Trident Gurgaon, Taj Palace and Radisson NH-8 - were rated the best in Asia in their categories, and India bagged the distinction of being the continent's top destination, at the World Travel Awards Asia and Australasia on Thursday evening.
The Awards, universally regarded as the Oscars of the travel and tourism business, are determined by secret ballot in which more than 1,83,000 travellers and industry professionals participate in over 160 countries. Of the 47 awards handed over to Asian destinations, hotels and resorts, India bagged 11, including the best hotel brand award to The Oberoi Hotels and Resorts.
INDIA AMONG ASIA'S BEST
Asia's Leading Destination: India
Asia's Leading Hotel: Trident Gurgaon
Asia's Leading Luxury Hotel: Trident Gurgaon
Asia's Leading Meetings and Conference Hotel: Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi
Asia's Leading Resort: Leela Kempinski Kovalam, Kerala
Asia's Leading Hotel Brand: Oberoi Hotels and Resorts
Asia's Leading Tourist Board: Incredible India
Asia's Leading Airport Hotel: The Radisson, Delhi
Asia's Leading Luxury Train: The Indian Maharaja
Asia's Leading Suite: Maharajah's Pavillion, The Raj Palace, Jaipur
Asia's Leading Theme Resort: Orange County, Karnataka
A clear sign of the country's growing positive presence in the international tourism sector was the competition that India was up against for Asia's best destination award. It pipped Singapore, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Phuket, Tokyo and Sri Lanka to win the coveted honour.
Likewise, Trident was the first past the post in a field of 21 contenders for the double honour of Asia's leading hotel and luxury hotel. Taj Palace got the award for the continent's best meetings and conference hotel, and Radisson NH- 8 for the best airport hotel.
"It is a big achievement to win this award second time in a row," said Taj Palace general manager Taljinder Singh. " Next year we'll try to win the 'best in the world' title."
The Awards also brought little-known hotels and resorts into the spotlight. One of them is the Raj Palace, Jaipur, whose Maharaja Pavilion was adjudged Asia's leading suite.
"It is an honour to win an award at the Oscars of the travel and tourism industry," said Ankur Rara, the Jaipur hotel's general manger.
And though her hotel was not among the Asian award winners, Monisha Dewan, general manager, Hilton Garden Inn Gurgaon, was quick to point to the significance of the Indian ascendance.
"The Indian travel and hospitality industries are experiencing a boom, especially in the luxury travel and hotels segment, which is now attracting travellers from all over the world," Dewan said.
The surprise winner in the leading luxury train category was the Indian Maharaja, which has been in the news for its financial woes. Its general manager, Kuldeep Singh, though, was quite upbeat. The Commonwealth Games had infused a new energy into India's travel and tourism industry, unlike what people are led to believe.
Not surprisingly, the industry's been quick to recover from last year's meltdown blues, he said.
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/116832/Business/india-is-the-new-big-destination-on-asias-travel-map.html
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October 18, 2010
September 10, 2010
India voted 7th best holiday destination
While preparations for the Commonwealth Games is causing severe embarrassment to the country, Brand India as a tourist destination is scaling new heights.
Globetrotters and tourists from around the world are warming up to the country's people and hospitality by voting India as the seventh-best destination in the world in the recent Conde Nast Readers' Travel Awards 2010, a head of countries like Thailand, Greece, Brazil and France. Last year, India stood at the 13th position.
According to the results, Turkey was adjudged the favourite holiday destination as people gave it top marks "for range of accommodation and that increasingly important component of any holiday: value for money", says the Conde Nast Traveller website.
Egypt, in second position, scored highest on culture, while Australia in third position was voted for having the best climate. Italy at fourth position and Spain in sixth position were voted for having great food and restaurant offerings, while New Zealand at number five scored highest on environmental friendliness.
India scored highest for the warmth of its people and hospitality with a score of 94.44 on 100. "In the first seven months of this year, inbound arrivals have gone up by about 10%. Besides, India attracts the long haul travelers who spend on an average of 15 days," said Karan Anand, head (relationship and supplier management), Cox & Kings. "New products like the Maharajas Express — the luxury train that is considered among the top ten trains in the world introduced early this year has added a new dimension to the tourism scene."
Three Indian luxury hotels were voted as the best 'Overseas Business Hotel' in the same awards. Taj West End, Bangalore, was rated the second-best overseas business hotel with an overall score of 93.22. The Leela Palace Kempinski, Bangalore, at fifth position had an overall score of 88.94 and was rated highest on having the best conference facilities. The Oberoi, New Delhi, stood tenth with an overall score of 84.81.
Read more: India voted 7th best holiday destination - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/India-voted-7th-best-holiday-destination/articleshow/6515772.cms#ixzz0z7Ne8S9J
Globetrotters and tourists from around the world are warming up to the country's people and hospitality by voting India as the seventh-best destination in the world in the recent Conde Nast Readers' Travel Awards 2010, a head of countries like Thailand, Greece, Brazil and France. Last year, India stood at the 13th position.
According to the results, Turkey was adjudged the favourite holiday destination as people gave it top marks "for range of accommodation and that increasingly important component of any holiday: value for money", says the Conde Nast Traveller website.
Egypt, in second position, scored highest on culture, while Australia in third position was voted for having the best climate. Italy at fourth position and Spain in sixth position were voted for having great food and restaurant offerings, while New Zealand at number five scored highest on environmental friendliness.
India scored highest for the warmth of its people and hospitality with a score of 94.44 on 100. "In the first seven months of this year, inbound arrivals have gone up by about 10%. Besides, India attracts the long haul travelers who spend on an average of 15 days," said Karan Anand, head (relationship and supplier management), Cox & Kings. "New products like the Maharajas Express — the luxury train that is considered among the top ten trains in the world introduced early this year has added a new dimension to the tourism scene."
Three Indian luxury hotels were voted as the best 'Overseas Business Hotel' in the same awards. Taj West End, Bangalore, was rated the second-best overseas business hotel with an overall score of 93.22. The Leela Palace Kempinski, Bangalore, at fifth position had an overall score of 88.94 and was rated highest on having the best conference facilities. The Oberoi, New Delhi, stood tenth with an overall score of 84.81.
Read more: India voted 7th best holiday destination - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/India-voted-7th-best-holiday-destination/articleshow/6515772.cms#ixzz0z7Ne8S9J
Mysore Palace will finally see sound and light show
The sound and light programme of the Mysore Palace, that has seen many a controversy, is back in the news again, this time for the right reasons.
"All steps have been taken to launch the much-expected programme for public viewing before the Dasara," said deputy commissioner and executive officer of the Mysore Palace Board Harsh Gupta.
Mooted in 2003, when S M Krishna was the chief minister, the son-et-lumiere was supposed to have commenced in 2004 but was put off for several reasons. The show was first demonstrated before the officials of the Tourism Department and a group of journalists in July 2007. However, the script took a controversial turn.
It was expected to be relaunched during the 2008 Dasara with a revised script. But, it was deferred once again, with criticisms blocking the show. Subsequently, chief minister B S Yeddyurappa and other dignitaries had viewed it and opined that its script needed to be edited, with certain additions and deletions. Now, it is in the news again with the controversy said to have been resolved finally.
The deputy commissioner has also announced a slew of measures to tighten security around the palace which attracts a record number of visitors annually as many as 2.77 million in 2009-10 and increasing daily, and to provide facilities for these increasing numbers.
The Palace Board has decided to replace the 635 high power consuming different wattage lamps in the Palace with eco-friendly and power-saving LED lamps at an estimated cost of Rs 77 lakh. According to them, this will conserve 20,000 units of power a month and save Rs 1.5 lakh on the power bill, besides reducing maintenance cost. The work will be completed in about a month.
Steps have been taken to set up a three-dimensional multimedia museum at the palace for a 30-minute presentation on its history and tourist spots in and around Mysore for tourists.
Tenders will be invited soon to erect automatic gates for avoiding any delay for visitors while entering the Palace. As part of the steps to provide infrastructure for visitors, toilets are being upgraded to international standards at a cost of Rs 30 lakh and would be put into service soon.
The tender for erecting electric fencing around the Palace fort has been completed. The work has been entrusted to the Electronic Corporation of India, Hyderabad, a Government of India agency, Gupta said.
http://sify.com/finance/palace-will-finally-see-sound-and-light-show-news-news-kjjbESgfbdc.html
"All steps have been taken to launch the much-expected programme for public viewing before the Dasara," said deputy commissioner and executive officer of the Mysore Palace Board Harsh Gupta.
Mooted in 2003, when S M Krishna was the chief minister, the son-et-lumiere was supposed to have commenced in 2004 but was put off for several reasons. The show was first demonstrated before the officials of the Tourism Department and a group of journalists in July 2007. However, the script took a controversial turn.
It was expected to be relaunched during the 2008 Dasara with a revised script. But, it was deferred once again, with criticisms blocking the show. Subsequently, chief minister B S Yeddyurappa and other dignitaries had viewed it and opined that its script needed to be edited, with certain additions and deletions. Now, it is in the news again with the controversy said to have been resolved finally.
The deputy commissioner has also announced a slew of measures to tighten security around the palace which attracts a record number of visitors annually as many as 2.77 million in 2009-10 and increasing daily, and to provide facilities for these increasing numbers.
The Palace Board has decided to replace the 635 high power consuming different wattage lamps in the Palace with eco-friendly and power-saving LED lamps at an estimated cost of Rs 77 lakh. According to them, this will conserve 20,000 units of power a month and save Rs 1.5 lakh on the power bill, besides reducing maintenance cost. The work will be completed in about a month.
Steps have been taken to set up a three-dimensional multimedia museum at the palace for a 30-minute presentation on its history and tourist spots in and around Mysore for tourists.
