News

Ropeway to reach the top of Bihar’s Mandar hill to be launched soon

Visiting sites atop Mandar hill in Bihar’s Banka will now be easier as the state tourism department is all set to launch a recently developed ropeway at the 700-foot-high Mandar. The second such facility in the state after the ropeway at Ratnagiri hills at Rajgir in Nalanda. The Mandar ropeway‘s length is 377.36 metres and it’s expected to cover the distance from the ground to the top of Mandar hill within four minutes. Currently, it takes two hours to reach the top. The airlift facility which eight cabins, each accommodating four persons at a time, has been developed at a cost of over ₹9 crore. “Mandar draws a good number of Hindu pilgrims, especially during Shrawan months and on Shivratri festival. Even Jain devotees visit the hilltop. But travelling to the top of the hill is tough and exhausting. This is why people have been demanding for an airlift facility,” Narayan Prasad, tourism minister, said. Now that the facility is ready, it will definitely make the journey more convenient and comfortable, he added. The minister said that chief minister Nitish Kumar has been requested to launch it. “Once we get the green signal, date of launching will be announced,” he said. Last Tuesday, a team of the Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation (BSTDC) had visited the site to review the project and submitted the status report. “And I will visit Banka to make a final review of the project,” he said.

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Air India resumes direct flights from Amritsar to Rome

Air India has resumed its direct flight between Amritsar and Rome, and this came as a relief to people who had plans to travel to Rome from Amritsar. Travellers who have been wanting to fly to Rome can now finally do so. The direct flight between the two cities was put on hold due to the COVID 19 outbreak. One passenger said that she has been wanting to travel to visit his father in Italy for a long time, and can now finally do that. She also pointed out that the direct flight is also a lot more affordable than the connecting ones, as travellers would have to pay high fares to go to Italy via other countries. As we all know by now, scheduled international flights are banned in this pandemic times, and only air bubbles under the Vande Bharat mission are ongoing. With the decision to resume direct flights between Amritsar and Rome, the Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport in Amritsar now has three international flights, with the other two to Birmingham, and London. Vipin Kant Seth, the Director of Amritsar Airport said that the scheduled direct flights will leave from Amritsar on Wednesday, and return to Amritsar on Friday morning. He said, "As per the schedule, the flight will take off from Amritsar at 3.55 pm on Wednesday and reach Rome the same day. It will return the next day and reach Amritsar on Friday morning at 5.35 am. A total of 230 passengers took the first flight from Amritsar to Rome on Wednesday. We are expecting the traffic to increase."

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Dubai Expo is all set to begin from October 1

Dubai Expo 2020 that was scheduled for 20 October 2020 – 10 April 2021 is now finally going to be held from October 1, 2021. The event will go on until March 31, 2022. The event was postponed last year due to the outbreak of the coronavirus, but now it is all set to thrill visitors. The Dubai Expo 2020 is located between the cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and is going to be a major event. The event will see 60 shows daily, and will have 191 country pavilions, besides having more than 200 restaurants at the venue. The excitement for the Expo is reaching a crescendo now with less than one month left for it. Dubai’s flagship airline, Emirates, released a campaign feature with actor Chris Hemsworth. The global event is all about innovation, creativity, energy, and discussing world problems for a better future. In fact, every week will have a dedicated theme that will tackle global issues. Some of the topics are Space; Climate & Biodiversity; Travel & Connectivity; Health & Wellness; and Water. Dubai Expo 2020 is divided into three districts, these are the Mobility District, Opportunity District, and the Sustainability District. You can book your tickets from the official website of the Expo. There are different tickets at different prices, with the Premium Experience tickets being the most expensive, at INR 37,547.13. You can also book a single day pass for INR 2,038.27.

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Flight services between Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram to resume from Friday

After over a year, flight service between Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram is set to resume from Friday. Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) on Thursday announced two weekly services between the cities. Indigo Airlines flight 6E 9038 will depart for the capital at 3.30 pm on Mondays and Fridays. Flight 6E 9473 will return to Kochi on the same days at 7.15 pm. "We are happy to resume the Kochi-Trivandrum air connectivity. It has been a long-time demand of the general public, especially the business community. As per the instruction of the chairman and board of directors, CIAL has been trying to improve intra-state air connectivity." CIAL has also informed that it plans to facilitate "more flights this year, connecting other airports in the state". A service between Thiruvananthapuram and Kannur had resumed recently.

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West Bengal makes RT-PCR test mandatory for those arriving from 9 countries

West Bengal has made the RT-PCR test mandatory for those coming from nine countries on arrival. As per the reports, all arriving international passengers will need to undergo the said tests after landing at the NSCBI airport, irrespective of whether they are fully vaccinated or are carrying a COVID-19 negative report. The nine countries that have been included in the list include New Zealand, Bangladesh, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, United Kingdom, China, Botswana, South Africa, and Brazil. The decision was made after reports of new mutations of SARS-CoV-2 and the rising number of variants of concern surfaced. An official from the state health department added that they have come up with a new protocol for international travellers after they held a meeting with experts, and that now international passengers coming from the said nine countries will have to follow the updated rules. Reports have it that those flying from those countries to Kolkata will also be required to pay for getting their tests done at the airport. For free testing, they will be sent to a government facility, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute at Rajarhat. The passengers will then be allowed to go to a hotel or their home, where they will be required to stay in quarantine until they receive their RT-PCR report. As per the reports, in case anybody tests positive, they will be admitted at the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Kolkata.

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J&K Tourism dept promotes destination festivals, trekking to attract tourists

In an effort to attract tourists, Jammu and Kashmir Tourism department to organise dedicated travel, trekking-expeditions, mountain bike adventures and promote Sonamarg Autumn Festival, Pahalgam Winter Festival, Gulmarg Snow Festival and Autumn and Houseboat festivals. The Jammu and Kashmir Tourism department has lined up various activities, including promoting destination festivals and organising dedicated trekking-expeditions, to attract tourists to the union territory. This was said at a meeting chaired by Chief Secretary A K Mehta held to review various activities being undertaken by the Tourism department. Administrative Secretary, Tourism department along with MD, JKTDC, and concerned officers of the department participated in the meeting chaired by Mehta, an official spokesperson said. "The Tourism department is planning to organise various events to attract local and foreign tourists to the Union territory," the spokesperson said. Recently, several roadshows have been organised across major cities of the country to promote tourism-related events, activities, and destinations in Jammu and Kashmir. The meeting was informed that as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the department will organise an iconic week celebration in the last week of October this year, which will include performances on Hafiz Nagma, Kalam-e-Khusroo, Kalam-e-Baba Fareed, Qawwali, Baul Sufi folk, Darrvish Sufi dance, and Haziri Kathak, besides literary seminar on Sufism and exhibition of local arts, calligraphy, and Sufi traditions. The department will also promote destination-festivals like Sonamarg Autumn Festival, Pahalgam Winter Festival, Khadinyar Cultural Festival, Gulmarg Snow Festival, Basholi Art Festival, Mata Vaishnodevi Sangeet Samelan, Kishtwar Saffron Plucking Festival, and Suchetgarh Seema Darshan.

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