Tag Archives: K.J. Alphons

K J Alphons, Minister of State for Tourism (I/C), Government of India will be inaugurating the project ‘Development of Tribal Circuit: Jashpur- Kunkuri- Mainpat- Kamleshpur- Maheshpur- Kurdar-Sarodadadar- Gangrel- Kondagaon- Nathiya Nawagaon- Jagdalpur- Chitrakoot- Tirthgarh in Chhattisgarh’ implemented under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme of Ministry of Tourism, in Gangrel, Chhattisgarh on September 14, 2018. This is the second project under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme being inaugurated in the country. This project was sanctioned by the Ministry of Tourism in February 2016 for Rs 99.21 crores. The project covers 13 sites in Chhattisgarh, namely, Jashpur, Kunkuri, Mainpat, Kamleshpur, Maheshpur, Kurdar, Sarodadadar, Gangrel, Kondagaon, Nathiya Nawagaon, Jagdalpur, Chitrakoot, Tirthgarh. Development of Tribes and Tribal Culture is one of the prime area of focus for the Ministry of Tourism. The Ministry is carrying out an array of activities for development and promotion of tourism in the tribal region.  The Ministry is developing the tourism infrastructure in the region under its schemes of Swadesh Darshan. Under the tribal circuit theme of the scheme, the Ministry has sanctioned four projects to Nagaland, Telangana and Chhattisgarh for Rs 381.37 crores. Major components sanctioned include eco log huts, craft haats, souvenir shops/ kiosk, tourist reception & facilitation centres, open amphitheatre, tribal interpretation centres, workshop centres, tourist amenities centres, last mile connectivity, wayside amenities, viewpoints, nature trails, solar illuminations, signages solid waste management, etc. These components are perceived to improve existing tourist facilities and enhance the overall tourist experience.  

K J Alphons, Minister of State (IC) for Tourism, highlighted that the tourism industry alone has created 14.62 million jobs in India over the last 4 years. The minister met ambassadors from 20 countries in New Delhi to further promote India. Reaching across the world, the ministry of tourism recently conducted roadshows in the USA and will be conducting roadshows in Russia and China. The Moscow office is also slated to open in the next 3-4 months.

In a bid to increase the number of tourist arrivals to India, K J Alphons, Minister of State ( IC) for Tourism, met ambassadors from 20 countries to further promote India. The minister met with ambassadors & diplomatic representatives of various embassies including Austria, Argentina, Bhutan, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Greece, Philippines, Brazil, Malaysia, Germany, Indonesia, Finland, Russia, New Zealand, Oman.  He personally made a presentation and showed promotional films further to attract more foreign arrivals to the country. He also highlighted the transformational experience, a visit to India provides. The minister will continue to meet more ambassadors. The newly launched video “Yogi of the Racetrack” has already got 25 million views. Global promotions will continue with films in 9 foreign languages.

K J Alphons, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism, has inaugurated the Institute of Hospitality Management in Jodhpur. Speaking at the event, he said that India is among the fastest growing tourism economies in the world and in 2017, the Indian tourism receipts went up by 20.8 per cent against a global growth rate of 7 per cent. He expressed his hopes for the country to be able to double its inbound revenue in three years.

With an aim to project India as a ‘must visit’ tourist destination, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism, K J Alphons will attend a series of ‘Incredible India roadshows’ in the US, from June 18-22,  2018. The roadshows will be held in several major cities of US including New York, Chicago & Houston. The Incredible India roadshows will hold B2B interactions, presentations and press briefings by the Indian delegation. The key note addresses will be delivered by the Tourism Minister and Incredible India presentation will be made by Joint Secretary Ministry of Tourism Suman Billa. The roadshows will include cultural performances also. USA is one among the top three source countries in the percentage share of Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India. During April 2018, the US was the second highest source country with 11.21 per cent share of total FTAs.

