Tag Archives: tourism

In his address at the 36th IATO Convention in Gandhinagar, G Kamala Vardhan Rao, DG, Tourism, commented on the scare over the Omicron variant, and said that while the new variant is infectious, but not fatal. “We are sure that this will not be there for a longer time. We believe that by Feb-March we could see brighter days,” he added.

Rakesh Verma, Additional Secretary, Tourism, has said that the draft tourism policy has five missions at its core, and the first one is National Green Tourism Mission, which looks at mainstreaming sustainability in the tourism sector. “It’s a key challenge the sector faces and it is also one of the lessons from the pandemic that we need to develop tourism on sustainable and responsible lines.”

Rupinder Brar, ADG, Tourism, has said that MOT is ready with a campaign that would focus on India being a safe destination and is ready to welcome travellers, and it will be launched very soon. “The content is ready, and the messaging will be both direct and indirect. One promotion will focus on India being vaccinated and the other will feature our hotels, hotel staff, cab drivers, airports, roads, shopping malls, etc. communicating that the country is safe to travel. Discussions with channels is done and we will be doing a soft launch on digital mediums initially.

Rakesh Verma, Additional Secretary, Tourism has said MOT has come out with a draft National Tourism Policy in a bid to bring structural changes to the sector and lay down an ambitious framework for tourism growth. “It has 5 missions, which include National Green Tourism Mission, National Digital Tourism Mission, Tourism and Hospitality Sector Skill Mission, Destination Management, and Developing Tourism and Hospitality MSMEs. The policy is out for consultation and in around 5-6 weeks, we should be close to finalising the draft,” he said.

Rupinder Brar (IRS), ADG, Tourism, speaking at a recent webinar on border tourism, appreciated the efforts taken by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) for improving connectivity in Ladakh region. “Connectivity is the key for tourism anywhere in the world and especially in border areas. The role of Border Tourism in bringing local communities together is crucial in today’s time,” she says. She emphasised that there is a need for capacity building and skill development as it will help to scale up the quality of human resources while creating employment opportunities for the locals.

Arvind Singh, Secretary, Tourism, has said that they will soon launch digital and social media campaigns. “We are working on that and we have plans to have wherever possible some physical events also. We want to launch the campaigns this month itself,” he says. Singh further adds, “Apart from our India tourism offices, the government has nominated 20 nodal officers in the missions. With their help also, we intend to launch promotional campaigns.”

G Kamala Vardhan Rao, DG, Tourism, has said that every state is competing when it comes to tourism. “Every state has a different budget allocation in a big way. Hence when state governments worlk alongside central government, it’s a fine way of synergy and a way forward by developing products. Once product is developed, we are now seeing some green shoots after the pandemic,” he said.

Speaking at the Conference of Tourism & Culture Ministers of Southern Region in Bengaluru, Ajay Bhatt, MoS, Tourism, has said that under the Swadesh Darshan scheme, MOT has sanctioned 15 projects, which include projects in Andhra Pradesh worth ₹141 crore; 5 projects in Kerala worth ₹413 crore; three projects in Telangana worth ₹266 crore; projects worth ₹73 crore in Tamil Nadu and in Puducherry projects were ₹148 crore.

As the news of international borders and reinstating of e-visa has been announced, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India has appointed tourism officers in 20 Indian missions abroad in a bid to boost overseas marketing and promotions. These officers were already posted in embassies in the countries where promotions will take place, revealed Rupinder Brar, ADG, Tourism.

G Kishan Reddy, Cabinet Minister, Tourism, Culture & DoNER addressed the mega-tourism event ‘Ladakh: New Start, New Goals’ virtually, where ‘A Tourism Vision for Ladakh’ document was unveiled which focuses on overall development of the Ladakh Region. “The Central government has also contributed Rs.23.21 Crore for Tourist Water Screen Projection Multimedia show and other tourist attractions and also developing Chaukihang Vihara Project under the PRASHAD scheme,” announced Reddy.