Category Archives: States

Sharing his views on the revised GST, Amitabh Kant, former G20 Sherpa and ex-CEO, NITI Aayog, says, “India needs to be ahead of the curve in cutting edge areas of sustainable growth. This will enable tech innovation.” He agrees that India, the fourth-largest economy, can’t wait till 2027 for CAFE-III. If Net Zero and Viksit Bharat 2047 are the goal, stricter fuel-efficiency norms must be achieved sooner.

Suman Billa, Additional Secretary & Director General, Ministry of Tourism, GoI, delivering an inspiring keynote address at the India Travel Awards 2025, highlighted tourism’s vital role in national development and India’s global positioning as a leading travel destination. “India’s tourism growth is inevitable — the true challenge lies in how we grow. To achieve our vision of becoming a $3 trillion tourism economy by 2047, we must focus not just on numbers, but on excellence and quality that make India a proud global service leader,” he said.

Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister, Tourism and Culture, said, “We must focus on private sector–led tourism hub development and a Product-Linked Incentive (PLI)-based Destination Maturity model. These insights will guide the final design and rollout of these schemes, strengthening our shared vision of sustainable and world-class tourism.” He was addressing a gathering at a day-long national consultation, convened by Ministry of Tourism with participation from states and UTs, industry leaders and investors. Nearly 200 stakeholders came together to chart the roadmap for developing destinations of global standards.

The 5th edition of Rajasthan Domestic Travel Mart (RDTM) is all set to take place from 12–14 September 2025 at BM Birla Convention Centre in Jaipur. With the theme ‘Explore, Discover and Experience’, the event will serve as a platform for hospitality brands, heritage and boutique hotels, and wedding destinations to connect with key stakeholders from across India. Recently, as a pre-cursor to RDTM 2025, a stakeholder’s meet was jointly organised by the Federation of Hospitality and Tourism of Rajasthan (FHTR) and the Rajasthan Tourism Department in Jodhpur. In his address at the meet, Maharaja Gaj Singh II of Marwar-Jodhpur and Chief Patron, FHTR, said, “Rajasthan’s cultural diversity, historical heritage, and incomparable hospitality make it a precious tourist destination not only in India but in the world. Platforms like RDTM are proving to be helpful in taking the tourism business of the state to new heights.” Significance of RDTM The last edition of RDTM was attended by over 240 national buyers and 280 Rajasthan based sellers. Over 7,000 B2B meetings were conducted, generating an impressive number of leads for hotel bookings, curated experiences, and destination weddings. The platform has clearly proven its effectiveness in boosting the state’s tourism business.

Jaiveer Singh, Minister of Tourism, Government of Uttar Pradesh, claimed that home- stays will become a new centre of attraction for tourists coming to the state. Under Uttar Pradesh Bed and Breakfast (B&B) and Homestay Policy, 2025, Lucknow residents have shown interest in registering their homes as homestays in a bid to offer affordable stays to guests.

Underlining the importance of the use of vernacular languages in travel marketing, Romil Pant, Executive Vice President & Head – Holidays, Thomas Cook India, says, “Travel is all about comfort, confidence, and convenience, and nothing delivers those better than communicating in one’s own language. Our data shows why regional language marketing has been such a success story for large operators like us. From websites to social media, print ads to face-to-face conversations, the adoption of local languages has consistently driven higher engagement and bookings, especially with Thomas Cook’s new initiatives like Bengali-language group tours during Durga Pooja.”

Booking.com’s latest search trends reveal that 58 per cent Indian travellers opted for short domestic trips this year, while 36 per cent chose international trips. Bengaluru, Mumbai and New Delhi were the top searched domestic destinations. Dubai, Singapore and Bangkok were the top searched international destinations on Booking.com by Indian travellers from 1 Jan–30 Jun 2025 for stay dates 1 Jan–30 Jun 2025.

West Bengal’s tourism sector attracted private investment worth ₹5,710 crore last year, driven by new luxury hotels, homestays and festival-driven growth, said Nandini Chakravorty, Additional Chief Secretary (Tourism), GoI. In the same period, 42 new luxury hotels have opened in the state. She also added that Bengal ranked first in homestay registrations with 5,322 operational units and 3,755 more in the pipeline.

Skål International Delhi has announced its new executive committee for the 2025–2027 term, with all members elected unopposed. Homa Mistry, CEO, Trail Blazer Tours India, takes over as President, succeeding Ranjit Vig, who now serves as Immediate Past President. “I hope I’m able to add value to the Skål club in the coming future,” said Mistry, while the committee expressed confidence in driving Skål Delhi’s vision forward under his leadership.

The Odisha government is planning to come up with a new heritage policy for conservation, preservation and beautification of 3,000 monuments across the state, said Pravati Parida, Deputy Chief Minister. The decision, aimed to attract more tourists, was made at a meeting organised to discuss conservation and beautification of the unprotected heritage monuments of Odisha.