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Tourism may get only 20% more
SUDIPTO DEY & SUBHASH NARAYAN

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2007 05:01:35 AM]
NEW DELHI: Even though the government has identified development of tourism sector as part of the initiative to increase investment in the infrastructure sector, the tourism ministry is likely to get only 20% leg-up in its Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) in the forthcoming Budget.

Against the ministry’s demand to increase its GBS from present Rs 830 crore to over Rs 1,600 crore, the government is likely to enhance budgetary support to only around Rs 1,000 crore. To bridge the short-fall, the tourism ministry now plans to step up public-private initiatives, especially in the hospitality sector.

With the hospitality sector already facing a severe shortage of room inventory, the Incredible India campaign - the country’s marketing pitch to woo tourists - would focus on attracting domestic travellers.

Around 20% of the total budgetary support - Rs 200 crore - would be spend on the Incredible India campaign. This is around 21% more than what was spent in 2006-07, pegged at around Rs 165 crore. Many in the tourism and travel sector feel that the domestic tourism market is still largely under-served. In recent months the Incredible India campaigns have been targeting the regional markets. In the international markets the ministry is targeting the ‘high-value or luxury’ tourists. At least four new foreign offices would be set up to woo high-end tourists.

Around Rs 200 crore is likely to be used to spruce up ITDC‘s hospitality assets and expand its room inventory over the next one year. The National Capital Region is facing shortage of around 30,000 rooms ahead of the Commonwealth Games in 2010. The government has also chalked out plans to create land banks for building hotels through the public-private partnership model on a build, operate and transfer basis. Already over 140 new hotel projects - leading to creation of over 12,000 rooms - have been approved by the ministry. A major thrust is being given to create a new category of ‘Bed & Breakfast’ hotels.

“Private sector participation would be sought to upgrade infrastructure in several identified tourist circuits,” said an official of ministry of tourism. Promoting the Buddhist circuit and rural tourism are high on the ministry’s agenda. Plans are also afoot to set up four new hotel and tourism training academies over the next one year to meet the rising need for hospitality manpower.

It still remains to be seen if the finance minister would agree to a long-pending demand of the industry to include tourism ministry in the Concurrent list of the Constitution.

Another demand of the hospitality sector has been to give infrastructure status to hotels in the major metros to enable hotel companies enjoy the benefits under Section 80 IA under the I-T

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If at first you don't succeed, call it v1.0!

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Regional rivals India, China to cooperate to promote tourism
2007/2/15
NEW DELHI (AP)

Regional rivals India and China are joining forces to encourage more visitors to their countries, an official statement said Thursday.

India's Tourism Minister Ambika Soni and Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing on Wednesday unveiled a joint logo showing the Great Wall of China and India's Taj Mahal _ the two countries' most popular tourist sites.

With the international travel trade predicting a steady growth in tourist traffic to the two Asian destinations, Soni said India and China were set "to emerge as the leading players in Asia in tourism."

Li said the two countries should share their expertise to market their ancient culture, tourist sites and wealth of festivals and cuisines to attract more visitors.

The leaders also launched a yearlong program of activities to promote tourism between their two countries.

The plan includes opening tourism offices in both countries for the first time, familiarization trips for tour operators, joint tourism campaigns, travel and tourism fairs, culture and food festivals and road shows, the Indian tourism ministry said in a statement.

Nearly 47,000 Chinese tourists visited India in 2005, while 630,000 Indians visited China the same year, it said.

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Govt aims $1 bn in revenues from medical tourism

Mumbai, Feb 17. (PTI): The Government on Friday said, it is targeting a business of $1 billion by 2010 through promotion of medical tourism in the country.

The Government is working with hospitals and tour operators to drive medical tourism and we expect the business to touch $1 billion by 2010, Joint Secretary Ministry of Tourism Amitabh Kant said at a CII conference.

He added that to make India a healthcare destination, the Government is planning to promote 32 private hospitals for the purpose.

The Government has also tied up with tour operators and have prepared brochures with case studies of cured patients.

