TravTalk India Online Magazine
The three-day India Tourism Mart (ITM) 2021, inaugurated on February 18, saw participation of 241 international buyers from 74 countries and 248 domestic buyers apart from an equal number of buyers walking in for meetings.
Manas Dwivedi
The Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism & Hospitality (FAITH) successfully organised the third edition of the India Tourism Mart (ITM), the first in a virtual format.
The three-day travel trade event, with Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, as Chief Guest, kick-started with a physical inaugural ceremony in New Delhi where various dignitaries shared messages for the successful restart of B2B travel and tourism marts in India. This was followed by buyer-seller meetings and 13 content-rich knowledge sessionsSpeaking at the event, Subhash Goyal, Chairman – ITM 2021 and Honorary Secretary, FAITH, said that the organisers were amazed with the response received. “When we were thinking of a virtual event, we were all worried, but were amazed at the response received from all over the world, which was phenomenal. I think that people who did not exhibit lost a great opportunity.The Health Minster mentioned that after starting medical visas, the government is considering starting e-Tourist Visa and scheduled international flights at least from countries that India has an air travel bubble agreement with. If this is implemented before the end of the financial year, it will be the greatest achievement of ITM 2021. With the world’s largest vaccination programme going on in India and already more than 10 million people having been vaccinated, it is time that e-visas were also reinstated,” he said.
Talking numbers, Goyal added that as far as international buyers were concerned, the event received more than 240 from 74 countries. And, as far as domestic registered buyers were concerned, there were 248. “Apart from this, we also had 247 buyers who came as walk-ins during the meetings. Each session was attended by 500-700 people. I would like to express my gratitude to everyone who participated in ITM this year, to all exhibitors, sponsors and also the Ministry of Tourism. Everyone played an integral part in organising India Tourism Mart 2021 and making it a great success,” he shared.
ITM 2022
Next year, ITM may be a physical event, but the knowledge sessions will still be virtual so that they can reach more people. Goyal says that he has been talking to the organising committee, FAITH Chairman and the Board of Directors to decide if the next ITM can be completely physical, and those unable to attend it physically in India could join virtually through buyer-seller meetings and knowledge sessions.
