News

Bahrain removes India and Pakistan from travel red list

Bahrain has removed Pakistan, India, Panama and the Dominican Republic from its red list for travellers arriving in the kingdom. The latest update from the Civil Aviation Affairs means pre-arrival PCR tests are no longer required for those entering Bahrain from these and other countries not featured on the red list. All passengers arriving in the kingdom will still have to take PCR tests on arrival and on the fifth and tenth days after their stay. Meanwhile, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, Ethiopia, Costa Rica and Ecuador have been added to the red list. Passengers from red list countries, including those who have transited through red list countries in the preceding 14 days, are banned from entry, except for citizens or residents of Bahrain, who must present a valid PCR test, done no more than 48 hours before boarding to travel to the kingdom. The changes are effective from Friday, September 3.

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Air India’s Amritsar-Birmingham direct flight to resume from Sept 3

Air India has announced to resume its Amritsar-Birmingham direct flight from September 3 under the Vande Bharat Mission after the UK moved India to amber list relaxing the Covid-19 restrictions on passengers arriving from the country. VK Seth, director, Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport, Amritsar, said, “The flight will operate once a week in view of the demand of passengers.” The airline’s flight will take off from Amritsar at 3pm every Friday and will arrive at Birmingham at 5:20pm (local time) the same day. The return flight will depart from Birmingham at 7:30pm on Saturday and reach Amritsar at 7:35am (India time) on Sunday, officials said. Sameep Singh Gumtala, the Global Convener of FlyAmritsar Initiative, said, “This is a good news for Punjabi diaspora in the UK as they can travel to the holy city without any hassle. On August 16, Air India had resumed its weekly direct flight to London’s Heathrow airport from Amritsar. With this, the perishable cargo movement from the airport to the UK has started once again.

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World’s highest motorable road at 18,600 ft inaugurated in Ladakh

A strategically important road, which connects Leh to the Pangong Lake, was inaugurated here on Tuesday by Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, who said that the stretch passing through the Kela Pass at 18,600 feet will be world’s highest motorable way. The road, constructed by the 58 Engineer Regiment of the Indian Army, will reduce 41-km of travel from Leh (Zingral to Tangtse) to the picturesque Pangong Lake crossing the Kela Pass, the Lok Sabha member said. “The road, which was inaugurated today, will be the world’s highest motorable road for the general public at a height of 18,600 feet. Up till now, the Khardungla Pass was the world’s highest motorable road for the general public at a height of 18,380 feet,” Namgyal told PTI. He said the road will play a major role in the future to boost the socio-economic status of local residents, especially of the people of the Lalok region of Ladakh, as it will facilitate tourism. “Tourists will be able to see the world’s highest motorable road, rare medicinal plants, participate in snow sport activities, see nomadic livestock, lakes and other attractions,” Namgyal said. During the inaugural function, held at the Kela Top, at an altitude of 18,600 feet, he applauded the dedication of the Indian Army, especially the 58 Engineer Regiment, for constructing the road. He also highlighted the seriousness of the government towards creating border infrastructure, especially roads and bridges.

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Uttarakhand’s Benital to be developed as ‘astro-village’

The Chamoli district administration in Uttarakhand is making all efforts to develop Benital in Karnaprayag block as an 'astro-village'. As per officials, a team headed by District Magistrate Himanshu Khurana visited Benital recently to explore options and what else can be done in the region to generate interest among tourists. The spot located at an altitude of 2600 metres above sea level, Benital will be developed into an astro village that will offer visitors a close view of planet, stars, and astronomical events, with night-vision dome and large telescopes. Revealing details of the project, Khurana added that the Tourism Department is building pathways, cottages, restaurants, tent platforms, and two parking lots to facilitate the travel for visitors. The DM added that the department has estimated that a total expense of INR 5 crore will be invested in the said project, and has entrusted the Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam with the responsibility of developing Benital as an astro-village. To ensure that the project becomes a reality soon, Khurana advised the department to start repairing the road immediately from Simli to Benital, and also advised them to set up signages along the route to make tourists aware of the region, and what it has on offer for them. He elaborated that Benital has the potential to attract tourists due to its picturesque location, and once it becomes an astro-village, it will also be able to generate self-employment opportunities for locals due to increased tourist activities.