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'Garden tourism festival' inaugurated

New Delhi, Feb. 16 (PTI): Featuring exotic flora, the 20th Garden Tourism Festival was today inaugurated in the Garden of Five Senses here, with plethora of activities to engage visitors. The annual festival, which was previously held at Talkatora Stadium, was inaugurated by Delhi Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit.

Speaking on the occasion, she said "I hope this festival would become more and more beautiful each time." She also invited the locals to come and experience the initiative of the Tourism Ministry.

The festival has more than 15,000 plants in different categories, including potted plants, foliage, medicinal plants. There is also a wonderful display of cut flowers, roses, hanging baskets, floral animals, cacti and succulents.

As a special initiative, the festival is also featuring participation from organisations like All India Kitchen Garden Association and Delhi Dahlia Society. A host of cultural programmes would be organised on all the three days of the festival till February 18.

There will be magic shows, fashion shows and on-the-spot magic competetions as well. The festival has its theme as "topiary in Garden Designing" this year. Topiary is the art of trimming and cutting shrubs into ornamented figures. One of the aims behind the festival is also to promote the art form.

The entry fee per person for the fest is a nominal Rs 15 and the school children in uniform will be allowed free.

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MP to focus on water tourism
Reema Sisodia - Bhopal

Tourism has become a major thrust area for Madhya Pradesh (MP) and the state as part of its development plans for the year 2007-2008 is planning to focus on adding new attractions in the sphere of water based tourism. Plans are afloat to develop various water tourism attractions. These attractions include rafting in Orchha, development of cruising and water sport activities in Benni Sagar Lake on the outskirts of Khajuraho, developing cruise circuit from Bargi to Mandala and shikara rides on Upper Lake in Bhopal along with inauguration of a boat club in May this year. The state will also be receiving Rs five crore for development of circuit tourism. State-of-the-art sight seeing buses were also launched in Bhopal, Kanha and Pachmarhi. Another interesting project is the launch of an unique restaurant in Bhopal, one, which will recreate the complete ambience of a railway platform including a boogey with 35 covers on a stretch of tracks.

Another interesting project is the launch of an unique restaurant in Bhopal, one, which will recreate the complete ambience of a railway platform including a boogey with 35 covers on a stretch of tracks

These and a host of other tourism projects in the pipeline reflect the efforts of the team of Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (MPTDC) led by minister for tourism, Srimant Yashodhara Raje Scindia to transform the state as a leading tourism destination in India. Speaking about the new `avatar' of the state and its tourism strategy, Ashwani Lohani, managing director, Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (MPTDC), says, "We are extremely focused about tourism development and we believe in letting our work speak. We first decided to put our house in order, which I can proudly say that the task has been achieved and now we are ready to welcome people to the state. We have a brilliant product and we are also sound with regards to our marketing and promotional strategy both in the local as well as the international market. Our agenda is to bring MP on the minds of the people and for it to have immediate brand recall." The recent catchy campaign aired on various television channels showcases the varied tourism products of the state. Apart from aggressive marketing the state is also working overtime to improve tourism related infrastructure. MP is also working on improving air connectivity and increase flights. At present the state has five functional airports. Efforts are on to develop and operate airports in virgin locations.

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Indian manuscripts - from cold solitude to online database
Submitted by Tarique on Fri, 2007-02-16 19:48. India News

New Delhi, Feb 14 (IANS) India has launched an online database of one million pieces of precious knowledge about medicine, economy, religion, architecture, code of conduct and many more branches of wisdom, written on palm leaves, so far laying in cold solitude.

Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni formally launched Wednesday the national manuscript database, compiled and put on perspective by the four-year-old National Mission of Manuscripts (NMM) here in the capital.

"It's national treasure of India and put in focus our forefathers intellectual calibre. We had lost touch with our rich heritage and culture and with this database we could reflect on such a vast treasure," Soni said.

She said these manuscripts have a great demand aboard and "we came to know about it during the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany. There were lots of enquiries and even German museums opened for a longer time to display them to their public."

NMM director Sudha Goplakrishnan told IANS: "The current database is of one million manuscripts some dating back to even 4th century. Within next seven months we would make another 800,000 manuscripts available on the cyber space."

