Moving on to domestic MICE
While betting big on the domestic MICE, corporate agents in the industry feel infrastructure issues hinder growth of the segment in India.
MEGHA PAUL Today’s
corporate traveller has unrestricted access to inventories and products. As he drives industry practices in a big way, there are new trends in business travel that have emerged. Experts in the industry who were till now betting big on the outbound meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) feel that domestic MICE is the way forward.
Feels Akshay Kulkarni, Regional Director – Hospitality, South & Southeast Asia, Cushman & Wakefield, MICE has always been an integral part of the hospitality and tourism business in India. “With the growing infrastructure and actual facilities, we are seeing a growth in this segment. However, one of the deterrents still remains the prohibitive travel costs. Increasingly more and more MICE business is being done in off-peak season and/or shoulder months so that at least hotel rates can be reasonable. However, we have a long way to go before we can compete with some of the larger MICE-driven markets in the world. One must also decide what one really wants to develop because the convention/conference and exhibition business is very different than the incentive business,” he remarks.
Opines Vikram Patwardhan, Managing Director, Vama Events, “The MICE segment has been on the rise. However, we have have a separate team to handle MICE activities.”
The company that specialises in organising medical conferences sees various bottlenecks in developing India as an ideal MICE destination. “If promoted and supported
We have a long way to go before we can compete with some of the larger MICE-driven markets in the world
well by the government, India can emerge as the largest market for medical conferences in the world. We have some world-class hospitals the average room rate in a decent hotel varies from $50 to $200 whereas in a city like Mumbai or Delhi, the room rates are soaring.”
Calling for active government support, he points out, “Also, the government
The domestic MICE has evolved and the number of incentive movements, which form the bulk of MICE movements in India, is growing
should allow certain tax exemptions which can help us in getting more international congresses to India. We usually end up spending 20 per cent of our budgets on Luxury Tax, Service Tax and VAT. For a segment as noble as medicine, certain exemptions have to be made. There are various permissions and licences which are difficult to get. The government should adopt a one-window approach.”
Getting government clearances for International Congress is a long and lengthy process. Also in a city like Mumbai, Goa, Delhi and Bengaluru, there has to be a proper system and policy in place to bid for International Congresses. “We did a huge International Congress in Goa last year where around 1,000 neurosurgeons from all over the world attended. It was very difficult for us to get rooms at a decent cost in Goa. Hotels hike up rates the moment they realise it is a city-based convention. This makes our task difficult in getting repeat conventions to the city again,” he cites. Also,