Visit Incredible India
The National Tourism Day was celebrated by the Ministry of Tourism on 25th January 2022. It was a two-hour program on a virtual platform, hosted under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebration, marking the 75 years of India’s independence. The theme of this year’s celebration is Rural and Community Centric Tourism.
The program was presided by Hon`ble Union Minister of Tourism, Culture and DoER, Shri G. Kishan Reddy, who was the Chief Guest for the event. The program was started with the opening remarks by Shri Arvind Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and followed by the addresses of Shri Upendra Prasad Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Shri Govind Mohan, Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Smt. Leena Nandan, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri G. Ashok Kumar, Director General, National Mission for Clean Ganga, Shri Anand Mahindra, Chairman of Mahindra Group and Col. Manoj Keshwar, Atulya Ganga Parikrama.
During the program, Hon`ble Union Minister of Tourism, Culture and DoNER, Shri G. Kishan Reddy launched the digital booklet 75 incredible sites to visit in India and Incredible India 2022 digital calendar by the Ministry of Tourism dedicated to tourism sites. Hon’ble Minister in his address emphasised on aggressive promotion of varied tourism products that India has to offer to the world. Tourism is one of the largest employments generating sector and it plays a vital role in direct and indirect employment. He also discussed the importance of domestic tourism and plans to start of Tourism Clubs to create more awareness among the students and youth of our country. Further he stressed on the promotion of tourism with special focus North-Eastern region and to tap the potentiality of the region. Hon’ble Minister shared his views on how to increase India’s share in global tourism market. Also appeal to connect with corporate sector under Adopt a Heritage project under corporate social responsibility. He spoke to utilise the competency of Ministry of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Railways etc. and how to empower the tourism in the country.
In the opening remarks Shri Arvind Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism spoke about how in India, the Tourism sector has emerged as one of the key drivers of economic growth. Tourism promotes national integration and makes citizens aware of the beauty and rich cultural heritage of our great nation. It also promotes inter-regional relationships and encourages cultural pursuits and providing support to local handicrafts. We have seen how the textile products of Pochampally and art forms of Raghurajpur have been a major tourism attraction both for domestic and international tourists. It is essential that such models are replicated in other parts of India to bring economic benefits from tourism to local communities to generate employment and bridge the cultural divide between urban and rural spaces.
Shri Govind Mohan, Secretary Ministry of Culture, GOI spoke about the interconnection between culture and tourism. India is home to greatest philosophies, temple structures, world heritage sites arts & crafts. India is home to greatest philosophies, temple structures, world heritage sites arts & crafts. India is a huge cultural repository and the facets of culture are many fold and unparalleled and we need to integrate them.
Tourism in the last two years has affected the world, including India due to the ongoing pandemic. In line with the Prime Minister`s call asking every citizen to visit at least 15 destinations by the year 2022 to promote domestic tourism. The Government announced various fiscal and relief measures to benefit the tourism industry like providing financial support to more than 11,000 registered Tourist Guides & Travel and Tourism Stakeholders as well as issuing 5 Lakh free Tourist Visas.