Centre (AITC) in New Delhi, which brings state-of-the-art technology to India for the training of flight crew. Commenting on the partnership, Phee Teik Yeoh, Chief Executive Officer, Vistara, said, “This partnership underlines our uncompromising commitment to uphold the highest of safety standards and operational excellence. I am confident that our pilots will immensely benefit from Airbus’ in-depth and specialized training solutions. It will help us tread a path towards industry leadership.” Adding on, Dr. Srinivasan Dwarakanath, President, Commercial Aircraft, Airbus in India said, “We are honoured to have Vistara as the first customer for the Airbus India Training Centre. We will start training their pilots when the centre becomes operational end-2018. Our success is tied to the success of our customers and one way we contribute to that is by offering them our services like flight training.” The AITC is equipped with the latest software that accurately simulates the aircraft handling characteristics and system responses, ensuring Vistara pilots are well trained and become more proficient with global standards.

In a bid to educate the travel trade about Nanjing’s diverse tourism offerings, Outbound Tour Operators’ Association of India (OTOAI) organised a workshop in association with Nanjing Municipal Tourism Garden Bureau. Through a series of presentations, the main highlights in the Ming dynasty’s home, such as the ancient philosopher Confucius’ temple, Ming Great Wall, Linggu Temple, to name a few, were shown to the gathering along with other details about the destination. Guldeep Singh Sahni, President, OTOAI said, “We are promoting various regions instead of the whole country in order to give elaborate information on the destination. Nanjing is China’s ancient capital and is replete in history and culture. It can cater to a wide variety of travellers and would make for an ideal break, thanks to the array of products it has to offer.” Additionally, Xia Jun, Deputy Director, Nanjing Municipal Tourism Garden Bureau said, “We received around 10,000 Indians last year and would like to see more Indian tourists visiting the region. Nanjing is best visited during autumn and is famous for its history as well as cuisine. We are hoping for a direct connection between Nanjing and New Delhi to start soon which will definitely give a boost to the numbers,” she commented.

Enterprising Travel Agent’s Association (ETAA) took their second Domestic Convention to Hyderabad which was held from Mar 3-5, 2017, at Leonia Holistic Destination. The event gathered over 200 attendees, informed Jagat Mehta, President, ETAA, and added that the edition saw a pan-India participation from different states of the country such as Karnataka, Maharashtra, New Delhi, West Bengal, to name a few. He elaborated, “We were very satisfied with the turnout and the response. While there were a few last minute cancellations, it did nothing to deter the spirit. Our first domestic convention was held back in 2011 with 180 members from Mumbai, Pune and a few from Gujarat so in comparison to that, we’ve managed to bring together a diverse crowd. Yes, business is the main aim but so is forging and strengthening bonds.” The three-day convention involved B2B meetings between buyers and sellers that was effective in connecting travel agents and tour operators from Tier II & III cities to travel suppliers, and also saw a host of team-building activities take place in the sprawling 150-acre property.

Soon, Portugal tourism ministry will be making a direct presence in India, in Mumbai, by opening a tourism office. Luis Araujo, President, Turismo De Portugal, reveals, “We will open a new tourism office in Mumbai this year which will interact with the travel trade and to work with them. We will have someone from Portugal stationed here. We will also appoint a local representative as it is important to have someone who already understands the market and will know what works here.” Portugal has Europe’s first Prime Minister who is of Indian descent – Antonia Costa whose father was of Goan, Portuguese, and French descent. This is among the many cultural connections that Portugal has with India.

The second edition of Phocuswright India 2017 held from Feb 28-Mar 2 saw leaders from travel technology and travel-related segments gather in Gurugram where the latest trends in the industry were discussed, new talents nurtured and networking opportunities forged. Simon Lehmann, President, Phocuswright informed that over 400 participants were welcomed and added, “We saw a great turnout that could have been better, but it was a good response nonetheless. The sessions on Centre Stage that featured the likes of Google, Yatra and Paytm were effective crowd pullers and saw a lot of valuable exchange of ideas and information on the new travel technology trends.” Some of the highlights of the event include discussions on the future of business travel, alternate stays and the growth of budget accommodation, along with interviews with Expedia, Uber, Makemytrip & Ibibo, Booking.com, to name a few.