Bhubaneswar: Odisha Parab, a major international tourism outreach initiative, is set to be held in Indonesia’s Bali on November 23 and 24 to showcase the state’s art, culture, handicrafts, cuisine and tourism attractions.
The event was discussed at the first meeting of the State Tourism Advisory Council (STAC) chaired by Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida on Thursday. The meeting focused on a roadmap to promote Odisha as a sustainable and responsible tourism destination.
Parida, who holds the Tourism portfolio, said tourism would play a significant role in realising the vision of ‘Viksit Odisha 2036’ and contributing to ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’.
Odisha has enormous potential in heritage, religious, Buddhist, eco and adventure tourism, besides its coastline, biodiversity, tribal traditions and handicrafts, she said.
The council discussed diversifying tourism offerings through new circuits, destination weddings and MICE tourism. Creation of a Tourism Land Bank, improvement of infrastructure, connectivity, accommodation, sanitation and tourist safety were also taken up. It also stressed facilitating private investment through simplified regulatory approvals, better inter-departmental coordination and public-private partnerships.
Tourism secretary Balwant Singh presented the department’s vision document and outlined the roadmap for the sector.
Earlier, Parida launched 68 wayside amenity centres across 25 districts along major National and state Highways. Set up at an investment of around Rs 25 crore, the centres will provide facilities for tourists and commuters.
The Deputy CM also interacted with women’s self-help groups entrusted with operating the centres and discussed their operational challenges and role in delivering services to travellers.