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Cleartrip initiates #PutHerOnTheMap initiative to appreciate women-run businesses

Cleartrip has kickstarted an initiative to celebrate the contribution of some women who have made travel memorable in India. Taking actionable efforts towards this initiative to support women-led businesses, Cleartrip has launched its latest campaign #PutHerOnTheMap. As part of this newly launched initiative, Cleartrip identifies women-run businesses that directly operate in the travel and tourism industry and those who are indirectly dependent or contributing to the industry to earn their livelihood. Cleartrip, will provide a platform to women entrepreneurs across India to share the stories of their business and unique offerings, giving readers an opportunity to experience their services the next time they travel to their city. This initiative by Cleartrip is a manifestation of support, calling out to travellers worldwide, to make such women and their efforts discoverable. Launching the initiative, Cleartrip celebrates the stories of a few women-run businesses across India. For instance, Sonam from Shimla, who is the sole breadwinner of the family, runs a local noodle joint for a living. Another example is Rita Goswami, owner of Rita Beads in Varanasi. Rita overcame several hardships during the pandemic, running her home with the single earnings of her son after their business was shut entirely. Similarly, Mohini Gupta, a Bhutta seller from Mumbai (Juhu Chowpatty), Gulab Devi Mahawar, a rickshaw driver from the pink city, Jaipur, Anita, a hair braider from Goa and many other women are featured in the campaign video as a recognition of the work they do. Speaking on the initiative, Himanshi Tandon, Director and Head of Brand Marketing at Cleartrip, said, “We come across women-led businesses during every travel journey, but have never truly acknowledged the joy they bring to our travel experience. Through this campaign, we want to celebrate the contribution of these women by sharing their stories and encourage others to follow suit. We want this initiative to be a movement that will make these women-led businesses across India more discoverable and create a community for curating and showcasing their inspiring stories.”

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Jharkhand's Deoghar airport all set for domestic flight operations

Deoghar, a holy city famous for Baba Baidyanath Dham, one of the twelve jyotirlingas, is ready to be connected with air transport with the newly built Deoghar domestic airport. The Airports Authority of India has completed the construction of the Airport which is ready to start its operations soon after formalities of technical NOC and trials are completed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The airport will be the second airport in the state after Ranchi. Spread in a vast area of 650 acres, the design of the terminal building is inspired by the structure of Baba Baidyanath Temple. Paintings of tribal art, handicrafts, and local tourist sites are showcased on the terminal building. The terminal with beautiful architecture is equipped with modern facilities including 24-hour medical assistance for passengers. With six check-in counters, the airport has a peak hour handling capacity of 200 passengers. Sandeep Kumar Dhingra, Airport Director of Deoghar Airport said, "Deoghar Airport is a domestic airport where Airbus A-320 & A-321 can land on a runway, which is 2,500 meters. Its width is 45 meters. It has four parking bases for A-320 & A-321. We have six check-in counters, a departure conveyor, and two arrival conveyor belts. X-rays, security equipment, and CCTVs have also been installed inside the terminal". To protect the environment the airport has installed solar energy and water harvesting system. With its strategic location, the airport will provide air connectivity to people from Dumka, Gonda, Banka, and the neighboring state of Bihar. The local traders and visitors have expressed their happiness as earlier they would travel for days to reach Deoghar by train. Jitesh Rajpal, a visitor and an official of the Indian Red Cross Society in Deoghar said, "Earlier, Doctors who were not able to come to Deoghar, will now come to this place after the functioning of the airport. It will surely boost the health and economy of the place and even the tourism because of the Baidyanath Temple on the international platform. The airport will also boost employment". Kaushal, a resident in Deoghar said, "Due to Covid-19, we had gone through a lot of troubles from the economic point of view, but Deoghar Airport will surely deliver a boom to retail markets of this place because the products of this place will now reach the international market in the future". With the construction of the new airport in Deoghar, regional connectivity is set to receive a major boost. It will enhance tourism and open new trade opportunities in the region dominated by the tribal people.

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Airlines want end to Covid restrictions for EU flights

Airlines and airports called Friday for an end to pandemic measures for European domestic flights as most countries in the region begin to relax requirements to present proof of vaccination and wear masks. "Covid-19, and specifically the Omicron variant, is now pervasive throughout all of Europe, and population immunity is at such levels that the risk of hospitalisation or death has dramatically reduced, especially for vaccinated people," said joint statement from ACI Europe and IATA. ACI Europe, which represents some 500 airports in the region plus IATA, the top trade association for airlines, noted that numerous countries were now dropping requirements to wear masks in public spaces or present proof of vaccination to enter social events. "As European countries open up and remove restrictions, it is only logical to remove similar restrictions from air transport," they said. Coming two years to the day from when the World Health Organisation declared Covid-19 a global pandemic, the trade bodies called for an end to requirements to present negative Covid tests and submit locator forms, as well as wearing masks on flights between European countries which no longer require wearing them inside public places. "This will free people to travel, and support jobs returning to the European air transport and travel sectors," Rafael Schvartzman, IATA's Regional Vice President for Europe, said in a statement.

