For seamless travel...
In an exclusive interaction, Usha Sharma, ADG of MOT speaks on the needs of tourists who want to experience the Incredible India.
I have been interacting with the travel trade and trade associations, who have expressed their desire to join hands with the initiatives of MOT to double the inbound and domestic tourist arrivals
Usha Sharma
Additional Director General, Ministry of Tourism
Usha Sharma, Additional Director General, Ministry of Tourism has been assigned many key responsibilities and will now be the leading force to lead the Hunar Se
Rozgar Tak Scheme. She is also devising strategies to make the Clean India Campaign a gigantic success. Here are the selected excerpts...
More responsibilities:
With the shift from state government to the Government of India, the scale of responsibilities has moved upwards. I have been interacting with the travel trade and key trade associations, who have expressed their desire to join hands with the initiatives of Ministry of Tourism to double the inbound and domestic tourist arrivals. It’s also our responsibility to ensure that the growth in revenue keeps pace in line with the growth of the tourism sector.
Role of a facilitator:
The travel trade has apprised about various issues ranging from the need of a more flexible visa regime to benefits that the tourism industry should get after being granted the status of infrastructure sector. Many of these issues are beyond the realms of our ministry; hence we work with other ministries to act on such demands. The government’s part is to play the role of a facilitator and ensure that the end user’s Incredible India experience is seamless.
Hospitality and MICE:
The hospitality sector has huge potential across all segments. There has been a continuous growth in smaller cities, where private sector is coming forward to make most of the available opportunities. The more friendly states, which had announced various investment linked incentives, are doing much better than other states, those who are likely to undertake such initiatives. UP has partnered the Hunar Se
RozgarTak, a flagship capacity building programme under the aegis of the Ministry of Tourism, to offer a better experience at hands of trained manpower.
Further, the NCT of Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka had been at the forefront of the MICE evolution in India. I, as the ex- officio chairperson of the Indian Convention Promotion Board (ICPB), had asked its board members to work backwards. They should work closely with state secretaries and private sector to prepare well before bidding and win new convention and meetings for India.
On KTM:
Kerala Travel Mart has become an important platform. It offers buyers and sellers opportunities to delve deeper into best possible ways to promote tourism in India.