Tenders will be invited soon to erect automatic gates for avoiding any delay for visitors while entering the Palace. As part of the steps to provide infrastructure for visitors, toilets are being upgraded to international standards at a cost of Rs 30 lakh and would be put into service soon.
The tender for erecting electric fencing around the Palace fort has been completed. The work has been entrusted to the Electronic Corporation of India, Hyderabad, a Government of India agency, Gupta said.
http://sify.com/finance/palace-will-finally-see-sound-and-light-show-news-news-kjjbESgfbdc.html
Foreign Tourist Arrivals grow 9% in India
New Delhi, Sept 8 (IBNS) Ministry of Tourism compiles monthly estimates of Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India and Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEE) from tourism on the basis of data received from major airports.
FTAs in India during the Month of August 2010 were 3.82 lakh as compared to FTAs of 3.50 lakh during the month of August 2009 and 3.83 lakh in August 2008.
There has been a growth of 9.0 % in August 2010 over August 2009 as compared to a growth of (-) 8.6 % registered in August 2009 over August 2008.
Growth rate in August 2010 (9.0%) is more than double of that observed during July 2010 (4.1%).
FTAs during the period January-August 2010 were 34.67 lakh with a growth rate of 9.7 %, as compared to the FTAs of 31.60 lakh and a negative growth rate of 7.7 % during January-August 2009 over the corresponding period of 2008.
FEE from tourism during the month of August 2010 were Rs. 4620 crore as compared to Rs. 4115 crore in August 2009 and Rs. 3626 crore in August 2008.
The growth rate in FEE in Rs. terms in August 2010 over August 2009 was 12.3 % as compared to growth rate of 13.5 % in August 2009 over August 2008.
FEE during the period January-August 2010 were Rs. 41437 crore with a growth rate of 22.6 %, as compared to FEE of Rs. 33791 crore with a growth of 1.4 % during January -August 2009 over the corresponding period of 2008.
FEE in US$ terms during the month of August 2010 were US$ 992 million as compared to FEE of US$ 851 million during the month of August 2009 and US$ 845 million in August 2008.
The growth rate in FEE in US$ terms in August 2010 over August 2009 was 16.6 %.
FEE during the period January-August 2010 were US$ 8997 million with a growth rate of 30.7 % as compared to FEE of US$ 6886 million with a negative growth of 15.3 % during January – August 2009 over the corresponding period of 2008.
http://www.my-india.net/archives/5309
FTAs in India during the Month of August 2010 were 3.82 lakh as compared to FTAs of 3.50 lakh during the month of August 2009 and 3.83 lakh in August 2008.
There has been a growth of 9.0 % in August 2010 over August 2009 as compared to a growth of (-) 8.6 % registered in August 2009 over August 2008.
Growth rate in August 2010 (9.0%) is more than double of that observed during July 2010 (4.1%).
FTAs during the period January-August 2010 were 34.67 lakh with a growth rate of 9.7 %, as compared to the FTAs of 31.60 lakh and a negative growth rate of 7.7 % during January-August 2009 over the corresponding period of 2008.
FEE from tourism during the month of August 2010 were Rs. 4620 crore as compared to Rs. 4115 crore in August 2009 and Rs. 3626 crore in August 2008.
The growth rate in FEE in Rs. terms in August 2010 over August 2009 was 12.3 % as compared to growth rate of 13.5 % in August 2009 over August 2008.
FEE during the period January-August 2010 were Rs. 41437 crore with a growth rate of 22.6 %, as compared to FEE of Rs. 33791 crore with a growth of 1.4 % during January -August 2009 over the corresponding period of 2008.
FEE in US$ terms during the month of August 2010 were US$ 992 million as compared to FEE of US$ 851 million during the month of August 2009 and US$ 845 million in August 2008.
The growth rate in FEE in US$ terms in August 2010 over August 2009 was 16.6 %.
FEE during the period January-August 2010 were US$ 8997 million with a growth rate of 30.7 % as compared to FEE of US$ 6886 million with a negative growth of 15.3 % during January – August 2009 over the corresponding period of 2008.
http://www.my-india.net/archives/5309
Tourism website and helpline for CWG launched
Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit Thursday launched a tourism website and a helpline for round the clock information for tourists arriving in the capital for the Commonwealth Games.
The helpline and the website is a boost to tourism in the national capital, said Delhi Tourism Corporation's managing director Reena Ray.
'Using this helpline and website the tourists from India and abroad can know more about the capital and what it offers, like the variety of cuisines, shopping malls, historical monuments to offer and they can spend more time in Delhi,' Ray added.
The new designed website provides information about transport availability from various parts of the city, online booking for rooms and a huge range of entertainment options.
Ray said the delegates coming to the national capital for Oct 3-14 Games will also be provided a tourist plan.
Launching the tourism helpline, 1280, Dikshit called the number and asked the first query in Hindi on how to reach Qutub Minar. After getting the answer, she asked the operator to repeat the same in English.
http://sify.com/finance/tourism-website-and-helpline-for-cwg-launched-news-default-kjjxucjjebe.html
The helpline and the website is a boost to tourism in the national capital, said Delhi Tourism Corporation's managing director Reena Ray.
'Using this helpline and website the tourists from India and abroad can know more about the capital and what it offers, like the variety of cuisines, shopping malls, historical monuments to offer and they can spend more time in Delhi,' Ray added.
The new designed website provides information about transport availability from various parts of the city, online booking for rooms and a huge range of entertainment options.
Ray said the delegates coming to the national capital for Oct 3-14 Games will also be provided a tourist plan.
Launching the tourism helpline, 1280, Dikshit called the number and asked the first query in Hindi on how to reach Qutub Minar. After getting the answer, she asked the operator to repeat the same in English.
http://sify.com/finance/tourism-website-and-helpline-for-cwg-launched-news-default-kjjxucjjebe.html
June 24, 2010
Experience ‘raindrop tourism’ in Goa
Goa's crowded beaches wear a largely deserted look during the monsoon, a scene which the government intends to change by promoting `raindrop tourism'.
Swimming is banned on beaches after south west monsoon hits the state. But the June-September period is also the time for a different experience with giant sea waves hitting the shores, cool breeze welcoming tourists and numerous streams and waterfalls sprouting amidst lush green landscape.
The tourism department, which had promoted Goa as a 365-day holiday destination, is set to sell the concept of raindrop tourism, especially to travellers from West Asia, where rains are sparse.
For this authorities are streamlining the promotional campaign. "We lack integrated campaign. Our promotional campaigns are distributed amongst multiple agencies. Other states have a single agency doing the job," Swapnil Naik, director, Goa Tourism, said.
Official figure reveals that of the total tourist inflow, around 10 per cent are received during monsoons.
The coastal state is facing tough competition from Kerala, which has branded itself as God's own country and aggressively promotes backwater tourism concept.
Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC), which has 13 properties, has introduced discount offers under themes like 'monsoon glee' and 'monsoon honeymoon' at its resorts and hotels to attract holiday-makers during the off season.
GTDC managing director Nikhil Desai said the corporation has opted for an aggressive campaign on Internet and through travel marts. Tapping popular social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter is another way of reaching out to youngsters.
Festivals like Sao Joao, which has revellers jumping into water bodies to welcome monsoons, are promoted by GTDC. Also, the corporation is exposing hinterland to the tourists, who usually don't think of Goa beyond beaches.
GTDC hotels have 60 per cent occupancy along the coastal belt and 50 per cent in other places during the lean season, public relations officer Dipak Narvekar said.
The corporation is offering 30 per cent discount on stay and food during monsoons.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Experience-raindrop-tourism-in-Goa/articleshow/6085638.cms
Swimming is banned on beaches after south west monsoon hits the state. But the June-September period is also the time for a different experience with giant sea waves hitting the shores, cool breeze welcoming tourists and numerous streams and waterfalls sprouting amidst lush green landscape.
The tourism department, which had promoted Goa as a 365-day holiday destination, is set to sell the concept of raindrop tourism, especially to travellers from West Asia, where rains are sparse.
For this authorities are streamlining the promotional campaign. "We lack integrated campaign. Our promotional campaigns are distributed amongst multiple agencies. Other states have a single agency doing the job," Swapnil Naik, director, Goa Tourism, said.
Official figure reveals that of the total tourist inflow, around 10 per cent are received during monsoons.
The coastal state is facing tough competition from Kerala, which has branded itself as God's own country and aggressively promotes backwater tourism concept.
Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC), which has 13 properties, has introduced discount offers under themes like 'monsoon glee' and 'monsoon honeymoon' at its resorts and hotels to attract holiday-makers during the off season.
GTDC managing director Nikhil Desai said the corporation has opted for an aggressive campaign on Internet and through travel marts. Tapping popular social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter is another way of reaching out to youngsters.
Festivals like Sao Joao, which has revellers jumping into water bodies to welcome monsoons, are promoted by GTDC. Also, the corporation is exposing hinterland to the tourists, who usually don't think of Goa beyond beaches.
GTDC hotels have 60 per cent occupancy along the coastal belt and 50 per cent in other places during the lean season, public relations officer Dipak Narvekar said.
The corporation is offering 30 per cent discount on stay and food during monsoons.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Experience-raindrop-tourism-in-Goa/articleshow/6085638.cms
May 19, 2010
Emirates to provide online visa service
Emirates Airline will become the first carrier in the Gulf to arrange tourist visas for passengers online in a move that could boost visitor numbers.
The programme could attract more tourists from India, Egypt and eight other countries who are not automatically granted visas on arrival.
The visas for 96 hours and 30 days, offered through the airline’s website as part of a ticket reservation, were announced a day before the airline’s sister carrier, flydubai, begins a new programme to offer tourist visas by SMS and e-mail, in partnership with the immigration authorities.
