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Liga Skromane, the Latvian tourist who has been missing from Thiruvananthapuram, is believed to be dead. Liga’s sister Ilze has identified her body and the dresses the foreign tourist was wearing at the time she was missing. But, the police is yet to confirm the death as the bosy was spotted in a putrified state. The head of the body was found lying away from the rest of it, in a marshy spot. The police department will conduct a forensic examination, including DNA sample matching to confirm that the body is that of the 33-year-old foreigners’. The body, which is assumed ... Read more

The long-awaited Islamabad International Airport (IIA) is all set to begin operations for international and domestic flights on May 3, replacing the old Benazir Bhutto International Airport in twin city of Rawalpindi. Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi is expected to formally inaugurate the airport. IIA is Pakistan’s largest international airport, designed for up to 15 million passengers annually in the first phase, and up to 25 million in future. Spread over 19 square kilometres, the new, Y-shaped airport is located 30km from the heart of Islamabad’s business centre, Blue Area. It will be Pakistan’s first airport to accommodate the double-deck Airbus ... Read more

Aimed at creating a healthy environment for campuses and communities, Puducherry has released a Green Protocol, which will serve as a guide for universities, colleges, schools, industries, tourism sector, hotels, hospitals and other organisations to carry forward the stated missions of the programme. Chief Minister V Narayanasamy released the protocol in the presence of Minister for Environment M. Kandasamy and Pondicherry University Vice-Chancellor Gurmeet Singh. The Comprehensive Green Protocol (CGP), which has been formulated to become a touchstone of sustainable development for the Union Territory, condenses into a booklet the knowledge shared among a consortium of experts from various organisations such as the ... Read more

Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), along with Jamia Millia University had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), for starting Bachelors of Vocation (B.Voc) courses of 3 years. The courses offered are a Bachelor programme on ‘Food Production and a 1-year Diploma in Hospitality, arranged by the Ashok Institute of Hospitality and Tourism Management (AIH&TM) under ITDC. The new programme hopes to fit under the Department of Tourism, Hotel, Hospitality, and Heritage Studies (DTHHHS).  Additionally, the department also offers professional certificate, diploma and degree programmes at undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral levels in tourism, hospitality and allied areas. Meanwhile, the programmes offered are ... Read more

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), as part of ensuring food safety for its passengers, is all about to launch ‘Menu on Rail app’ exclusively for the passengers. The mobile application enables the users to choose dishes according to their choices. Additionally, the service would vary based on the category of the train such as Mail, Express, Humsafar trains, Rajdhani Express, Shatabdi Express, Duronto Express trains, Gatimaan Express train and Tejas Express train. “IRCTC is the only authorised agency to take and deliver orders through e-catering in trains. Beware of unauthorised entities such as, Travelkhana, Railyatri, Omitra, and Yatrachef. ... Read more

Government of Kerala has reconstituted the State Tourism Advisory Committee headed by Kadakampally Surendran, Minister for Tourism, for the period of 2018-2020. The new committee has four new members from Thiruvananthapuram along with the existing 18 members from the Travel and tourism industry in the outgoing committee constituted in 2016. The state Tourism Advisory committee was constituted in 2012 to advise and formulate the policy for Destination development, Product development, marketing strategies, market research etc. Rani George IAS, Secretary, Tourism will be the Vice Chairman and P Bala Kiran IAS, Director of Kerala Tourism will be the Convener of the 28 ... Read more

With an aim to woo more Arabian tourists to the state, Kerala Tourism will participate in the prestigious Arabian Travel Market, scheduled to be held from April 22 to 25, in Dubai. The Kerala delegation for the Arabian Travel Market will be led by Kadakampally Surendran, Minister for Tourism, Cooperation and Devaswoms. “Kerala Tourism’s presence at the Arabian Travel Mart augurs well for the tourism industry in the state, considering the potential it has to offer to travelers looking to include Kerala in their annual tour itineraries. Further, the B2B meets that will be organized in various places in the ... Read more

