Tag Archives: President

Oman Air, the national carrier of the Sultanate of Oman, is celebrating the country’s 46th National Day with the inauguration of its Kochi office at a new location. The new office is located in MG Road, which is the most coveted location in the city. It was the first international carrier to operate from the Kochi International Airport. The office inauguration was marked by the ribbon cutting ceremony by Kochi Mayor Soumini Jain, in the esteemed presence of Ihab Sorial, Senior Vice President – International Sales, Sunil VA, Regional Vice President – Indian Subcontinent, Bhanu Kaila, Country Manager – India, Jayakrishna Bhaskaran – District Sales Manager, Kochi and Vijay Bhatia, President, Bird Group of Companies. In 2001, Oman Air started its operations in Kochi with 3 flights in a week which was later increased to 5 flights a week. In 2005, Oman Air announced daily operations from Kochi to Muscat. To meet the ever increasing travel needs of our customers, Oman Air now operates twice daily from Kochi since December 2015.

All guides with licences issued by ASI and Additional Director General, Tourism, are valid and can enter all the Centrally Protected Monuments including Fatehpur Sikri, till fresh licences are issued under the new Policy, informs Pronab Sarkar, President, IATO quoting Supreme Courts’ order on IATO’s writ petition. IATO had sought clarification on the restricted entry of Regional Level Guides and State Level Guides at Fatehpur Sikri, where only local guides were being allowed to work. This was causing financial burden on IATO members as they had to pay guide fee to their Regional/State Level Guide and the local guide.

Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (HRANI) has urged the government to classify tourism and hospitality businesses (hotels & resorts, tour operators, travel agents, tourism transport operators, convention centres, destination/ amusement/entertainment infrastructure creation companies) in the lower slab at 5 per cent. They have also asked the government to ensure zero per cent rating for foreign exchange earning tourism, travel & hospitality businesses. A meeting of HRANI Managing Committee was held at Wildflower Hall in Shimla on November 8, 2016, followed by a press meet. A representation on the same was submitted to Shrikant Baldi (IAS) Addl. Chief Secy. (Finance, Planning, Economics & Statistics, Twenty Point Programme). To discuss the same in details Sanjay Sood, President, HRANI and CEO, the Devicos, Shimla; Surendra Jaiswal, Hony Secretary and Garish Oberoi, Treasurer, HRANI and MC members of HRANI met V.C. Pharka, IAS Chief Secretary Tourism & Civil Aviation, Tribal Development, Information & Public Relations. The issues concerning the hospitality fraternity of H.P. were submitted to him and Hon’ble Minister of forest including other concerned officials of Himachal Government. During the briefing, Jaiswal emphasised that in order to boost inbound or outbound tourism, GST should be brought at lowest slab of 5% for hospitality and tourism making India a competitive tourist destination. Oberoi, Treasurer, HRANI, said that GST at lowest slab will attract more investment in the country and will also be conducive to business and growth in the sector.

The travel market has come to a standstill after the scrapping of the 500 and 1000 currency bills, says Guldeep Singh Sahni, President, OTOAI. “Most of our dealings usually happen in cash as not many people use credit cards. However, ever since the announcement, we are not accepting cash from anyone. People can buy the ticket from airport, but not from the travel agent. When a travel agent starts the booking for a tour, there is some advance needed. We can’t take that from the client as of now, and I think this would continue till things become normal, with the new currency flowing in the market,” he added.

The first Manali Travel Mart is being organised by Manali Hoteliers’ Association in partnership with Himachal Pradesh Tourism Board from November 19-21 in Manali, Himachal Pradesh. The venue for the event is Him Valley, Bahang, Manali. It is assumed that the three day event will see a large number of travel agents from around the country will be attending the event. Gajender Thakur, President, Manali Hotelier’s Association, said, “We are expecting around 400 travel agents to attend the event. Hotels, big and small, across Himachal Pradesh will be exhibiting at the mart.” The objective behind the event is to market and promote Manali as a round the year destination. Manali happens to be a hot selling destination during the summer holidays and this event will attempt to showcase the potential of the destination during the winter season. Special attention will be given to promote the various activities and the sightseeing spots open during the winter season.

Outbound Tour Operators Association of India is going to have its members’ meet in multiple cities across the country. Guldeep Singh Sahni, President, OTOAI, said, “We are planning our members’ meet in Ahmedabad, Kolkata and are also planning to have a big event in South India.” Sahni also said that the Southern and Eastern chapters  will be more active now. He added, “We are also looking at having more action in the Western chapter too.”

P.P. Khanna, President, Association of Domestic Tour Operators of India (ADTOI) and Rajat Sawhney, VP, ADTOI, recently met with Valsa Nair Singh, Principal Secretary (Tourism & Culture) Govt. of Maharashtra, to discuss about the possibilities of organising ADTOI convention in the state. This was revealed during the ADTOI General House Meeting held in New Delhi. Both sides are listing out the deliverables to take the proposal forward, said Khanna. ADTOI also announced the formation of its various committees and the names of members who will be part of those committees. Khanna also revealed that state governments like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab and Chhattisgarh to organize ‘State Specialist Programme’ for the benefit of members and their frontline staff. Chetan Gupta, General Secretary, ADTOI also informed the members about the study tour organised by Haryana Tourism to Kurukshetra.

Vinod Zutshi, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, launched the Implementation of the Sustainable Tourism Criteria for India (STCI) in association with Ecotourism Society of India (ESOI). He recalled the MoU signed in March 2016 between ESOI and Government of India to launch the STCI programme across the country. Zutshi indicated the importance given to sustainable tourism in the National Tourism Policy that is to be released soon. Speaking on the occasion, Steve Borgia, President, ESOI, hailed the commitment shown by  Ministry of Tourism. India is one of the few countries in the world to have a criteria of its own. C.B. Ramkumar, Board member, Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria (GSTC) presented the  global picture and also suggested the direction which India could go in this regard. The STCI was curated with the need for developing criteria for sustainable tourism specific to India given the environment that the tourism industry operates in.

In a show of solidarity to the tourism community, the United Federation of Travel Agents Associations (UFTAA) board has decided to stick to its original decision to have its Golden Jubilee Congress in Istanbul after reviewing the current situation. Sunil Kumar, President, UFTAA, said, “November 25 and 26, 2016, will witness the Golden Jubilee Congress of UFTAA in Istanbul. One of our most prime member associations, TURSAB, will be co-ordinating this event which is being supported by the Ministry of Tourism & Culture, Turkey. The Golden Jubilee Congress is anticipated to give UFTAA a huge push to its next level and since it is held in the most beautiful locales and hotels Turkey has to offer, it is anticipated that this will be a successful event.”  

The ninth edition of Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) was inaugurated in the presence of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan; Suman Billa, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, Abraham George, President, KTM Society, V. Venu Principal Secretary, Kerala Tourism, among other dignitaries at Le Meridien, Kochi. 57 countries besides 20 Indian states are participating during the three-day biennial event, which is being organised by the KTM Society in association with the Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala on September 27, World Tourism Day. Ten countries will be represented at the Mart for the first time, with Mexico, Georgia, Japan, China, Chile, Greece, Iran, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Botswana. The 560 total international delegates registered for KTM 2016 features the biggest-ever contingents from 10 highly-prized traditional markets, including the US, Canada and Australia. Domestic participation too has seen an uptick, buoyed by aggressive marketing campaigns. Some 1,304 Indian buyers will participate this year.