TravTalk India Online Magazine
Representing India at WTM London, Rupinder Brar, Additional Director General, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, shares details about the Indian pavilion at the event.
Manas Dwivedi
The theme for the Indian pavilion this year at WTM will be ‘Find the Incredible You’, inspired by the award-winning ‘Incredible India’ campaign of the Ministry of Tourism and released globally a few months back. The campaign focuses on digital and social media and the promotion of niche tourism products of the country. Rupinder Brar says, “It focuses on transformative experiences, brought alive through unique storytelling in the form of autobiographies of travellers.”
Brar goes on to explain that this shift is essentially reflected in the philosophy of India. “There are just so many things that we feel tourists from all over the world should come and discover about themselves, be it in the realm of Yoga and wellness or adventure and heritage, or just disappearing into the 1,000-year-old history that our country is able to showcase,” she explains.
We are going to promote new destinations such as Statue of Unity in Gujarat; we are trying to convey the diversity of India at WTM London
The department is also celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi this year, and this is going to be a significant part of the Indian pavilion at WTM London. Brar adds, “We are also going to promote new destinations such as Statue of Unity in Gujarat, which is the tallest statue in the world. There are other tourism destinations developing around the statue, which would also remain a key focus at our pavilion. What we are trying to convey is the diversity of India, the layers and layers of beauty that we see in India. We would like to convey that as a message.”
Besides the different stakeholders of the industry such as state governments, wellness organisations, tour operators and hotels are also participating in WTM London along with Ministry of Tour- ism, Government of India. Sharing her expectations from the show regarding promoting India at a global stage, especially after the recent steps taken by the government to boost the number of tourists coming to India by reducing the visa fee and GST on hotels, Brar says that “India has now become a lucrative destination for global travellers.”
Apart from the government initiative of reducing the e-Tourist Visa fee, increasing the validity of visa and introducing a one-month visa is also a good move.
Brar says, “This is a very exciting time for tourism in India. World Economic Forum has also recently rated India at the 34th rank, which is a significant improvement from our rank in 2014. The parameters they have rated us very high on is the business environment in India and price competitiveness. Now, with the reduction in GST rates on hotels, India is only going to become more and more attractive as a destination, and we would like to use this as a major selling point in the global market. We are looking forward to a magnified response from tourists all over the world.”