Noting that forest fires normally occur in April every year causing huge damage to the environment, the National Green Tribunal has directed the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change to finalise the National Policy on Forest Fire within two weeks. The ministry told the green panel that all the states have complied with the direction of the tribunal and submitted their response to the Draft National Policy on Forest Fire. After receiving suggestion from all the states, the ministry was re-examining the draft policy and had fixed a workshop schedule to enable all stakeholders to participate in the effective ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: arabnews After 35 long years of prohibition citing religious reasons, Saudi Arabia has opened the first movie theatre in Riyadh. The first screening was by invitation only with both men and women in attendance. The cinema will be open to public on Friday and will be screening Marvel superhero film Black Panther. Saudi Culture and Information Minister Awwad Alawwad, celebrities and guest filmmakers are also planning to attend the first screening for public tomorrow. Photo Courtesy: SkyNews It was in December 2017 that the Ministry of Culture and Information announced a landmark decision to allow commercial cinemas to operate ... Read more

Germany welcomed 8, 52,224 visitor overnights in 2017 registering a 13.8 per cent growth over 2016. Owing to this steady growth, the German National Tourist Office (GNTO) in India forecasts a 5-8 per cent growth in tourist arrivals this year. With experiential travel becoming the most sought after genre in leisure travel, GNTO is promoting ”Culinary Germany-More to explore” as its core global marketing theme this year. ”Food forms an integral part of any traveler’s itinerary. ‘Experiencing the local flavors helps enhance the flavor of any holiday and makes for everlasting impressions. With over 5,000 beers from 1,300 breweries, 300 types of bread, ... Read more

With summer vacations fast approaching, most Indians are planning to head to long-haul international destinations with booking going up by 25 per cent compared to last year, said a report published by online travel company MakeMyTrip. About 50 per cent of the bookings are made by travellers in the 25-35 age group, says the report. “Long-haul destinations have registered higher growth this year compared to short-haul ones, with a significant 25 percent growth in the number of trips year-on-year,” said Mohit Gupta, chief operating officer, MakeMyTrip. There has also been a significant increase in the number of people travelling this summer with ... Read more

In the wake of recent accidents and safety concerns it has raised, the authorities have issued a set of fresh guidelines for houseboats in Alappuzha. The new guidelines, issued to prevent accidents, directs the houseboat owners to increase the height of railings at the lobby and rear-end of boats with seating facilities. The houseboat owners are directed to increase the height of the railings in 60 days. Safety instructions should also be displayed in multiple languages on the houseboats. Apart from the written materials, the crew of the boat, are instructed to give safety instructions and do’s and don’ts to the ... Read more

Chennai beaches including Marina and Elliot’s are all ready for a makeover with the financial aid extended by the Central government to promote beach tourism in the state. The development activities are expected to be completed by September 2018. Marina and Besant Nagar beaches would be getting retrofitting parks. The works for the same will start this month. The Central government has allocated Rs 12.5 crore for Marina and Rs 8.5 crore for the Besant Nagar beach. Access to Chennai and Elliot’s beaches will improve once the makeover is complete. The authorities are planning to develop beach approach facility for ... Read more

Kerala has unseen marvels hidden in the light of popular destinations which could be developed as tourism hotspots, said Kadakampally Surendran, Minister for Tourism, Govt of Kerala, while inaugurating the Munnar Tourism Partnership Meet 2018 at the Le Maritime Hotel in Kochi. He has also urged the tourism stakeholders to take good care to prevent environmental degradation  and preserve Kerala’s rich biodiversity. The minister also pointed out that it is not concrete jungles that a tourist would look for when they come to Kerala. “Local residents too must benefit from the sector, thereby furthering the cause of responsible tourism. Village tourism packages could help ... Read more

Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) said it is planning to promote Maharashtra as the preferred destination for Medical and Wellness tourism at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2018, which will be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 22-25 April 2018. MTDC will showcase the essence of the state and its spectacular touristic attractions and discuss strategic partnerships with tourism professionals and potential investors at ATM “I am delighted to be a part of the Arabian Travel Market 2018 that will provide MTDC a platform to showcase the potential of medical tourism in Maharashtra. While the segment is largely untapped and caters ... Read more