The Ministry of Tourism has released a report outlining efforts to develop quality tourism infrastructure at tourist destinations and circuits. The Ministry has identified 38 mega tourism projects to receive financial assistance to the State Governments and Union Territory Administrations for the development of infrastructure at places of national and international importance.
The Ministry has also engaged other Central Government Ministries such as Railways, Food Processing and Urban Development, and also the concerned State Government to ensure development efforts are cohesive and that the impact of investment at the identified destinations is maximised. The Ministry has identified 24 circuits in India, based on their tourism potential, to be covered in the first phase of this initiative.
Another pressing issue facing the industry which the ministry is trying to address is the skills shortage in the hospitality sector. In order to satisfy the shortcoming, the Ministry has adopted a multipronged strategy which includes strengthening and expanding the institutional infrastructure for training and education. The ministry will thus support the creation of Institutes of Hotel Management (IHM) and Food Craft Institutes (FCI) in States, while also providing financing for upgrades and modernisation of existing establishments.
Road shows have and will continue to play an important role in promoting India to foreign travellers. Through its overseas offices, the ministry will participate in trade shows and partner major international airlines linking India to the markets abroad through joint promotions. These road shows highlighted various tourism products and were followed by one-to-one business meetings between the foreign and Indian travel trade delegations. Last year, the India Tourism Office participated in a number of travel fairs and exhibitions in important tourist generating markets the world over as well as in emerging and potential markets to showcase and promote tourism products of the country. It has also established bilateral partnerships to boost tourism traffic to and from various nations including Syria, Mexico, Cyprus, Peru, Sri Lanka, Trinidad & Tobago and Indonesia.
Comments are closed.