These were collected from 15 Indian states, she said.

Soni, who launched the online database Welcome, also proclaimed 45 selected manuscripts - Vijnananidhi - as the manuscript treasures of India, a country with a 5,000-year-old civilisation.

The National Electronic Catalogue of Manuscripts, called Kritisampada, provides information on individual and collections of documents and printed catalogues, which will be available in Hindi and English. The manuscripts can be accessed on the basis of title, author, script, language, subject and material online.

The mission will contribute Rs.100,000 for the preservation of each of the 21 places where the manuscripts are kept.

Among the 45 are 17-centuries-old - one of the oldest manuscripts in the world - Gilgit manuscripts (kept in the National Archives of India in New Delhi and the Sri Pratap Singh Museum in Jammu and Kashmir), Chitra Bhagavat (illustrated Hindu holy book in the Krishna Kanta Handique Library, Guwahati), Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri (the biography of Mughal emperor Jahangir in the National Museum, New Delhi), Sharadatilaka (the essence of 'tantras' kept in the Oriental Institute of Mysore) and Ramayana (in the Rampur Raza Library). Babur Namah, biography of the great Mughal emperor is one of these 45 selected pieces.

India has an estimated five million manuscripts, most of which lie unknown and neglected. The NMM, under the cultural ministry, would locate, preserve and promote the manuscripts.

NMM activities range from conducting nationwide surveys to unearthing each manuscript, the documentation and cataloguing of manuscripts and their conservation, training personnel in manuscript studies, publishing important research on manuscripts to organising lectures, seminars, debates for students and workshops for children.

Goplakrishnan said the proclamation of 45 manuscripts, as national treasures would enable them to provide suitable financial assistance for their proper preservation and conservation.

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Heading east in search of good health
2007-02-23 13:00:49 Source : Moneycontrol.com

Come to India for its natural splendour, man-made wonders and value-for-money hip replacement surgery? That’s the latest pitch from India’s tourism promotion board and the healthcare industry, as they try to take advantage of a growing appreciation of the high quality and low costs of Indian medical facilities, among patients in the West.

Heart surgery at any of India’s top hospitals would cost a patient about 6,000 dollars, as against 40,000 dollars in the US. The success and infection rates are on a par with leading hospitals in the West. Not surprisingly, private Indian hospitals are receiving more foreign patients, especially for cardiac, orthopedic and oncology procedures. Wockhardt Hospitals performed over 500 surgeries on overseas patients in the last six months. At Apollo Hospitals, visitors from the US and the UK now account for a third of 30,000 foreign patients it treats annually.

Executive Director, Finance, Apollo Hospitals, Suneeta Reddy told CNBC-TV18, "Because of the case mix which gives us higher margins on the foreign patients – we don’t do simple procedures like plastic surgery, we do the more complex ones – and therefore the margins are higher. And they stay in the more expensive suites. So, in a way it also helps to subsidise our poorer patients who stay in the general wards. So, it’s a good strategy all round, for us."

Speaking during a visit to New York, prominent cardiosurgeon Dr Naresh Trehan dismissed any concerns that Indian hospitals would find it more lucrative to treat foreign patients at the cost of caring for Indians.

Executive Director, Escorts Heart Institute, Dr Naresh Trehan explains, "It’s not that the floodgates have opened or anything like that. They are coming in a steady flow. And more and more infrastructure is being built. So, I don’t think there will ever be that crisis - that you will actually have to deprive an Indian patient for the sake of a foreign patient, I don’t think that mismatch will happen."

India is now actively promoting itself as a healthcare destination. For the first time, the Indian tourism board and CII will jointly pitch Indian healthcare and medical facilities at the annual New York Times Travel Show this week.

Quality medical care at affordable costs – as the word spreads, the Indian healthcare industry should gear up for an outbreak of business from the West.

Akshay

Tourism forex earnings may kiss $10 b in '07

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2007 03:07:04 AM]
NEW DELHI: It couldn’t have been better than this for the Indian tourism industry. An internal report prepared by department of tourism projects that forex earning from the tourism sector may go up to $10 billion this year from $6.5 billion in 2006.