The two moves will contribute to the Dubai Government’s strategy to boost the tourism sector by encouraging more visitors to stop over in the emirate for several days between flights, and pulling in tourists from a wider number of countries.
The new system would send the message that visiting Dubai was easier than people think, said Manu Mehrotra, the general manager of Al Tayer Travel.
“Everything to make it more convenient would certainly go a long way,” Mr Mehrotra said. “The numbers just need to go up as much as possible to fill the hotels once again.”
Visitors from 33 countries that include the US, Britain and Japan receive their visas on arrival in the UAE and do not need to pay a fee.
The Emirates Airline programme allows visitors from 10 additional countries to pay the fee and get a visa online within four days, without having to visit an office or embassy.
The new programme “requires none of the running around often associated with submitting forms, securing approvals and collecting visas”, said Richard Vaughan, the airline’s senior vice president for commercial operations worldwide.
The introduction of the programme this month “will facilitate travel for scores of tourists visiting the emirate during the Dubai Summer Surprises”, Mr Vaughan said.
He was referring to a two-month festival starting next month that involves live performances and other events, plus discounts at shopping malls and hotels to bring more visitors to the emirate in the hottest months.
Flydubai, the budget carrier owned by the Dubai Government, will tomorrow start a three-month trial of a similar system that directs passengers to fill out a form on the website of the Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department, then present a printed bar code or an SMS message on arrival in Dubai to retrieve their visa.
The programme could also save tourists money. Emirates said it would charge Dh161.50 (US$43.97) for a 96-hour visa and less than Dh210 for the 30-day visa, and a Dh64 service fee.
Mr Mehrotra’s company arranges visas for visitors and normally charges between Dh300 and Dh350 for the 30-day visa, he said, with the extra margin needed to cover “overhead costs”.
Providing help with visas was not a main part of the company’s business but other companies “that are in the business of visas” can charge far more, he said.
But the new programme would not address the question of security deposits for visas that some experts have said was a major hurdle to further growth in tourism from developing countries.
Tourists from countries bound by visa restrictions – all but the most developed countries – are often asked to put down a deposit, which is typically between Dh5,000 and Dh9,000, to secure a tourist visa through a hotel or travel agency in Dubai.
The deposit is not mandatory by law but the hotel or tourist agency, which acts as the visitor’s sponsor, uses it as a form of protection in case the visitor overstays his visa. Sponsors must pay at least Dh5,000 fees if a visitor overstays.
Emirates did not respond to a request for comment on the deposits it charges visa applicants.
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100517/BUSINESS/705179894/1005
cstanton@thenational.ae
The programme could attract more tourists from India, Egypt and eight other countries who are not automatically granted visas on arrival.
The visas for 96 hours and 30 days, offered through the airline’s website as part of a ticket reservation, were announced a day before the airline’s sister carrier, flydubai, begins a new programme to offer tourist visas by SMS and e-mail, in partnership with the immigration authorities.
The two moves will contribute to the Dubai Government’s strategy to boost the tourism sector by encouraging more visitors to stop over in the emirate for several days between flights, and pulling in tourists from a wider number of countries.
The new system would send the message that visiting Dubai was easier than people think, said Manu Mehrotra, the general manager of Al Tayer Travel.
“Everything to make it more convenient would certainly go a long way,” Mr Mehrotra said. “The numbers just need to go up as much as possible to fill the hotels once again.”
Visitors from 33 countries that include the US, Britain and Japan receive their visas on arrival in the UAE and do not need to pay a fee.
The Emirates Airline programme allows visitors from 10 additional countries to pay the fee and get a visa online within four days, without having to visit an office or embassy.
The new programme “requires none of the running around often associated with submitting forms, securing approvals and collecting visas”, said Richard Vaughan, the airline’s senior vice president for commercial operations worldwide.
The introduction of the programme this month “will facilitate travel for scores of tourists visiting the emirate during the Dubai Summer Surprises”, Mr Vaughan said.
He was referring to a two-month festival starting next month that involves live performances and other events, plus discounts at shopping malls and hotels to bring more visitors to the emirate in the hottest months.
Flydubai, the budget carrier owned by the Dubai Government, will tomorrow start a three-month trial of a similar system that directs passengers to fill out a form on the website of the Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department, then present a printed bar code or an SMS message on arrival in Dubai to retrieve their visa.
The programme could also save tourists money. Emirates said it would charge Dh161.50 (US$43.97) for a 96-hour visa and less than Dh210 for the 30-day visa, and a Dh64 service fee.
Mr Mehrotra’s company arranges visas for visitors and normally charges between Dh300 and Dh350 for the 30-day visa, he said, with the extra margin needed to cover “overhead costs”.
Providing help with visas was not a main part of the company’s business but other companies “that are in the business of visas” can charge far more, he said.
But the new programme would not address the question of security deposits for visas that some experts have said was a major hurdle to further growth in tourism from developing countries.
Tourists from countries bound by visa restrictions – all but the most developed countries – are often asked to put down a deposit, which is typically between Dh5,000 and Dh9,000, to secure a tourist visa through a hotel or travel agency in Dubai.
The deposit is not mandatory by law but the hotel or tourist agency, which acts as the visitor’s sponsor, uses it as a form of protection in case the visitor overstays his visa. Sponsors must pay at least Dh5,000 fees if a visitor overstays.
Emirates did not respond to a request for comment on the deposits it charges visa applicants.
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100517/BUSINESS/705179894/1005
cstanton@thenational.ae
Terror no deterrent for tourists during Games: Selja
Union Tourism Minister Kumari Selja on Monday said security threats are unlikely to deter foreign or domestic tourists from visiting New Delhi during the Commonwealth Games in October.
Claiming that not just India but many other countries face terror threat, she said: "We are expecting both foreign and domestic tourists to come to New Delhi during the Games. We do not think any terror threat can deter them from arriving."
"India is equipped to tackle any emergency situation. We will make world-class security arrangements during the Games and there is no need to worry," she said.
"Preparations for the Games are in full swing. We are expecting to offer world-class facilities to players, officials and spectators coming here," said Selja said.
The minister said the government is also providing formal training to service providers like taxi drivers and restaurant workers in New Delhi who are expected to come in direct contact with thousands of tourists.
“We are training our manpower to deal with the tourists efficiently. Taxi drivers, autorickshaw drivers, other service providers and workers of some restaurants and hotels are being given training in soft skills.
"We are teaching them some frequently used English words and how to express everything with courtesy, before others,” said Selja.everything with courtesy, before others,” said Selja.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/punjab/Terror-no-deterrent-for-tourists-during-Games/Article1-544847.aspx
Claiming that not just India but many other countries face terror threat, she said: "We are expecting both foreign and domestic tourists to come to New Delhi during the Games. We do not think any terror threat can deter them from arriving."
"India is equipped to tackle any emergency situation. We will make world-class security arrangements during the Games and there is no need to worry," she said.
"Preparations for the Games are in full swing. We are expecting to offer world-class facilities to players, officials and spectators coming here," said Selja said.
The minister said the government is also providing formal training to service providers like taxi drivers and restaurant workers in New Delhi who are expected to come in direct contact with thousands of tourists.
“We are training our manpower to deal with the tourists efficiently. Taxi drivers, autorickshaw drivers, other service providers and workers of some restaurants and hotels are being given training in soft skills.
"We are teaching them some frequently used English words and how to express everything with courtesy, before others,” said Selja.everything with courtesy, before others,” said Selja.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/punjab/Terror-no-deterrent-for-tourists-during-Games/Article1-544847.aspx
Coming: Air safaris in Jammu & Kashmir to attract tourists
Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) plans to take tourism to new heights. It will soon launch air safaris to enable tourists to visit the unexplored virgin valleys in far-flung areas of Kashmir.
Through air safaris, it also seeks to attract high-end visitors to important tourist destinations in the state.
“Eight destinations have been short-listed [for air safaris],” MoS for tourism Nasir Aslam Wani said.
Tourists going on air safaris will be able to explore Lolab-Bungus, Gurez near the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir, Zanskar in Ladakh and scenic spots in Jammu’s Doda, Kishtwar, Poonch and Rajouri districts.
Situated 10,000-ft above sea-level, Bungus is a linear elliptical bowl in Kashmir’s Kupwara district. It comprises of 100 lush green meadows surrounded by lofty mountains. The exotic flora and fauna make Bungus an attractive tourist destination for nature lovers.
Gurez Valley is a fertile, 50-mile stretch in the Himalayas by Kishenganga river. It lies below the 8,000-ft high-altitude LoC that divides Indian and Pakistani sectors of Kashmir. Despite its lofty mountains, lush green meadows, exotic wildlife and rich Dardi-Sheena cultural moorings, the valley remained unexplored due to years of militancy.
“We will establish a well-coordinated network to take tourists to the spots. We have also floated tenders for air-service companies to bid. J&K Tourist Development Corporation will be the nodal agency to coordinate the air safaris,” Wani said.
The J&K government also plans to build helipads at these spots. “Tents will be put up for tourists who want to spend more time there,” Wani said.
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_coming-air-safaris-in-jammu-and-kashmir-to-attract-tourists_1383916
Through air safaris, it also seeks to attract high-end visitors to important tourist destinations in the state.
“Eight destinations have been short-listed [for air safaris],” MoS for tourism Nasir Aslam Wani said.
Tourists going on air safaris will be able to explore Lolab-Bungus, Gurez near the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir, Zanskar in Ladakh and scenic spots in Jammu’s Doda, Kishtwar, Poonch and Rajouri districts.
Situated 10,000-ft above sea-level, Bungus is a linear elliptical bowl in Kashmir’s Kupwara district. It comprises of 100 lush green meadows surrounded by lofty mountains. The exotic flora and fauna make Bungus an attractive tourist destination for nature lovers.
