Tourism Sector

Rural tourism gets a government push

Hit hard by the slowdown tour operators in the country are set to get a leg up from their subaltern brethren who are sprucing up their homes and skills of the English language to welcome vacationers to their unique pastoral ambience.

After testing out the concept with 13 villages across the country, the Ministry of Tourism has now decided to expand its rural tourism initiative to 130 other centres in the hinterland to develop them as tourism destinations. This is part of the Ministry’s Visit India 2009 campaign which comes in the wake of the successful of the ‘Incredible India’ campaign.

'No plan to shift WR HQ to A'bad'

Gujarat's long-pending demand with the railways for shifting of the Western Railway headquarters from Mumbai to Ahmedabad on the ground of the state boasting the largest rail track network in the zone, backed by CM Narendra Modi, is not under consideration of either the rail ministry or the rail board.

This was stated by Mumbai-based additional general manager of the Western Railway, RS Chug, in reply to a question by this reporter during a media briefing after flagging off the Gandhidham-Kamakhya (in Assam) train from Gandhidham, about 60-km from here, on Saturday.

"Such a decision is taken by the rail ministry and the rail board as this is a policy matter. There is, at present, no such move under consideration in the railways," Chug said.

Government to woo foreign tourists

Government to woo foreign touristsThe government would do all possible efforts to attract more tourists in India. It has proposed special incentives and packages to promote tourism. The central government has declared 2009 as the year to `Visit India' to make country as a favorite tourism location.

Recent Attack Would Hit Tourism Industry

Recent Attack Would Hit Tourism IndustryThe tourism industry is likely to suffer major losses in the coming times, following the recent terror attack in Mumbai. Tourism sector is already facing the heat of the global slowdown, causing 20 per cent drop in the business. Many foreign countries such as US, France and Australia are advising their citizens to refrain from traveling to India till the recovery of normalcy. Their warning becomes more important when the terrorists in India are targeting the foreign nationals.

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