Hyderabad: Three-day Telangana Tourism Conclave 2018 organized by FTAPCCI in association with the Global Panorama Showcase Ltd, Nagpur and Government of Telangana kicked off here today.
Azmeera Chandulal, Minister for Tourism & Culture, inaugurated the conclave by lighting a lamp. B. Venkatesham, Tourism Secretary, Gowra Srinivas, president, FTAPCCI; Harmandeep Singh, Managing Director, Global Panorama Showcase; Hari Kishan Valmiki, Chairman, Organising Committee, Tourism Conclave, FTAPCCI; Sunitha M. Bhagawat, Commissioner and others graced the occasion. A Report on “Telangana Tourism – Positively Transforming” was released by the Minister.
Speaking on the occasion, Gowra Srinivas said Tourism was the driving force for India’s economy. He said Tourism is continually expanding and was the largest contributor to the GDP of the country. It plays a vital role in socio-economic progress and infrastructure development globally, he said. In 2017, contribution of travel and tourism to GDP (percentage of gdp) for India was 9.4 %. Srinivas said that the International tourist arrivals grew by a remarkable seven per cent in 2017 to reach a total of 1.3 billion. Arrivals in South Asia grew 10 per cent, while India registered 15% growth. Travel and Tourism sectors created 25.9 mn jobs in India in 2017 and added Rs 5 Lakh crore to GDP according to a KPMG Report, informed Srinivas.
The three-day Telangana Tourism Conclave will conclude on Saturday. The conclave expects 50,000 business meets to happen. About 100 exhibitors are expected to showcase their properties, tourism services, informed Hari Kishan Valmiki, Chairman, Organising Committee, Tourism Conclave, FTAPCCI.
B. Venkatesham said Tourism, Travel and Hospitality industry is the most suitable for future prospects. It is the most future perfect / future-proof business. He said India has not touched even 1% of its potential. India registered only 10 million foreign tourist arrivals last year. Hyderabad has many unique things to offer, Venkatesham said. He gave examples of Buddhist sites, more than 30 big monuments of Buddhism, Jainism, Islamic Art forms and Architecturte and so on.
Minister for Tourism Azmeera Chandulal said Telangana State has made tremendous progress in the last four years. It was putting all efforts to develop tourism in the State. New projects have been taken up in Mahbubnagar, Warangal and Karimnagar.