Gurez Valley is a fertile, 50-mile stretch in the Himalayas by Kishenganga river. It lies below the 8,000-ft high-altitude LoC that divides Indian and Pakistani sectors of Kashmir. Despite its lofty mountains, lush green meadows, exotic wildlife and rich Dardi-Sheena cultural moorings, the valley remained unexplored due to years of militancy.
“We will establish a well-coordinated network to take tourists to the spots. We have also floated tenders for air-service companies to bid. J&K Tourist Development Corporation will be the nodal agency to coordinate the air safaris,” Wani said.
The J&K government also plans to build helipads at these spots. “Tents will be put up for tourists who want to spend more time there,” Wani said.
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_coming-air-safaris-in-jammu-and-kashmir-to-attract-tourists_1383916
May 17, 2010
India becoming major medical tourism destination in Asia
NEW YORK: India is surging ahead in the race for medical tourism leaving behind countries like Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore which were earlier considered preferred destinations of foreign patients.
India holds a strong appeal for Americans as the exploding costs of medical treatment in the US are forcing them to venture to exotic places to get heart surgery, cancer therapy, and dentistry.
Many Indian hospitals have been quietly negotiating with US companies to send their employees to India for medical treatment at "rock-bottom rates", as one brochure of a Bangalore-based hospital in circulation in the New York/New Jersey region professes.
India companies are acquiring firms in Singapore and Thailand which enables them to take advantage of a large trans-Asia presence that results in boosting business, besides strengthening infrastructure and treatment possibilities for foreign patients.
Many foreign patients who arrive in India have already acquired some exposure to and confidence in Indian medical experts and nurses who maintain a ubiquitous presence in hospitals in the USA, Canada, UK or even Australia.
Studies have forecasted that India's medical tourism market will be worth some USD 2 billion a year by 2012 compelling the Indian Government to introduce a new category of medical visas for foreigners to facilitate their stay in India.
The visa issued to the patient and an accompanying caretaker, could be extended up to three years.
Indian hospitals in Mumbai and Bangalore - and also in other cities - report of a steady rise in the number of patients from the United States.
"Even with airfare, the cost of going to India for surgery can be markedly cheaper, and the quality of services is often better than that found in the United States and UK.
Indeed, many patients are pleased at the prospect of combining their tummy tucks with a trip to the Taj Mahal," YaleGlobal, a flagship publication of the Yale
Center for the Study of Globalisation contended.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/India-becoming-major-medical-tourism-destination-in-Asia/articleshow/5940630.cms
India holds a strong appeal for Americans as the exploding costs of medical treatment in the US are forcing them to venture to exotic places to get heart surgery, cancer therapy, and dentistry.
Many Indian hospitals have been quietly negotiating with US companies to send their employees to India for medical treatment at "rock-bottom rates", as one brochure of a Bangalore-based hospital in circulation in the New York/New Jersey region professes.
India companies are acquiring firms in Singapore and Thailand which enables them to take advantage of a large trans-Asia presence that results in boosting business, besides strengthening infrastructure and treatment possibilities for foreign patients.
Many foreign patients who arrive in India have already acquired some exposure to and confidence in Indian medical experts and nurses who maintain a ubiquitous presence in hospitals in the USA, Canada, UK or even Australia.
Studies have forecasted that India's medical tourism market will be worth some USD 2 billion a year by 2012 compelling the Indian Government to introduce a new category of medical visas for foreigners to facilitate their stay in India.
The visa issued to the patient and an accompanying caretaker, could be extended up to three years.
Indian hospitals in Mumbai and Bangalore - and also in other cities - report of a steady rise in the number of patients from the United States.
"Even with airfare, the cost of going to India for surgery can be markedly cheaper, and the quality of services is often better than that found in the United States and UK.
Indeed, many patients are pleased at the prospect of combining their tummy tucks with a trip to the Taj Mahal," YaleGlobal, a flagship publication of the Yale
Center for the Study of Globalisation contended.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/India-becoming-major-medical-tourism-destination-in-Asia/articleshow/5940630.cms
Munnar Hill Station’ voted as Asia’s second Best Tourist Destination
The beautiful hill station Munnar is a crown for Kerala Tourism. It has been recently ranked Asia’s second best travel destinations by renowned travel guide, TripAdvisor.
Online PR News – 14-May-2010 – Lagging behind only to Japan’s Tokyo, the serene hill station http://www.hillstationsinindia.com/ of Munnar has been voted as the second-best travel destination in the world, for the year 2010, by the Massachusetts-based research website & travel guide, TripAdvisor. This picturesque hill station of Kerala is followed by Siem Reap of Cambodia and Kyoto & Naha of Japan rounding off the top five spot in the Traveler’s Choice Destination awards.
Surrounding by sprawling tea plantations Munnar ( http://www.hillstationsinindia.com/south-india-hill-stations/munnar.html ) is situated between three mountains; Nallathanni, Kundala and Muthipuzza. Its mountains, tea gardens, pristine valleys and cold climate have together made it a favorite Indian and foreign tourist destination.
Speaking on this occasion the Kerala Tourism secretary Dr Venu said, “Millions of travelers rely on the TripAdvisor for travel guidance. We are thrilled and at the same time quiet humbled that Munnar has been voted by travelers this year. This award is particularly meaningful to us since as they are decided by the travelers themselves.”
While Munnar has been a favorite amongst both Indian and international tourists, the hill station has recently started attracting adventure travelers as well. The region’s geographical topography makes it an ideal destination for trekking, paragliding and rock climbing. Apart from this, the Eravikulam National Park located in ‘God’s Own Country’ is home to an variety of rare & endangered wildlife like the Nilgiri Tahr (ibex), the ruddy mongoose and over 120 species of bird.
For Kerala/Munnar Hill Stations Tour & Travel Services Call on 91-9212777223/24/25 or visit http://www.hillstationsinindia.com/ http://www.tourmyindia.com/states/kerala/index.html
http://www.onlineprnews.com/news/35917-1273903302-munnar-hill-station-voted-as-asias-second-best-tourist-destination.html
Online PR News – 14-May-2010 – Lagging behind only to Japan’s Tokyo, the serene hill station http://www.hillstationsinindia.com/ of Munnar has been voted as the second-best travel destination in the world, for the year 2010, by the Massachusetts-based research website & travel guide, TripAdvisor. This picturesque hill station of Kerala is followed by Siem Reap of Cambodia and Kyoto & Naha of Japan rounding off the top five spot in the Traveler’s Choice Destination awards.
Surrounding by sprawling tea plantations Munnar ( http://www.hillstationsinindia.com/south-india-hill-stations/munnar.html ) is situated between three mountains; Nallathanni, Kundala and Muthipuzza. Its mountains, tea gardens, pristine valleys and cold climate have together made it a favorite Indian and foreign tourist destination.
Speaking on this occasion the Kerala Tourism secretary Dr Venu said, “Millions of travelers rely on the TripAdvisor for travel guidance. We are thrilled and at the same time quiet humbled that Munnar has been voted by travelers this year. This award is particularly meaningful to us since as they are decided by the travelers themselves.”
While Munnar has been a favorite amongst both Indian and international tourists, the hill station has recently started attracting adventure travelers as well. The region’s geographical topography makes it an ideal destination for trekking, paragliding and rock climbing. Apart from this, the Eravikulam National Park located in ‘God’s Own Country’ is home to an variety of rare & endangered wildlife like the Nilgiri Tahr (ibex), the ruddy mongoose and over 120 species of bird.
For Kerala/Munnar Hill Stations Tour & Travel Services Call on 91-9212777223/24/25 or visit http://www.hillstationsinindia.com/ http://www.tourmyindia.com/states/kerala/index.html
http://www.onlineprnews.com/news/35917-1273903302-munnar-hill-station-voted-as-asias-second-best-tourist-destination.html
Two airports likely for Goa
Tourists who come from across the world to laze around in the balmy beaches of Goa will now have another attraction — it will have not one but two airports. The cabinet will soon take up a proposal to let the existing Indian Navy airport to operate even after the new airport in north Goa comes up.
“We are in favour of operating the existing as well as the proposed airport. The state government and the Navy, which owns the existing airport, are also in favour of operating both the airports,” said a senior civil aviation ministry official who did not want to be identified.
A new airport is being built at Mopa near the Maharashtra border on Goa’s northern tip with private participation. The existing airport, owned by the Navy and operated by the Airport Authority of India (AAI), is situated at Dabolim in south Goa. At present, the Goa airport handles 2.7 million passengers annually.
This will be first instance when an old airport will continue to operate even after a new airport has been built. The old airports in Bangalore and Hyderabad, for instance, were closed because they could have impacted the earnings of the new airports.
In Goa, there was resistance to shifting the commercial airport to the north as it would have impacted tourism in the south. Hence, the need was felt to keep both the airports going.
A new airport was needed in Goa as the present airport cannot be upgraded to handle the higher traffic Goa is expected to attract in the near future. Also, there is no scope for construction of a cargo area.
The government plans to build 35 new airports across the country. New airports in Sikkim and Karnataka are scheduled to come up in the next two years. Airports at Navi Mumbai and Sindhudurg in Maharashtra, one each in Kerala, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh (for cargo) have been accorded in-principle approval.
Further, proposals for setting up of three new airports in Maharashtra, one each in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Puducherry, Nagaland and Rajasthan have been received, apart from the proposal to set up a cargo airport in Haryana.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/two-airports-likely-for-goa/395079/
“We are in favour of operating the existing as well as the proposed airport. The state government and the Navy, which owns the existing airport, are also in favour of operating both the airports,” said a senior civil aviation ministry official who did not want to be identified.
A new airport is being built at Mopa near the Maharashtra border on Goa’s northern tip with private participation. The existing airport, owned by the Navy and operated by the Airport Authority of India (AAI), is situated at Dabolim in south Goa. At present, the Goa airport handles 2.7 million passengers annually.
