With India bracing itself to host the G 20 final summit at New Delhi in 2023 and the other meetings and seminars in various cities of India, the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, is leaving no stone unturned to tap the benefits of the G 20 summit.
With the Tourism ministry going whole hog to showcase India to the world, it will hold the country’s first Global Tourism Summit in New Delhi from 10-12 April 2023 where all G-20 member countries will send their representatives.
With CII being the Industry partner for this event, CII Northern Region Headquarters, Chandigarh, held a roadshow in Chandigarh along with the Tourism Ministry officials of states in the Northern Region .
The emphasis was on how G-20 will be the Union Tourism Ministry’s main focus in 2023 to establish the country as a key tourism destination during its year-long leadership.
What is the tourism potential of Chandigarh?
Talking in the context of the City Beautiful, Rajiv Kaila, Chairman, CII Chandigarh said, “Chandigarh must explore collaboration with neighbouring states to create integrated tourist circuits that will mutually benefit the tourism growth of destinations in both states. There will need to be a focus on creating new tourism products that are oriented towards promoting lifestyle tourism to make it appealing for all segments.”
“Chandigarh has a significant potential in religious tourism, eco-tourism, and tourism driven by the IT & education sector,” said Sumeet Sihag, Director, Industries, Chandigarh Administration. Sharing the UT Administration’s perspective, he said that the growth objectives that can be achieved through tourism include employment generation, attracting private investments, preserving heritage and tradition, preserving the environment, diversifying tourism products into sports, entertainment, and leisure activities, developing resources for hospitality, etc.
Selling India’s tourism industry
“The summit will showcase various opportunities for investment and trade in the hospitality sector. This will allow global visitors to explore Indian tourism products and services that will provide an opportunity to the local players to cater to the global demand and compete in this sector,” said Arun Srivastava, Deputy Director General, Publicity, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India.
Stating the government’s target for 2030, Srivastava said, “Pre-pandemic, foreign tourist arrivals in India touched 11 million and the forex generated was Rs 2 lakh crore, providing over 13% direct and indirect jobs in the country. By 2030, we are aiming at a forex contribution to GDP of $ 56 billion that will generate 140 million jobs.”
Exploring new tourism initiatives in Punjab
Talking about the various schemes offered by the Government of Punjab, Gurkirat Kripal Singh, Secretary, Tourism & Cultural Affairs, Government of Punjab, said, “As the gateway of the nation for Central Asia, a lot of cultural exchange of significant historical value has happened in Punjab. The Government of Punjab is embarking on a series of new initiatives to achieve the ends from the point of view of Punjab.” Of Punjab’s upcoming initiatives, adventure tourism, water tourism and caravan tourism topped the list, he said.
