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An eventful season
 It
was an august gathering in the month of August at the WTTC-India Initiative
Retreat spearheaded by its chairman Radha Bhatia in the small but world-famous
city of Khajuraho. With Mapping the Future as its theme, top industry leaders,
professionals and politicians from hospitality and travel deliberated on the
future of Indian tourism and the need for a well-defined master plan.
It was refreshing to listen to people from other professions like film directors
of international repute Shyam Benegal and Shekhar Kapur express their views
on what ails Indian tourism.
Unseasonal rains aside, it has been pouring exhibitions. India hosted the PATA
Travel Mart in the city of Nizams this September wherein one could see a number
of hospitality players from the Asia Pacific region. The fifth edition of the
Kerala Travel Mart 2008 (KTM) in Kochi followed immediately after. It was a
true showcase of the diversity that has made Kerala a formidable destination.
It was not only the ministerial ranks present there in full force that corroborated
this, but also the fact that every stall had its proud owner holding high the
flag of his brand and the state, rather than a mere company representative holding
fort.
Responsible tourism, rural tourism, and a tripartite agreement to promote tourism
co-operation between India, Brazil and South Africa were the highlights of this
edition of KTM. This was followed by the TAAI Travel Congress in London at the
month’s conclusion.
The first half of October will see plenty of action in the hospitality industry.
The 44th FHRAI annual convention is headed to China and is claimed to be the
association's first carbon-neutral convention. Hence the theme Responsible Tourism.
We at Express TravelWorld firmly believe that it is only responsible and sustainable
tourism that will lead the way to better and balanced hospitality and tourism
sectors. This is clearly reflected in our special publication Navigator 2009:
The India Tourism Strategist.
Reema Sisodia
Editor
editorial.etw@expressindia.com
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