This will be first instance when an old airport will continue to operate even after a new airport has been built. The old airports in Bangalore and Hyderabad, for instance, were closed because they could have impacted the earnings of the new airports.
In Goa, there was resistance to shifting the commercial airport to the north as it would have impacted tourism in the south. Hence, the need was felt to keep both the airports going.
A new airport was needed in Goa as the present airport cannot be upgraded to handle the higher traffic Goa is expected to attract in the near future. Also, there is no scope for construction of a cargo area.
The government plans to build 35 new airports across the country. New airports in Sikkim and Karnataka are scheduled to come up in the next two years. Airports at Navi Mumbai and Sindhudurg in Maharashtra, one each in Kerala, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh (for cargo) have been accorded in-principle approval.
Further, proposals for setting up of three new airports in Maharashtra, one each in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Puducherry, Nagaland and Rajasthan have been received, apart from the proposal to set up a cargo airport in Haryana.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/two-airports-likely-for-goa/395079/
May 05, 2010
'Tourists help keep poachers away from tiger reserves'
NEW DELHI: Opposing the ban on tourists from core regions of tiger reserves proposed by the environment ministry, Travel Operators for Tigers (TOFT) — a campaign spearheaded by international and national travel operators — has said that wildlife tourism, on the contrary, was saving forests and tigers.
The organization added that tourism ensured better security for tigers, and was the best anti-poaching mechanism even as it made forest personnel "highly and often uncomfortably accountable".
TOFT chairman Julian Mathew said the agency would take up the issue with the ministries of tourism and environment to ensure better implementation of rules and regulations, adding that a ban on wildlife tourism was not the answer.
According to recent statistics, tiger numbers have come down from an estimated 3,642 in 2002 to 1,411 in February 2008. Experts say that actual numbers could be even lower. A recent tourism ministry study had shown that nearly 70% of resorts outside Corbett National Park were venues for weddings and parties rather than eco-tourism.
In a statement, TOFT pointed out that despite poor tourism practises being followed in the national park, it continued to be the "most visited" park in India and still had the highest number of tigers. It added that Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve had the heaviest density of tigers in its main Tala tourism zone and received 45,000 visits a year.
"When sub-adults leave this tourist zone seeking their own ranges in buffer zone forests, they get lost, poached or poisoned. Ranthambhore, with its 450 sq km and estimated 35-38 tigers, finds 22-23 (two-thirds) tigers in ranges that fall within the much smaller 130 sq km of the tourism zone. These facts suggest that the best tiger security and habitat exist in tourism zones, and tigers and prey sense it," the statement said.
Highlighting the fact that good tourism practises not only provide a means of legitimate livelihood to people living in and around tiger reserves, TOFT said if it were not for tourism bringing economic value to the forest area, it would be sacrificed for mining, farming or industry.
Emphasizing that the alternative was to ensure implementation of rules and regulations, Mathew gave the instance of Madhya Pradesh's ecosensitive zone regulations that have been stuck in the Supreme Court since 2006. "Tiger tourism is the best anti-poaching unit, operating vehicles watching for eight hours a day, deflecting poachers, loggers and grazers from being there," Mathew said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Tourists-help-keep-poachers-away-from-tiger-reserves/articleshow/5891317.cms
The organization added that tourism ensured better security for tigers, and was the best anti-poaching mechanism even as it made forest personnel "highly and often uncomfortably accountable".
TOFT chairman Julian Mathew said the agency would take up the issue with the ministries of tourism and environment to ensure better implementation of rules and regulations, adding that a ban on wildlife tourism was not the answer.
According to recent statistics, tiger numbers have come down from an estimated 3,642 in 2002 to 1,411 in February 2008. Experts say that actual numbers could be even lower. A recent tourism ministry study had shown that nearly 70% of resorts outside Corbett National Park were venues for weddings and parties rather than eco-tourism.
In a statement, TOFT pointed out that despite poor tourism practises being followed in the national park, it continued to be the "most visited" park in India and still had the highest number of tigers. It added that Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve had the heaviest density of tigers in its main Tala tourism zone and received 45,000 visits a year.
"When sub-adults leave this tourist zone seeking their own ranges in buffer zone forests, they get lost, poached or poisoned. Ranthambhore, with its 450 sq km and estimated 35-38 tigers, finds 22-23 (two-thirds) tigers in ranges that fall within the much smaller 130 sq km of the tourism zone. These facts suggest that the best tiger security and habitat exist in tourism zones, and tigers and prey sense it," the statement said.
Highlighting the fact that good tourism practises not only provide a means of legitimate livelihood to people living in and around tiger reserves, TOFT said if it were not for tourism bringing economic value to the forest area, it would be sacrificed for mining, farming or industry.
Emphasizing that the alternative was to ensure implementation of rules and regulations, Mathew gave the instance of Madhya Pradesh's ecosensitive zone regulations that have been stuck in the Supreme Court since 2006. "Tiger tourism is the best anti-poaching unit, operating vehicles watching for eight hours a day, deflecting poachers, loggers and grazers from being there," Mathew said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Tourists-help-keep-poachers-away-from-tiger-reserves/articleshow/5891317.cms
May 03, 2010
International Tourism: First Results of 2010 confirm Upward Trend
nternational tourism is steadily gaining momentum following an extremely challenging 2009.
International tourist arrivals grew by 7% in the first two months of 2010 worldwide, according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. Growth was particularly strong in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. UNWTO forecasts international tourist arrivals to grow by 3% to 4% in 2010.
2010 - Emerging destinations lead recovery
According to the April Interim Update of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, international tourist arrivals are estimated to have increased by 7% in the first two months of 2010. This follows the upturn already registered in the last quarter of 2009 when arrivals grew by 2% after 14 consecutive months of negative results. Though data for March is still limited, countries with data already reported confirm that this positive trend is set to continue.
Growth was positive in all world regions during the first two months of 2010 led by Asia and the Pacific (+10%) and Africa (+7%). Information for the three countries of the Middle East that have reported results so far also point to a strong rebound in the region, though, compared to very subdued first months of 2009. The pace of growth was slower in Europe (+3%) and in the Americas (+3%), the two regions hardest hit by the global crisis and where economic recovery is proving to be comparatively weaker.
A large number of countries around the world reported positive results in the first months of 2010. Of the 77 destinations reporting data for this period, 60 showed positive figures, of which 24 posted double-digit growth including Estonia, Israel, Hong Kong (China), Macao (China), Japan, Taiwan (pr. of China), Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Guam, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, US Virgin Islands, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Kenya, Seychelles, Morocco, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Though there is a clear improvement on the negative results of 2009, this growth must be considered with caution as it compares with a particularly weak period of 2009 - the worst months of the global economic crisis. On the whole, international tourist arrivals totalled 119 million during the first two months of 2010, up 7% on 2009 but still 2% below the value of the record year of 2008.
2010 forecast not affected by recent air traffic disruption
UNWTO forecasts international tourist arrivals to grow by 3% to 4% in 2010.
This outlook has not been altered by the recent air traffic disruption in European airspace. Although impacting very seriously on travellers, specific destinations and companies, in particular airlines, airports and tour operators, UNWTO estimates that the closure of a major part of European airspace between 15 and 20 April might have caused a loss of less than half a per cent of the yearly volume of international tourist arrivals in Europe and 0.3% of the total count for the world.
Nevertheless, while the positive trend registered in the first months of 2010 reflects improved economic conditions, UNWTO warns that many challenges remain.
"Although economic results have improved significantly in recent months with a positive impact on tourism demand we must remain cautious as many factors can still jeopardize the pace of recovery", said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai today in Sofia, Bulgaria, at the opening of the UNWTO Seminar on Tourism Governance In Times Of Crisis: Conjunctural and Structural Policies. "The economic recovery is being driven mainly by emerging economies while growth is still sluggish in most advanced ones. At the same time, increasing unemployment levels in major tourism source markets is a cause of concern", he added.
2009 - International tourism receipts down by 6% to US$ 852 billion
In 2009, international tourism receipts are estimated to have reached US$ 852 billion worldwide (€ 611 billion), down from US$ 942 billion (€ 641 billion) in the previous year. In real terms (adjusted for exchange rate fluctuations and inflation) international tourism receipts decreased by 6% as compared to a 4% decline in arrivals, showing the close relation between both indicators. Experience suggests that in times of crisis revenues tend to be more affected than arrivals as was the case for the year 2009.
2009 - China ranks fourth in tourism expenditure abroad
The top 10 ranking by international tourism spenders shows one noticeable change in 2009 with China overtaking France to take fourth position in the ranking of international tourism spenders. Chinese expenditure on international tourism has been the fastest to grow in the last decade, up from seventh position only in 2005. Even during last year's crisis, tourism expenditure by China increased by 21%.
There were no major changes in the rankings of the first ten destinations by international tourist arrivals and receipts in 2009. France, the USA and Spain continue to be leaders in both arrivals and receipts, albeit in a different order. France continues to lead the ranking of the world's major tourism destinations in terms of arrivals and ranks third in receipts. The USA ranks first in receipts and second in arrivals. Spain maintains its position as the second biggest earner worldwide and the first in Europe, and ranks third in arrivals. In 2009, both Turkey and Germany climbed one position in the ranking of arrivals to seventh and eighth places, respectively. In arrivals, Malaysiaentered the top ten in 2009 at ninth place.
International tourist arrivals grew by 7% in the first two months of 2010 worldwide, according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. Growth was particularly strong in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. UNWTO forecasts international tourist arrivals to grow by 3% to 4% in 2010.
2010 - Emerging destinations lead recovery
According to the April Interim Update of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, international tourist arrivals are estimated to have increased by 7% in the first two months of 2010. This follows the upturn already registered in the last quarter of 2009 when arrivals grew by 2% after 14 consecutive months of negative results. Though data for March is still limited, countries with data already reported confirm that this positive trend is set to continue.
