274 buyers shortlisted for ITM

The upcoming India Tourism Mart (ITM), jointly organised by Ministry of Tourism and FAITH have selected a total of 274 buyers out of over 600 applications received for the same.

TT Bureau

The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) and Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism and Hospitality (FAITH) with representatives of its various member associations held a curtain raiser of the India Tourism Mart in New Delhi, where updates were shared on the progress of the event scheduled to be held from September 16-18, 2018. Subhash Goyal, Honorary Secretary, FAITH, shared, “We have selected 274 buyers out of over 600 applications by a screening committee to ensure that we only have genuine buyers. For sellers, we have about 16 participating states, out of which the major partner states are Punjab and Gujarat. Around 70 small booths have been taken by tour operators, worth `60,000 on individual basis and `30,000 each on sharing. This totals to about 100 tour operators. Besides, IATO has taken six booths with 12 operators each, for whom IATO has subsidised the rates at around `15,000 each. Similarly, ATOAI has taken a number of booths. We have even given booths for operators in the Northeast. Many events are being conducted to benefit the smallest of the smallest operators because the objective is to bring as many world-class buyers as possible.”

Goyal shared that the buyers are coming from over 60 countries, including new markets like Iceland, South America, Africa, China, Ukraine, and many Middle Eastern countries. “It is for the first time that many operators from countries like Iran are coming. We are confident that the mart alone will be responsible for at least 10-15 per cent increase in inbound tourism in the country. It took us only five months to create this event.”

Kerala Relief

• FAITH and all the partner associations have contributed a sum of `11 lakh to the CM Relief Fund for Kerala