Sunrise in the South
Recognising the efforts of achievers from different segments of the industry, South India Travel Awards 2014 starts with a bang in Hyderabad making up for the long-felt necessity to focus on the travel industry in the South. Maya, in her various avatars o
“T he sun is rising in the South,” these were the apt words with which Chandana Khan, Special Chief Secretary, Andhra Pradesh Tourism, summed up the South India Travel Awards.
Addressing the stakeholders and game changers of the South Indian travel industry, who had all gathered together at Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel Hyderabad Banjara Hills to celebrate the South India Travel Awards, Khan, who was the Chief Guest at the event, congratulated the organisers and said that there had been a long-felt necessity to focus on the south.
The awards recognised the efforts of achievers from different segments of the industry, including those from the aviation sector, domestic and international tourism boards, hotels and resorts, GDS’s as well as travel agents and tour operators.
Explaining the criteria for the awards, SanJeet, Publisher, DDP Publications, said, “The winners of the awards were decided by a fair and unbiased selection process done through voting and judgment by a panel of jury consisting of the travel industry’s major players. The total score of the judges and the number of votes received by each nominee determined the final scores of the winners.”
What was most heartening to know was that the organisers received 250,000 votes from 61 countries, including USA, Canada, UK, France, UAE, Germany, China and many other places.
Receiving the ‘ Wall of Legends’ Award on behalf of her father Vivek Nair, CMD, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts, Amruda Nair, who is the Leela Group’s Head of Asset Management, said, “With the travel and tourism industry poised to grow exponentially, the entire industry will benefit from it.”
Winner of the ‘ DDP Game Changer’ Award, Sunil Kumar, Vice President, TAAI and CEO, Travel World, said, “This award will remind me of my commitment to the industry which will be there till my last breath.” On being awarded the ‘ Face of the Future’ Award, Zaheer Ellias Najeeb, Executive Director, ATE Group of Companies, said, “It’s humbling to be here, it's not just me, but the entire future of the travel industry sits before me, and every person here and everything that we do will change and define the future of the travel industry.” Amita Motwani, Mrs India-International 2013, who was the Guest of Honour at the event, talked about the need for more such initiatives to motivate and improve tourism in India.
Later, Khan, Motwani and Sanjeet also released the book, Southern Heritage, which is an ode to the immense beauty, heritage, culture, and the delectable cuisine of South India, which offers extraordinary potential for travel and tourism. Having completed the Southern leg with a bang, the awards will now travel to the East, West and North India, finally culminating in the grand finale.