Growth was positive in all world regions during the first two months of 2010 led by Asia and the Pacific (+10%) and Africa (+7%). Information for the three countries of the Middle East that have reported results so far also point to a strong rebound in the region, though, compared to very subdued first months of 2009. The pace of growth was slower in Europe (+3%) and in the Americas (+3%), the two regions hardest hit by the global crisis and where economic recovery is proving to be comparatively weaker.
A large number of countries around the world reported positive results in the first months of 2010. Of the 77 destinations reporting data for this period, 60 showed positive figures, of which 24 posted double-digit growth including Estonia, Israel, Hong Kong (China), Macao (China), Japan, Taiwan (pr. of China), Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Guam, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, US Virgin Islands, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Kenya, Seychelles, Morocco, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Though there is a clear improvement on the negative results of 2009, this growth must be considered with caution as it compares with a particularly weak period of 2009 - the worst months of the global economic crisis. On the whole, international tourist arrivals totalled 119 million during the first two months of 2010, up 7% on 2009 but still 2% below the value of the record year of 2008.
2010 forecast not affected by recent air traffic disruption
UNWTO forecasts international tourist arrivals to grow by 3% to 4% in 2010.
This outlook has not been altered by the recent air traffic disruption in European airspace. Although impacting very seriously on travellers, specific destinations and companies, in particular airlines, airports and tour operators, UNWTO estimates that the closure of a major part of European airspace between 15 and 20 April might have caused a loss of less than half a per cent of the yearly volume of international tourist arrivals in Europe and 0.3% of the total count for the world.
Nevertheless, while the positive trend registered in the first months of 2010 reflects improved economic conditions, UNWTO warns that many challenges remain.
"Although economic results have improved significantly in recent months with a positive impact on tourism demand we must remain cautious as many factors can still jeopardize the pace of recovery", said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai today in Sofia, Bulgaria, at the opening of the UNWTO Seminar on Tourism Governance In Times Of Crisis: Conjunctural and Structural Policies. "The economic recovery is being driven mainly by emerging economies while growth is still sluggish in most advanced ones. At the same time, increasing unemployment levels in major tourism source markets is a cause of concern", he added.
2009 - International tourism receipts down by 6% to US$ 852 billion
In 2009, international tourism receipts are estimated to have reached US$ 852 billion worldwide (€ 611 billion), down from US$ 942 billion (€ 641 billion) in the previous year. In real terms (adjusted for exchange rate fluctuations and inflation) international tourism receipts decreased by 6% as compared to a 4% decline in arrivals, showing the close relation between both indicators. Experience suggests that in times of crisis revenues tend to be more affected than arrivals as was the case for the year 2009.
2009 - China ranks fourth in tourism expenditure abroad
The top 10 ranking by international tourism spenders shows one noticeable change in 2009 with China overtaking France to take fourth position in the ranking of international tourism spenders. Chinese expenditure on international tourism has been the fastest to grow in the last decade, up from seventh position only in 2005. Even during last year's crisis, tourism expenditure by China increased by 21%.
There were no major changes in the rankings of the first ten destinations by international tourist arrivals and receipts in 2009. France, the USA and Spain continue to be leaders in both arrivals and receipts, albeit in a different order. France continues to lead the ranking of the world's major tourism destinations in terms of arrivals and ranks third in receipts. The USA ranks first in receipts and second in arrivals. Spain maintains its position as the second biggest earner worldwide and the first in Europe, and ranks third in arrivals. In 2009, both Turkey and Germany climbed one position in the ranking of arrivals to seventh and eighth places, respectively. In arrivals, Malaysiaentered the top ten in 2009 at ninth place.
April 20, 2010
Visa on arrival soon for 16 more countries
The ministry of external affairs may soon extend visa-on-arrival to 16 more countries including France, Germany, South Korea, Belgium, Sweden, Vietnam, Chile, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Spain and the Netherlands. This facility, introduced in January 2010, is at present available to tourists who arrive from Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand and Singapore.
The Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata airports can issue this visa.
Of the 3 million or so foreign tourists who visit India every year, about four per cent can opt for a visa on arrival. This number is expected to go up to nine per cent, about 22,500 a month, with maximum visas issued to France and Germany. It is not known if the facility will be extended to USA and UK, which remain the biggest source of tourists to India. While 16.5 per cent of tourists to India come from US, 15 per cent come from UK.
Despite about 12,500 passengers every month being eligible for visa on arrival currently, the Delhi and Mumbai airports, which together account for 45 per cent of the total air traffic in the country, receive only around 650 passengers a month who opt for this facility.
An executive of Delhi International Airport said the airport has been sounded out to this effect by the ministry. “However, we do not expect the passenger traffic to go up in the short term as awareness of such a change in rules takes time, and people need to grow confident of being granted a visa after landing,” said he. “Passengers aren’t willing to take that risk initially.”
The important question is if the airports have the infrastructure to handle the additional tourist arrivals that the extension of the facility may cause. “We had a meeting last week to discuss the issue. The present facility is expandable and we can make the necessary arrangements quickly once we get the official directive,” an executive of Mumbai International Airport said. “The official communication is expected in about two months.”
Indian nationals are granted visa on arrival in 29 countries. These include countries such as Burundi, Tanzania, Bolivia and Sri Lanka.
Minister of State for Tourism Kumari Selja had said earlier that visa on arrival will provide a boost to the tourism sector. However, tour operators are cautiously optimistic of the possibility. “Just allowing visa on arrival won’t help the sector. The government also needs to promote India as a destination in these countries. The current visa on arrival is a single-entry visa with a validity of 30 days, and a tourist can come to India only twice a year on this visa,” said Karan Anand, the head of relationships and supplier management, Cox and Kings India.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/visaarrival-soon-for-16-more-countries/392258/
The Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata airports can issue this visa.
Of the 3 million or so foreign tourists who visit India every year, about four per cent can opt for a visa on arrival. This number is expected to go up to nine per cent, about 22,500 a month, with maximum visas issued to France and Germany. It is not known if the facility will be extended to USA and UK, which remain the biggest source of tourists to India. While 16.5 per cent of tourists to India come from US, 15 per cent come from UK.
Despite about 12,500 passengers every month being eligible for visa on arrival currently, the Delhi and Mumbai airports, which together account for 45 per cent of the total air traffic in the country, receive only around 650 passengers a month who opt for this facility.
An executive of Delhi International Airport said the airport has been sounded out to this effect by the ministry. “However, we do not expect the passenger traffic to go up in the short term as awareness of such a change in rules takes time, and people need to grow confident of being granted a visa after landing,” said he. “Passengers aren’t willing to take that risk initially.”
The important question is if the airports have the infrastructure to handle the additional tourist arrivals that the extension of the facility may cause. “We had a meeting last week to discuss the issue. The present facility is expandable and we can make the necessary arrangements quickly once we get the official directive,” an executive of Mumbai International Airport said. “The official communication is expected in about two months.”
Indian nationals are granted visa on arrival in 29 countries. These include countries such as Burundi, Tanzania, Bolivia and Sri Lanka.
Minister of State for Tourism Kumari Selja had said earlier that visa on arrival will provide a boost to the tourism sector. However, tour operators are cautiously optimistic of the possibility. “Just allowing visa on arrival won’t help the sector. The government also needs to promote India as a destination in these countries. The current visa on arrival is a single-entry visa with a validity of 30 days, and a tourist can come to India only twice a year on this visa,” said Karan Anand, the head of relationships and supplier management, Cox and Kings India.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/visaarrival-soon-for-16-more-countries/392258/
April 13, 2010
BOOST FOR TOURISM
Island-hopping: Seaplane service to Andamans by Oct
Saurabh Sinha | TNN
New Delhi: Come October and Indians won’t need to go abroad to fly a seaplane — the ones that take off and land on water. Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd (PHHL) along with the Andaman and Nicobar administration is getting the country’s first seaplane for island hopping in the archipelago by tourists. The two government bodies last week agreed to equally share the cost of this programme that will, to begin with, be launched as a pilot project for six months in October and then extended depending on the response. “We are going to issue a global tender to take a helicopter on wet lease (hired from a company that looks after its maintenance and provides the crew). Seaplanes are available in the range of eight to 18 seaters,” PHHL chief R K Tyagi said.
Operating the seaplane will cost about Rs 1 crore a month, including lease rental and operational expenses, that will be equally shared by the two government agencies. The Andaman administration has chosen some of the most beautiful islands for being linked by the seaplane with capital Port Blair. These include Havelock (rated among the best beaches globally), Barren Island (an active volcano that most recently came to life five years ago), Neil and Diglipur. The local administration will provide the infrastructure like maintenance units and passenger jetties in different islands where the plane will fly. The aviation ministry has long been pushing for introduction of seaplanes in India. It feels that seaplanes have a huge potential in India that has a coastline of over 8,000 km and dotted by several beautiful islands. In fact, PHHL was asked to get the first seaplane on its own but given the expenses involved, the PSU was looking at getting partners.
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Saurabh Sinha | TNN
New Delhi: Come October and Indians won’t need to go abroad to fly a seaplane — the ones that take off and land on water. Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd (PHHL) along with the Andaman and Nicobar administration is getting the country’s first seaplane for island hopping in the archipelago by tourists. The two government bodies last week agreed to equally share the cost of this programme that will, to begin with, be launched as a pilot project for six months in October and then extended depending on the response. “We are going to issue a global tender to take a helicopter on wet lease (hired from a company that looks after its maintenance and provides the crew). Seaplanes are available in the range of eight to 18 seaters,” PHHL chief R K Tyagi said.
