Centre To Highlight Odisha Tourism At Global Forums

Bhubaneswar: The Centre will promote Odisha’s tourism potential at both domestic and global forums to draw more tourists to the state.

Union Tourism Secretary Yogendra Tripathi said this during a discussion with state officials and the members of Hotel and Restaurant Association of Odisha (HRAO) here. The discussion was part of the executive committee meeting of Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).

Tripathi said Odisha has several iconic tourist destinations and publicity materials on these sites will be available at the government’s overseas tourist offices to promote awareness about the state among foreign travellers.

On his part, Odisha Tourism Secretary Vishal Kumar Dev apprised Tripathi about the state’s plans for promoting tourism and requested him to approve Odisha’s proposals for infrastructure development at various tourist spots.

In a related development, Odisha Tourism will hold six more road shows in the country to attract domestic tourists to the state. These shows are scheduled to be held in Ahmedabad, Varanasi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai and Ranchi this month.

The Odisha Tourism Secretary said six road shows have been successfully conducted in five cities (two in Mumbai) so far. The response received from both national and international tour operators has been encouraging.

“Most of the tour operators, who interacted during B2B meetings, were not aware of many places of attractions in Odisha. They looked excited after watching the visual presentations of various destinations. We can expect more tourist footfall this year,” he added.