The J&K Tourism Department is showcasing its post covid experiences in terms of recovery and revival of tourism at a national tourism conclave being held at Bubneshwar, Odisha these days.The conclave is themed Chalo Dekhain Apna Desh and it was inaugurated by Union Minister for Tourism & Culture, G Kisan Reddy.In his inaugural address, the union Minister laid thrust on inbound and domestic tourism and the efforts by the Government to further promote it. He complimented the J&K Tourism Department for its initiatives and efforts in post covid recovery of the sector.Giving out figures of tourist arrivals and flights, the Union Minister expressed satisfaction over the present state of tourism in J&K and hoped that in coming months the tourism traffic to the UT would further pick up.
He enumerated several initiatives being taken by the Government to further strengthen the tourism sector.The inaugural session was attended by President, Association of Domestic Tour Operators of India, P P Khanna, Chairperson, Travel Agents Association of India, Jyoti Mayal, Director, Indira Gandhi National Centre of Arts, xxxx, leading tourism players from across the country and officers and representatives from several States and Union Territories.The Union Minister, soon after the inauguration, visited the stall of JK Tourism Department and evinced keen interest in the publicity material put on display. He was briefed by the officers from the Department about the 75 new destinations put recently on the tourist map and their promotion being done by the Department.
Later, in a series of technical sessions, officers from the Department briefed the delegates about the recovery and revival modules undertaken by the Department in close coordination with the local stakeholders, the new initiatives taken by the Department, new opportunities, diversification of tourism products, emerging adventure and heritage potential and other aspects of J&K’s tourism sector.Chief Executive Officer, Rajouri Development Authority, Vivek Puri and Deputy Director, Tourism, Kashmir, Ahsanul Haq Chishti are representing the Department in the conclave.The delegates in their response said that there was a lot to learn from the experiences of J&K tourism sector in terms of the recovery and revival of the sector.The Department’s stall at the conclave remained busy with travel operators’ visits and their queries. Tour operators from Telangana, Vishakhapatnam, Vizag, Hyderabad, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Delhi and Bubneshwar visited the stall and enquired about the current status of the tourism sector in J&K.The conclave ended with a valedictory function presided over by Governor, Odisha, Prof. Ganesh Lal.