Operating the seaplane will cost about Rs 1 crore a month, including lease rental and operational expenses, that will be equally shared by the two government agencies. The Andaman administration has chosen some of the most beautiful islands for being linked by the seaplane with capital Port Blair. These include Havelock (rated among the best beaches globally), Barren Island (an active volcano that most recently came to life five years ago), Neil and Diglipur. The local administration will provide the infrastructure like maintenance units and passenger jetties in different islands where the plane will fly. The aviation ministry has long been pushing for introduction of seaplanes in India. It feels that seaplanes have a huge potential in India that has a coastline of over 8,000 km and dotted by several beautiful islands. In fact, PHHL was asked to get the first seaplane on its own but given the expenses involved, the PSU was looking at getting partners.
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=CAP/2010/04/13&PageLabel=14&EntityId=Ar01403&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T
Cute’ mate for Delhi zoo’s female gibbon
New Delhi: After a long wait, a 20-something female hoolock gibbon in Delhi zoo has finally got a mate in five-year-old ‘Cute’, which arrived here from Itanagar a fortnight ago. Rescued from Lower Dibang Valley district in the Northeast region two years back, Cute will help authorities undertake the species’ breeding conservation programme. ‘‘Delhi’s lone female hoolock gibbon was without a mate and Cute’s arrival is the outcome of intensive efforts by authorities,’’ says Delhi zoo director Anand Krishna. PTI
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April 12, 2010
Now kite festival to promote Kerala tourism
Known for its backwaters, coconut palms and lush greenery, Kerala is now set to woo more tourists by hosting a three-day international kite festival starting May 1 at Kappad beach in Kozhikode district.
“Top kite-flyers from 10 countries, including India, will display their talents in flying kites at the Kappad beach for three days,” state Tourism Secretary V. Venu told reporters here Monday.
Venu said Gujarat was the only state in the country to host such a kite festival so far.
Those participating in the fest would include people from Kuwait, Malaysia, Singapore, China, the UAE, France and Britain apart from India.
“There would be two participants from each country besides 10 teams from various parts of the country which would have five members each and the total number of participants would be 70,” said Abdullah Malieakal, who heads Annals Sports and Leisure Management, an event management company.
Kappad beach finds mention in history books as Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama landed here in 1498.
“This beach has a history and we wish to promote that. We decided to organise this unique kite festival because the winds here on the sea shore are extremely favourable for flying kites,” said legislator P.Viswan.
Besides kite flying, there would be a seafood festival and a cultural fest in the night that will showcase the local art and culture, he said.
There would also be a classroom session for all those interested in learning how to make and fly kites, he added.
“A kite that would be flown there would cost anything from Rs.25,000 upwards. The materials for making kites would be supplied free of cost. Kites that are going to be flown would be of various sizes and shapes and they would be as big as a two-storey building,” said Malieakel.
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/business/now-kite-festival-to-promote-kerala-tourism_100346786.html
“Top kite-flyers from 10 countries, including India, will display their talents in flying kites at the Kappad beach for three days,” state Tourism Secretary V. Venu told reporters here Monday.
Venu said Gujarat was the only state in the country to host such a kite festival so far.
Those participating in the fest would include people from Kuwait, Malaysia, Singapore, China, the UAE, France and Britain apart from India.
“There would be two participants from each country besides 10 teams from various parts of the country which would have five members each and the total number of participants would be 70,” said Abdullah Malieakal, who heads Annals Sports and Leisure Management, an event management company.
Kappad beach finds mention in history books as Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama landed here in 1498.
“This beach has a history and we wish to promote that. We decided to organise this unique kite festival because the winds here on the sea shore are extremely favourable for flying kites,” said legislator P.Viswan.
Besides kite flying, there would be a seafood festival and a cultural fest in the night that will showcase the local art and culture, he said.
There would also be a classroom session for all those interested in learning how to make and fly kites, he added.
“A kite that would be flown there would cost anything from Rs.25,000 upwards. The materials for making kites would be supplied free of cost. Kites that are going to be flown would be of various sizes and shapes and they would be as big as a two-storey building,” said Malieakel.
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/business/now-kite-festival-to-promote-kerala-tourism_100346786.html
Houseboat booking facility counter opens at Srinagar International Airport
By TBM Staff | Mumbai
According to a PTI report, the houseboat booking facility recently launched at Srinagar International Airport is expected to give a boost to Jammu and Kashmir’s houseboat industry. The booking facility counter, owned by Houseboat Owners Association- (an umbrella organisation of about 1000 registered houseboats at Dal and Nigeen Lakes), carved in a style replicating a houseboat, is located at the arrival lounge next to the aerobridge escalator from where incoming passengers make their entry into the aerodrome.
Manzoor Ahmad Wangnoo, President, Houseboat Owners Association said, “The opening of the booking facility has brought a ray of hope for us because we have got the right place to market our services and boost tourism in Kashmir.”
http://www.tripwala.com/travel-news/site?url=http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/houseboat-booking-facility-counter-opens-at-srinagar-international-airport-10056
According to a PTI report, the houseboat booking facility recently launched at Srinagar International Airport is expected to give a boost to Jammu and Kashmir’s houseboat industry. The booking facility counter, owned by Houseboat Owners Association- (an umbrella organisation of about 1000 registered houseboats at Dal and Nigeen Lakes), carved in a style replicating a houseboat, is located at the arrival lounge next to the aerobridge escalator from where incoming passengers make their entry into the aerodrome.
Manzoor Ahmad Wangnoo, President, Houseboat Owners Association said, “The opening of the booking facility has brought a ray of hope for us because we have got the right place to market our services and boost tourism in Kashmir.”
http://www.tripwala.com/travel-news/site?url=http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/houseboat-booking-facility-counter-opens-at-srinagar-international-airport-10056
Going on a pilgrimage
In mystic traditions, particularly in India, life is regarded as a journey. A pilgrimage is merely an external projection of an inward journey. Before you can determine who is a pilgrim, you need to be clear about some aspects of pilgrimage.
A place of pilgrimage is one where a manifestation of divinity appeared for a particular purpose, where a sage performed austerities or meditated for a long period, or where someone got direct experience of God. One or more specific areas within the holy place get marked as a sanctum sanctorum, due to a still palpable divine power, like a vortex of energy. I have personally experienced this vortex in many places, particularly while taking a dip in the Ganga with my Guru at the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar.
A pilgrimage is undertaken with many spiritual goals in mind. It may be an act of acknowledging to oneself one’s failures and misdeeds. You may aspire for freedom from this burden of misdeeds through prayaschitta, an act of atonement and purification. It could be in the form of renouncing a habit, addiction or worldly pleasure after the pilgrimage is complete.
It is not a myth that if a pilgrim is one who fulfils all the requirements, he may be granted the rare darshan of a sage who left the body thousands of years ago, but still dwells there as a light being.
You will feel the energy to the degree your mind is attuned. If you blanket your mind with the elements of the unsettled, the non-sacred, the mundane, and carry your anger and impatience with you, the energy plays hide and seek, and you return without being recharged.
While a pilgrimage is not the highest endeavour, it is far more conducive to self-enquiry and enrichment than a holiday. Rather than attending a lecture on silence, it is better to practise silence. Go on an internal journey rather than an external one.
If done earnestly the right way, it cleanses the mind, unburdens the heart, and you become confident in your capacity to explore your inner world. You then renounce pleasures you are addicted to and come to realise that you have the spiritual strength to live without them.
Begin a pilgrimage with an inner resolve or sankalpa, abandoning comforts, renouncing pleasures, remaining silent and still, practising celibacy, practising restraint in matters of food, accepting whatever the stations in the journey have to offer, controlling speech and all the senses and withdrawing from desires and from memories thereof.
Many spiritual seekers share Kabir’s view: “If taking a dip in a river would grant me liberation then the fish would have been liberated long ago.” Hence the internal journey is far more important than the external one.
A holy place is called tirtha, a point of crossing over. Let a pilgrimage be a point of crossing over, a transition to a higher level of thought, action and existence. Go with the resolve: “After the pilgrimage, I shall be a higher self, purer, brighter, more stilled, more akin to my own interior divinity.”
After the pilgrimage, be not what you were before. Let your life become a journey to your internal sanctum sanctorum. Until that final realisation happens, you will continue to remain a pilgrim. Thereafter, you become a guide to other pilgrims who might follow you, seeking to grasp the vessel of God’s elixir of immortality, the Aquarian fullness, the essence of enlightenment.
(Talk: Swami Veda Bharati)
A place of pilgrimage is one where a manifestation of divinity appeared for a particular purpose, where a sage performed austerities or meditated for a long period, or where someone got direct experience of God. One or more specific areas within the holy place get marked as a sanctum sanctorum, due to a still palpable divine power, like a vortex of energy. I have personally experienced this vortex in many places, particularly while taking a dip in the Ganga with my Guru at the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar.
A pilgrimage is undertaken with many spiritual goals in mind. It may be an act of acknowledging to oneself one’s failures and misdeeds. You may aspire for freedom from this burden of misdeeds through prayaschitta, an act of atonement and purification. It could be in the form of renouncing a habit, addiction or worldly pleasure after the pilgrimage is complete.
It is not a myth that if a pilgrim is one who fulfils all the requirements, he may be granted the rare darshan of a sage who left the body thousands of years ago, but still dwells there as a light being.
You will feel the energy to the degree your mind is attuned. If you blanket your mind with the elements of the unsettled, the non-sacred, the mundane, and carry your anger and impatience with you, the energy plays hide and seek, and you return without being recharged.
While a pilgrimage is not the highest endeavour, it is far more conducive to self-enquiry and enrichment than a holiday. Rather than attending a lecture on silence, it is better to practise silence. Go on an internal journey rather than an external one.
If done earnestly the right way, it cleanses the mind, unburdens the heart, and you become confident in your capacity to explore your inner world. You then renounce pleasures you are addicted to and come to realise that you have the spiritual strength to live without them.