That’s not all. Foreign tourist arrivals is likely to cross the 6.5-million mark from 4.4 million last year. There has been an increase of 45.5% in arrivals during the last two. Forex earning during the same period rose by 62.2% in dollars terms.

Says a senior tourism ministry official: “The tourism sector is one of the fastest growing sectors. Efforts should be made to take advantage of the awe and curiosity India creates among people all over the world with its ancient and diversified culture, world heritage sites and the great variety offered to visitors.

In fact, as one of the major initiatives taken to give a further boost to the tourism sector, India will be the partner country at ITB Berlin this year, which is one of the largest tourism fairs in the world.”

According to the report, between 2001 and 2006, there was a 75% increase in traffic, with employment generation in this sector going up by 43%.

It is estimated that $6.5 billion of investment has already come in for the construction of new star properties. The shortage of rooms in major metro cities is adversely affecting the flow of tourists to the metros as well as in other destinations. Experts say that accommodation constraints in Delhi will have serious implications on the arrangements for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

It is estimated there will be a requirement of about 40,000-50,000 rooms in the budget category for tourists visiting Delhi and surrounding areas during the Games.

In fact, the government would soon identify land that the tourism department would procure from the government of India and give to Indian Tourism Development Corporation,(ITDC), which will then lease it to hoteliers. The department is working out the modalities. Besides, the railways have also identified 100 such places.

Says Bharat Sidheshwar Rai, ED, Swift Travel: “It appears that in three to five years India will be the number three economy in the world. The tourism sector has shown much faster growth as compared to other sectors. Now there is a need to push the tourism sector and 2010 Common Wealth games should bring in the required infrastructure to the country.”

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India looks for investments in hospitality sector in Belgium

BELGIUM
24 February 2007 - Issue : 718

India, popularly dubbed as Southeast Asia’s second economic powerhouse after China, last week gave an open invitation for the Belgium investors to gain ground in the country’s thriving tourism sector, local media reported.

Observing that India is open to 100 percent foreign direct investment in the tourism sector, the Indian Minister Of Tourism Ambika Soni on February 19 invited Belgium to invest in the hotel sector in the country. The visiting Flemish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Media and Tourism from Belgium, Geert Bourgeois, called on Soni, who apprised him about the economic reforms and openness ushered in the tourism infrastructure development in India.

Soni reportedly told Bourgeois that with a view to attract investment in tourism sector, the hotel and tourism related industry has been declared as a high priority industry for foreign investment. The two ministers felt their interaction would help in promoting tourism and related activities in each other’s country. During the meeting they recalled that Amsterdam-based India tourism office participates in the tourism fairs being held in Charleroi, Brussels, Antwerpen and Wemmel in Belgium.

The visiting leader said Belgium would explore possibility of opening of an office in India to promote tourism. He also assured that in view of the proposed direct flight from New Delhi to Brussels by an Indian private airline, package tour to India would be encouraged. India received 25,596 tourists from Belgium in 2005. Outbound traffic from India to Belgium in 2004 touched 19,479 arrivals mark, according to official figures provided by the Indian officials.

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Tourism should support rural economy: Expert
Sunday February 25 2007 00:00 IST

PUDUCHERRY: Tourism should support the rural economy, so that rural India could develop soon, said Sudhir Sahi, United Nations Development Program national consultant for tourism, New Delhi.

In his keynote address on the occasion of Akanksha, an industry-institute interface event, organised by the Department of Tourism Studies at Pondicherry University here on Saturday, he said in the year 2002-03, as many as 38.6 million jobs were generated by the tourism industry directly and indirectly.

“According to a report, there is a good scope for rural tourism. However, India is yet to kick-start it in a big way,” he said.

Addressing the gathering on the occasion, P Sekar, chairman, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Puducherry Chapter, said the government has been giving priority for the tourism sector.

“This place has a good scope for medical tourism and the treatment in Puducherry is as good as anywhere in Europe,” he said.

In his presidential address, S Kuppuswami, vice chancellor (i/c) of Pondicherry University, said events like these could provide practical experience for the students.

