TravTalk India Online Magazine
At the 10th edition of Great Indian Travel Bazaar (GITB) this year, 280 foreign buyers from 55 countries and 270 exhibitors interacted in B2B meetings. In 2019, GITB will be held at Jaipur from April 28-30 which will again yet again coincide with Arabian Travel Mart (ATM) to be hosted from April 28-May 1 in Dubai.
Ankita Saxena
Organised by Department of Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and FICCI, GITB this year was inaugurated at The LaLit Jaipur, amidst the presence of state government officials and travel trade fraternity like Vasundhara Raje, Chief Minister, Government of Rajasthan; Rashmi Verma, Secretary—Tourism, Government of India; Jyotsna Suri, Chairperson, FICCI Tourism Committee; Dipak Deva, Co-Chairman, FICCI Tourism Committee; Nihal Chand Goel, Chief Secretary (Tourism, Art & Culture) and others.
Inaugurating the exhibition at Jaipur Exhibition and Convention Centre, KJ Alphons, Minister of State (I/C), Tourism, GoI, commented, “Foreign tourist inflow in India last year grew by 15.6 per cent and receipts grew by 20.2 per cent. We want to double the tourist inflow in three years. It is possible to achieve the target as India has a lot of potential and a 5,000 year old history, which no other country in the world has.”
“Foreign tourist inflow in India last year grew by 15.6 per cent and receipts grew by 20.2 per cent. We want to double the tourist inflow in three years”
Raje informed that each year, the participation of international and national players at GITB has only increased. She said, “As per our Vision 2020, we hoped to receive 50 million tourists in the state and I would like to congratulate all stakeholders since we are well on our way to overachieve this target. By the end of 2017, Rajasthan received 47.5 million tourists and I am sure we will reach the 50 million mark two years in advance in 2018. The success of the state’s campaign—‘Jane Kya Dikh Jaye’ has resulted in generating interest for India amongst national and international travellers.”
Speaking about the success of GITB 2018, Subodh Agarwal, Additional Chief Secretary—Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, said that events like GITB have helped in bringing Rajasthan on the world map. “The pre-structured meetings were customised to meet the needs of the respective buyers. The event also saw a large number of first-timers.”