K J Alphons, Union Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism has launched the new Incredible India website which showcases India as a holistic destination, revolving around major experiences, such as, spirituality, heritage, adventure, culture, yoga, wellness and more. The website follows the trends and technologies of international standards with an aim to project India as a “must-visit” destination, among its overseas travellers. Launching the new dynamic and interactive website with latest platform and technology, the minister hoped that the website will evolve as one of the best in the world. He also said that the new website is more interactive and it will have all the required content and further, the content shall be updated in a timely manner. Alphons thanked the stakeholders like Tech Mahindra, Google, Adobe and NIC team who were involved in the development of the website. Speaking at the event, Secretary Tourism, Rashmi Verma said that new website will suggest a visitor the options and there is no need of any queries. She also added that the website will provide information all over the world even about exotic destinations of the country. The Secretary also conveyed that the website has already started getting visits from US, Russia and China. The website has many useful features to make it more interactive and to provide a deeper engagement to the travelers visiting the website. With the help of Adobe solution suite, the Ministry of Tourism will now be able to engage effectively with visitors across Web & Social channels and measure engagement.

In a high level meeting held by K J Alphons, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism, with Suresh Prabhu, Minister for Civil Aviation; Jayant Sinha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation (MoCA), along with senior officials, it was decided that MoCA shall under-write any loss making route, if it is not already covered under Udan scheme. It was also decided that Udan scheme could be extended to all the under-served destinations at the earliest. During the meeting, Alphons requested for daily Air India flights to Khajuraho, better connectivity to Aurangabad for accessing Ajanta-Ellora, Triangular flight on Kochi-Goa-Jaipur sector, more international flights from Kozhikode, international flights to South East Asian countries from Guwahati Airport, commissioning of Kannur Airport, direct flights from Delhi to Kozhikode, daily flights from Kolkata to Shillong and more flights to Varanasi, direct flights from Ahmedabad and Kolkata to Srinagar and also opening the new airport in Sikkim. It was also requested that more flights be operated to Jindal Vijaynagar Airport to get better access to Hampi. MoCA assured immediate action in consultation with airline operators to provide better connectivity.

K J Alphons, Union Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism, in a statement to Lok Sabha revealed that the Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned as much as Rs 460.74 crores for five ongoing Eco Circuit projects. Eco Circuit is one of the 15 thematic circuits identified for development under Swadesh Darshan Scheme – integrated development of theme-based tourist circuits in the country. The projects are sanctioned subject to availability of funds, submission of suitable detailed project reports, adherence to scheme guidelines and utilisation of funds released earlier. The completion of the projects sanctioned under the scheme would result in increased tourist inflow thereby creating employment opportunities for the local community. All the projects are at different stages of implementation. The Ministry provides central financial assistance as one time grant for creation of capital assets under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme in phased manner. Based on the progress made on the projects and utilisation certificate received from the State Governments, Ministry releases subsequent installments of funds. The operation and maintenance of the assets created is the responsibility of respective State Government/Union Territory. The revenue generated, if any, from these assets does not accrue to the Ministry.  

The Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned an amount of Rs.95.67 crore for the Development of Coastal Circuit in Dakshin Kannada dist., Uttar Kannada dist. and Udupi dist. in Karnataka under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme, as per information by K.J. Alphons, Union Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism. MOT has launched the Swadesh Darshan Scheme for developing 15 identified theme based tourist circuits and the National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) Scheme for developing 25 identified pilgrimage destinations. The Ministry develops tourism related infrastructure and promotes India as a tourism destination to increase tourist arrivals which, in turn, creates job opportunities in the country.    

The Ministry of Tourism in association with the North Eastern States is set to organise the International Tourism Mart (ITM) in Guwahati, Assam from December 5-7, 2017. The event will be held at Taj Vivanta, and will be inaugurated by Jagdish Mukhi, Governor of Assam in the presence of Sarbananda Sonowal, Chief Minister, Assam and K J Alphons, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism, along with other dignitaries from Central Ministries and North Eastern States. The 6th ITM will focus on India’s ‘Act East Policy’, blossoming ties with ASEAN and the larger East Asia region. Besides deliberations on promotion of tourism in the North East Region, the panel discussions will also lay emphasis on promoting cultural ties, strengthening contact with countries in the ASEAN region and providing enhanced connectivity to the North Eastern states. The ITM 2017 will also see an active participation by the Ministry of DONER to synergise the process of development of tourism in the North East region.