G Anjaneya Swamy, Professor and Head of the Department of Tourism Studies, Pondicherry University welcomed. Experts from various parts of the country are participating in the interface event.

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India Tourism is raring to go

There is no stopping India Tourism feels Ashwini Kakkar, vice-chairman, Mercury Travels and chairman, flight Raja. He explains why we have arrived in the field of tourism hospitality and aviation.

India is the partner country at ITB Berlin 2007 and this means big things, for a big country like India. Apart from it being an honour and a great platform to showcase product India to the world, it also means more responsibility to cash in and work in a focussed manner to achieve greater strides in tourism business. The ministry of tourism and culture and the ministry of civil aviation have achieved a lot in a short span of time and today tourism is looked at with greater seriousness. But, I would like to say that this is just the beginning of a golden era in tourism, aviation and hospitality in India.

Taking a wider and larger viewpoint, today India is in the mind and business plan of most businesses worldwide. The projected growth figures of India’s GDP has led to positive developments on both sides of the business equation, i.e. foreign investments in India taking place along with Indian investors buying of international businesses. The economy is witnessing and upswing and this will have its spill over effect on other sectors in the business. A buoyant economy will augment further increase in business travel dramatically. India’s growth in other sectors such as the software industry, which is showing a steady growing of 30-35 per cent, will further lead to more movement in the business travel segment.

Apart from the robust economy, disposable incomes amongst the masses is rising, wherein people are looking beyond the basics towards comfort and luxury and hence the option of travel in the household pie has moved to number nine from number 13 a few years ago. At the same time, Indians travelling abroad on holidays, especially short haul is witnessing an encouraging boom. Globally the `Incredible India’ campaign has made its mark and today inbound tourism is also witnessing a steady rise. As per international tourism statistics and survey, India today is regarded amongst the top five must see tourism destinations of the world. With more and more development in the area of tourism infrastructure, be it in the field of surface transport or civil aviation, will only result in a more stable tourism ground for India. The initial wait of three years, when the country is preparing its infrastructure, especially in the field of aviation with 38 greenfield airports in the pipeline, with new destinations and routes opening up and with modernisation of India’s leading international airports, will ensure that the wait has been fruitful. Public Private Partnership, as an essential tool towards developing tourism infrastructure has kicked-off in various segments. All this will pave the way for more international connectivity and probably newer airlines looking towards India.

The government today is also slowly moving away from providing the basics and the necessities that India was deprived off and is moving more towards other sectors, which as the tax collection percentage has also shown a substantial increase of approximately 40 per cent. Today, the country is also looking at increased investment in the hospitality sector, with large chains and reputed brands looking at India in seriousness. Today, I can confidently say that India has arrived and we have to now make the right moves to cash in on this positive tourism environment. Today, it is true India is every where. The successful `India Everywhere’ campaign of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) left its mark on global business at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos last year. It was organised in partnership with the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF). Brand India today is making its mark felt at ITB Berlin, the world’s largest tourism and travel forum by being the partner country. Way to go India!

Akshay

NGC Germany unveils collector's edition 'Mythical India'
(15 March 2007 5:00 pm)

MUMBAI: Ministry of Tourism, India minister - tourism and culture Ambika Soni unveiled German Edition of the worldwide National Geographic magazine Mythical India, a 156-page special edition, at the international tourism fair, ITB 2007 held in Berlin.

Mythical India is the 8th issue of the "Collector's Edition" that appears in Germany and is aimed specifically at collectors.

This special edition showcases the many facets of India through reports and photo series, including stories on the high-tech city Bangalore, on a Hindu celebration and the pilgrimages, on Bollywood and its booming film industry, but also on the poverty that still affects a large part of the population.

Soni said, "National Geographic is a very distinguished publication and its presentation of India, in all its ramifications, will add immense value to India as a tourism destination."

"We are very happy that Smt. Ambika Soni, Tourism and Culture Minister of India was at the Bertelsmann Headquarters in Berlin for the launch of the magazine and it is an honour to celebrate this amazing project with her", says National Geographic Deutschland publishing director Dr. Felix Friedlaender.