Begin a pilgrimage with an inner resolve or sankalpa, abandoning comforts, renouncing pleasures, remaining silent and still, practising celibacy, practising restraint in matters of food, accepting whatever the stations in the journey have to offer, controlling speech and all the senses and withdrawing from desires and from memories thereof.
Many spiritual seekers share Kabir’s view: “If taking a dip in a river would grant me liberation then the fish would have been liberated long ago.” Hence the internal journey is far more important than the external one.
A holy place is called tirtha, a point of crossing over. Let a pilgrimage be a point of crossing over, a transition to a higher level of thought, action and existence. Go with the resolve: “After the pilgrimage, I shall be a higher self, purer, brighter, more stilled, more akin to my own interior divinity.”
After the pilgrimage, be not what you were before. Let your life become a journey to your internal sanctum sanctorum. Until that final realisation happens, you will continue to remain a pilgrim. Thereafter, you become a guide to other pilgrims who might follow you, seeking to grasp the vessel of God’s elixir of immortality, the Aquarian fullness, the essence of enlightenment.
(Talk: Swami Veda Bharati)
HELP IN KHAKI
At Kumbh, it’s service with a smile for cops
The Mahakumbh is drawing lakhs to Haridwar. And the police is doing a great job in maintaining order. Are CWG officials listening?
Nandita Sengupta | TNN
Haridwar: At the ongoing Mahakumbh 2010, the 16,000-strong police force has demonstrated policing can be done with care, courtesy, Gandhian grace and to great effect.
Obviously, a sense of the occasion — the presence of devotees everywhere — has much to do with this remarkable makeover in police behaviour. But, that alone doesn’t explain it all. These are tough men who have been trained hard to be gentle. It’s the kind of training that doesn’t give way under pressure of a 14-hour day and milling crowds that run into lakhs.
At the Mahakumbh, the Uttarakhand force, whose average age is 27, policemen address everyone as uncle/aunty, baba, and ma. And there are not the usual prefixes or suffixes to these terms of endearments. The language doesn’t change in the face of recalcitrance either. There are lessons here for policing during the Commonwealth Games. In fact, it may not be a bad idea at all to hire some of this smart police force trained here, whose temperamental stability and linguistic restraint would act as a lesson and positive influence on the hardened city cops. If nothing else, the trainer of the Kumbh force could be asked to train the police for the games.
The restraint on display in Haridwar is the outcome of thorough behavioural training that started last May. The total strength of 16,000 security personnel is dominated by Uttarakhand police, mostly smart young men and women. But the force also has personnel from Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, mounted police from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. There are also men from the paramilitary of CRPF, BSF, SSB, ITBP, RAF and Rajasthan Home Guards too.
These policemen came from different work cultures and situations. The CRPF companies, for instance, came in straight from fighting Naxals, says DIG Alok Sharma, the man behind Mahakumbh’s security set-up. ‘‘We told them there are no adversaries here; its not an anti-insurgency area. It’s just a big crowd of pilgrims from all over India, and our business is to handle them with care,’’ says Sharma.
The security at the Kumbh is budgeted at Rs 50 crore, and 80% of it goes into the personnels’ allowances. ‘‘There are forces from other states, so we pay their DA,’’ says Sharma. ‘‘The remaining 20% goes into barricading, building tent colonies, publicity material, feeding horses and dogs and various other small expenditures.’’
‘‘However, the emphasis is on training. I coached six trainers. I designed the syllabus. The course focused on behaviour, good manners and thorough knowledge of Haridwar’s culture, layout and related issues,’’ says a justly proud Sharma. The DIG’s dictum was: ‘‘A pilgrim might be the 50,000th guy for you, but for him, you are the first policeman he’s approached. So respect that.’’
Confidence is a hallmark of the force. ‘‘I’m from a small thana. I didn’t know I could do it. I’ve never seen so many people at one place,’’ says constable Mamta Rana. ‘‘I thought they won’t listen to me if I’m nice. But we were told, hath jorke, duty point pe rehna, chahe rickshaw-walla, chahe MP.
(With folded hands, hold your ground, be it a rickshaw-puller or an MP.)’’ And to her delight and lifelong learning, time after time, the pilgrims are yielding. The Kumbh season demands four months of policing, a long haul by any count. What keeps the 16,000 going are two other factors. De-stress activities and frequent debriefing sessions.
After every few days, and after every main snan (bathing ritual), all officers meet for detailed debriefing. Sharing feedback and being simply heard out goes a long way in not only plugging lacunae, but also venting pent-up emotions among the forces.
The personnel have access to several sports and cultural activities, ranging from volleyball tournaments to kiteflying competitions, from discussions to community dinners.
A majority of pilgrims need directions, so it was ensured that every policeman knows what is where, from major ashrams to chowks, from dharamshalas to temples, akharas and street names.
The Kumbh area, a 132-sq km demarcated region, has been zoned into 10 mega areas and 32 sectors, each with a thana. The crowds are impressive: on a lean day, 10 lakhs, on shahi snan days, between 55 and 70 lakh. The milling crowds are soft targets, which is why its all the more important to ensure constant vigil, movement of traffic, and cleanliness as part of security drill.
Clearly, be it the forging of a morally superior police force or the planning and allocation of resources for the management of what is one of the biggest shows on earth, the Commonwealth Games could do with the Uttarakhand experience. We have tried force and failed. Maybe, it’s time to give courtesy a chance?
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=CAP/2010/04/11&PageLabel=15&EntityId=Ar01500&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T
The Mahakumbh is drawing lakhs to Haridwar. And the police is doing a great job in maintaining order. Are CWG officials listening?
Nandita Sengupta | TNN
Haridwar: At the ongoing Mahakumbh 2010, the 16,000-strong police force has demonstrated policing can be done with care, courtesy, Gandhian grace and to great effect.
Obviously, a sense of the occasion — the presence of devotees everywhere — has much to do with this remarkable makeover in police behaviour. But, that alone doesn’t explain it all. These are tough men who have been trained hard to be gentle. It’s the kind of training that doesn’t give way under pressure of a 14-hour day and milling crowds that run into lakhs.
At the Mahakumbh, the Uttarakhand force, whose average age is 27, policemen address everyone as uncle/aunty, baba, and ma. And there are not the usual prefixes or suffixes to these terms of endearments. The language doesn’t change in the face of recalcitrance either. There are lessons here for policing during the Commonwealth Games. In fact, it may not be a bad idea at all to hire some of this smart police force trained here, whose temperamental stability and linguistic restraint would act as a lesson and positive influence on the hardened city cops. If nothing else, the trainer of the Kumbh force could be asked to train the police for the games.
The restraint on display in Haridwar is the outcome of thorough behavioural training that started last May. The total strength of 16,000 security personnel is dominated by Uttarakhand police, mostly smart young men and women. But the force also has personnel from Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, mounted police from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. There are also men from the paramilitary of CRPF, BSF, SSB, ITBP, RAF and Rajasthan Home Guards too.
These policemen came from different work cultures and situations. The CRPF companies, for instance, came in straight from fighting Naxals, says DIG Alok Sharma, the man behind Mahakumbh’s security set-up. ‘‘We told them there are no adversaries here; its not an anti-insurgency area. It’s just a big crowd of pilgrims from all over India, and our business is to handle them with care,’’ says Sharma.
The security at the Kumbh is budgeted at Rs 50 crore, and 80% of it goes into the personnels’ allowances. ‘‘There are forces from other states, so we pay their DA,’’ says Sharma. ‘‘The remaining 20% goes into barricading, building tent colonies, publicity material, feeding horses and dogs and various other small expenditures.’’
‘‘However, the emphasis is on training. I coached six trainers. I designed the syllabus. The course focused on behaviour, good manners and thorough knowledge of Haridwar’s culture, layout and related issues,’’ says a justly proud Sharma. The DIG’s dictum was: ‘‘A pilgrim might be the 50,000th guy for you, but for him, you are the first policeman he’s approached. So respect that.’’
Confidence is a hallmark of the force. ‘‘I’m from a small thana. I didn’t know I could do it. I’ve never seen so many people at one place,’’ says constable Mamta Rana. ‘‘I thought they won’t listen to me if I’m nice. But we were told, hath jorke, duty point pe rehna, chahe rickshaw-walla, chahe MP.
(With folded hands, hold your ground, be it a rickshaw-puller or an MP.)’’ And to her delight and lifelong learning, time after time, the pilgrims are yielding. The Kumbh season demands four months of policing, a long haul by any count. What keeps the 16,000 going are two other factors. De-stress activities and frequent debriefing sessions.
After every few days, and after every main snan (bathing ritual), all officers meet for detailed debriefing. Sharing feedback and being simply heard out goes a long way in not only plugging lacunae, but also venting pent-up emotions among the forces.
The personnel have access to several sports and cultural activities, ranging from volleyball tournaments to kiteflying competitions, from discussions to community dinners.
A majority of pilgrims need directions, so it was ensured that every policeman knows what is where, from major ashrams to chowks, from dharamshalas to temples, akharas and street names.
The Kumbh area, a 132-sq km demarcated region, has been zoned into 10 mega areas and 32 sectors, each with a thana. The crowds are impressive: on a lean day, 10 lakhs, on shahi snan days, between 55 and 70 lakh. The milling crowds are soft targets, which is why its all the more important to ensure constant vigil, movement of traffic, and cleanliness as part of security drill.
Clearly, be it the forging of a morally superior police force or the planning and allocation of resources for the management of what is one of the biggest shows on earth, the Commonwealth Games could do with the Uttarakhand experience. We have tried force and failed. Maybe, it’s time to give courtesy a chance?
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=CAP/2010/04/11&PageLabel=15&EntityId=Ar01500&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T