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Travel demand picking up: Booking Holdings

Bookings in the travel industry are picking up pace, and 2022 will be another recovery year for the sector, Booking Holdings President and CEO Glenn Fogel said on Friday. "It's been a difficult time for the travel industry for the last two years...But the interesting thing is that people always want to travel, the demand is going to be there. When things are safe, when the government restrictions are lifted, people are going to book right away," Fogel said. Pent-up demand, vaccine acceptance, along with countries reopening borders, are fuelling demand, he said, adding in the US travel is really picking up, while in Asia it has been slower because of the Omicron variant. "Bookings are picking up and we expect that 2022 will be another recovery year for the travel industry, and there may be some dips along the way, but overall we believe that travel is continuing to rebound stronger each year and demand will continue to increase," he added. "I am absolutely impressed by the Indian government and how many people have been vaccinated. The numbers are truly impressive and credit goes to the government of India," he said. Talking about corporate travel, Fogel said it is bouncing back, however, companies are being careful about it. "Corporate travel is coming back now, but people are still being a little careful about it. It will go back to the pre-pandemic levels," he stated. Fogel stated, tech innovation plays a crucial role in rebuilding traveller confidence and there will be accelerated use of different technologies. Technology, especially Artificial Intelligence (AI), is helping travellers regain their spontaneity and confidence while assisting people to travel safely and responsibly, he said. "We believe that we can use technology to make travel easier and by using all the things we know, making it seamless, frictionless, and making it personalised. We believe that technology can make things so much better," he added.

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Jammu & Kashmir gears up for spring season to attract tourists

Ahead of the spring season, the tourism department of the Jammu and Kashmir administration has geared up to make this season yet another successful spring season for the tourists with a number of activities planned and lined up for the visitors. The tourists visited the valley in large numbers during the last winter season. The tourists enjoy the snowfall and all winter activities in Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Sonamarg and Srinagar. The department has geared up once again to make good arrangements for the tourists including comfortable hotels and houseboat services, healthy food points, neat and clean sanitisation at all tourist destinations. Secretary of tourism, Jammu & Kashmir, Sarmad Hafeez, said, "Spring is in the air. The blossoms have started coming out. Spring in Kashmir is perhaps the most beautiful in the world. We have prepared the programme for that. We are celebrating the almond blossoms first. We are the lake. More than 1.2 million tulips had blossomed last year. We are hoping to work very closely with the travel trade. We are hoping for a wonderful spring season this year." "We had one of the best winters ever. We had a good year in terms of tourism. A lot of people from across the country came and enjoyed winter in Jammu and Kashmir," he added. A tourist Prameela Patel said that she witnessed snowfall on the very first day of her visit to Kashmir. "I have come for the first time to Jammu and Kashmir. We received snowfall on the first day of our visit with the entire group. It is very beautiful and is like heaven," she said. Bharat Patel, another tourist suggested the government finalise a "reasonable rate" for the activities in the valley. "The administration can finalise a reasonable rate of the activities done here. The rates are on the higher side here which needs bargaining," he said. "It is worth experiencing the weather here. Everything is beautiful here including the people and clothes. The management of the administration was good. Enjoyed the activities done here," Jansi Parekh, another tourist said.

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NYC revival plan includes tourism, clean streets, pot sales

After two years of the pandemic battering New York City, Mayor Eric Adams is hoping to steer his city toward an economic revival by luring tourists back, beautifying the streets and embracing New York's looming legal pot industry. Adams, a Democrat who was elected last year on a probusiness, anti-crime message, unveiled an economic development plan and said that he said would usher in a "New New York." "We will never be the same. Covid has changed the game. And we must be prepared to win in the game," Adams said. New York City, with a population of 8.8 million, became the early epicenter of the Covid-19 outbreak in the US and was again at the center of the storm this past winter when the omicron variant emerged. Covid-19 cratered New York City's economy, sending the unemployment rate from a pre-pandemic rate of 3.7per cent to more than 20per cent in May 2020. The rate in December was 8.8 per cent, higher than the rates for the state and US as a whole. About 66,000 business shuttered at some point, with more than 26,000 permanently closing, according to the mayor's office. As rates of virus cases and deaths have been sharply dropped, the new mayor has sought to turn a page, declaring that the virus cannot control New Yorkers' lives and the city must come back. Last week, Adams announced the end of two of New York City's toughest Covid-19 safety measures, removing requirements for masking in public schools and that patrons of restaurants, gyms and other venues be vaccinated. "We can't stumble into post-Covid. We must start to think about the redefinition of what our city is going to look like," Adams said Thursday. The mayor's plan calls for helping small businesses and cultivating specific industries, including pharmaceuticals, medical technology and other parts of the life sciences sector, manufacturing, video games and the legal pot industry. New York legalized the recreational use of marijuana last year for those over 21, but recreational sales are not expected to start until later this year or early next year as the state sorts out regulations for what is expected one of the biggest legal US markets for pot. The mayor's office estimates that the industry will generate $1.3 billion in sales and between 19,000 and 24,000 jobs. Adams has hyped the industry before, offering rolling papers and a fake bag of marijuana to Stephen Colbert during an appearance on his late-night show while presenting the host with New York City-themed gifts. Adams, a former New York Police Department captain, said Thursday that his office is committed to help the industry to develop in a socially equitable way, helping those who were impacted by the war on drugs to find opportunities in the industry, such as pro bono legal services, help with applying for licenses and financing and marketing. Adams said he supports a newly-announced plan by the state to give the first licenses to sell marijuana to those who have marijuana-related convictions. "We unfairly targeted Black and brown communities during the marijuana, heavy-handed arrests that I fought against when I was a police officer," Adams said. The mayor said he wants to boost New York City's outreach to tourists and invite people from all over the world to visit and spend money. Tourism dropped from 66.6 million visitors in 2019 to 22.3 million in 2020 when the pandemic hit. Adams doesn't just want to boost the city's image through marketing, but has said he wants to improve public safety by reducing crime and tackling perceptions of crime and "disorder." Adams' new plan also calls for focusing on the city's beautification, prioritizing street cleaning and graffiti and garbage removal. The city will add benches, bike racks, planters and other amenities to business districts around the city, according to the plan, and establish long-term standards for outdoor dining structures on streets and sidewalks that have been a lifeline for the city's restaurants. "We have to have a clean city, and every part of the city is a reflection of how we feel about ourselves," Adams said. "When our streets are not clean it sends the wrong message."

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