Mediascope Publicitas, sole media representative of National Geographic (Germany) in India, CMD Marzban Patel says, "The National Geographic brand enjoys the loyalty of both consumers and advertisers, as it is uniquely positioned in the market to connect people to a world that is larger than the one they live in. The unveiling of the India special issue at the ITB 2007 is a great recognition of India's place on the world map. This special edition will definitely enhance any avid readers' collection."

Akshay

India could soon have its first night safari
PTI
Sunday, March 18, 2007 13:31 IST

NEW DELHI: India could soon have its first night safari as efforts are underway to build a 'zoo by night' on the outskirts of the national capital.

Thinking big and out of the box, the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) has an ambitious plan to develop a night safari tourism project on the lines of the Singapore night zoo.

The project is proposed to be built over 102 acres of land near Mursheedpur Reserve Forest on the Taj Express Highway, a GNIDA official said.

A detailed plan in this regard has already been submitted to the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) for clearance.

At present, such zoo by nights are operated at Singapore, China and Thailand, and are a major contributor to their tourism industry.

"We have received the proposal and would make a visit next month at the designated location to study the feasibility of the project," BR Sharma, member secretary, CZA, said.

He said that depending on the habitat and project cost, the authority would be advised on the surroundings and the animals they can keep there once it gets the green signal.

"Being the first night safari in the country, every nitty gritty will be minutely taken care of such as suitability and habitat for the likely rare species, environment and its compatibility with the surroundings," Sharma said.

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Budget hotels set to change India's tourism landscape
Mar 5, 2007 - 9:28:07 AM

"A London-based international conglomerate - Dawnay Day - plans to invest $200 million for establishing its footprint in India's hospitality sector. "


By Nayanima Basu, IANS, [RxPG] New Delhi, March 5 - Be it a business traveller or a honeymooning couple, everyone today wants to stay in a good quality hotel, but at a reasonable rate. And with the emergence of a wide range of budget hotels, India's hospitality industry is all set to roll.

According to industry experts, the demand-supply gap of budget hotel rooms in India is currently more than 50,000. Hence they feel there is huge potential in this segment.

Budget hotels provide all the basic needs of a traveller, except for certain luxury features such as a swimming pool or a 24x7 coffee shop, and they all maintain global standards of quality with room tariffs ranging between $22 and $100 -.

Bigger players such as the state-run India Tourism Development Corp -, as also the Taj Group of Hotels - and Welcome Group's ITC have also entered the segment realising its enormous business potential.

'This market would grow at a smart pace given the economic growth across the country, growth in domestic and international tourism aided by low-cost airlines and better rail/road connectivity and many more new economic centres like SEZs - coming up,' Prabhat Pani, chief executive of Roots Corp Ltd, told IANS.

Roots Corp Ltd is a subsidiary of Taj Hotels that operates the Ginger brand of hotels.

According to Pani, the mid-segment hotels have scope for several players, as the market in India right now is about two-thirds of the total market.

Amongst the smaller chains, Lemon Tree Hotels have ventured into the budget segment with its Red Fox brand. The Kotak Realty Fund, part of the Kotak Mahindra group, has invested over $7 million in the brand.

'The market is enormous and there's growing demand for such hotels in India, especially at a time when the 5-star hotels are reaching saturation,' said Patu Keswani, chairman and managing director, Lemon Tree Hotels.

However, these hotels have very little or no visibility in the metros and are concentrated mostly in cities such as Pune -, Bhubaneswar -, Jaipur - and Mohali near Chandigarh.

Experts believe high cost of land in cities like Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore acts as an obstacle for setting up mid-scale hotels.

'The main challenge is the sky-rocketing land prices,' said Keswani, who plans to open nine Red Fox hotels by 2007 in tier-II cities.

International majors are also eyeing this segment. They include Accor, one of Europe's leading hotel chains that has tied up with InterGlobe Group. It has promoted the low-cost IndiGo Airline. Others such as Dubai-based Emaar Properties have tied up with Indian real estate major DLF for entering this segment.

A London-based international conglomerate - Dawnay Day - plans to invest $200 million for establishing its footprint in India's hospitality sector.