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Indian Railways Launches Jungle Tea-Toy Train Safari from Siliguri to Rongtong in West Bengal

The Indian Railways has introduced a toy-train safari for tourists. The three hour journey starting from Siliguri junction will take tourists through beautiful views of Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary. The train will go till its ending destination Rongtong station. For boosting the tourism sector, the Indian Railways has decided to launch Jungle Tea-Toy Train Safari. Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) operated by Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) zone has announced the safari. Earlier, the toy train was suspended due to Covid -19 pandemic. After a gap of one and a half year, the officials are trying to restart it to boost the tourism sector hit due to Covid. Golden Rock workshop in Southern Railway created history by manufacturing the first-ever Coal-fired X Class Steam Locomotive in the country for the prestigious UNESCO accorded World Heritage Site viz., Nilgiri Mountain Railway. While talking to ANI ,Sanjay Chilwarwar, ADRM, Katihar division of Northeast frontier railway said, “We have started a regular basis up-down jungle tea toy-train safari from today with the heritage steam engine and Vistadome dining car facilities."

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Gujarat: 92,164 tourists visit Statue of Unity, 10,996 visit Science City

The most preferred tourist destinations of the state developed in the state have succeeded in attracting the tourist. In addition to the Statue of Unity, an unprecedented number of tourists visited Science City, Girnar Ropeway and Shivrajpur Beach during the recent holidays to take advantage of the state-of-the-art tourism facilities developed by the state government. A large number of tourists -visitors have been attracted by the tourism development activities. These well-equipped tourist destinations were visited by a large number of citizens during the Janmashtami festivals from August 28th to 30th. At Kevadia in Narmada district, the world's tallest statue of Iron Man - Sardar Saheb, built with the inspiration of Prime Minister Mr. Narendras Modi, a total of 92,164 tourists visited which include 23,907 tourists on 28th August, 40,914 on 29th August and 27,343 on 30th August. A Large number of people visited the Children's Nutrition Park, Viewing Gallery, Glow Garden, Jungle Safari, Ekta Nursery, Cactus and Butterfly Garden, Pet Zone, Boating, Electric Cycling, River Rafting etc. at Kevadia. Ahmedabad Science City has been made more modern and attractive. World class venues like Robotic Gallery, Aquatic Gallery, I-Max Theater, Five-D Theater, Earthquake Ride, Mission to Mars Ride have been successful in attracting people. Ahmedabad Science City was visited by a total of 10,996 tourists between August 28 and August 30. During these three days, Science City visit ticket revenue has reached 35,56,910. During these three days the children and students visited the new attractions. Of these, 10,236 visited the Aquatic Gallery, 2,806 visited the Robotic Gallery and 1,403 visited the Aquatic Five D Theater. The Girnar ropeway facility constructed under the direct guidance of chief minister Mr. Rupani has also been successful in attracting a large number of tourists in recent days. This rope-way has become another attraction for those who can easily reach the top of Girnar, visit religious places and enjoy the natural beauty of this mountain. A total of 21123 tourists visited Girnar and have enjoyed the ropeway facility of which 4861 tourists on 28th August, 7495 on 29th August and 8503 on 30th August visited this holy and religious place. The Government has been paying special attentipn to the development of Shivrajpur Beach in Dwarika as the most preferred tourist destination of the state. The CM recently visited Shivrajpur Beach, popularly known as 'Asia's Only Blue Beach' and reviewed the development work there. A total of 21,364 tourists visited Shivrajpur Beach in Dwarika during the recent festive holidays. Along with the traditional tourist destinations in the state, these new tourist attractions are also becoming the most preferred tourist destinations for tourists. The Statue of Unity, Science City, Girnar Ropeway and Shivrajpur Beach have become famous all over India with the addition of various tourist attractions as the state's tourist destinations are equipped with state-of-the-art and world class facilities.

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