News

God’s own place ‘Mantalai’ in Udhampur set to emerge as prominent tourism destination

Mantalai (J&K), Jul 31: Located nearly 100 kilometres from Jammu city, picturesque ‘Mantalai’—God’s own place, in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir, is in the process of emerging as one of the most promising tourist places with world class infrastructure, including an International Yoga Centre. Surrounded by lush green forests, ‘Mantalai’ is not less than a heaven on earth and a place to attract tourists, which earlier remained neglected for over three decades. Union Minister in Prime Minister’s Office, Dr Jitendra Singh, who has been re-elected as Member Parliament from Kathua-Udhampur-Doda Parliamentary Constituency, during his first term had Rs 80 crore sanctioned for establishing the Yoga centre. Elaborating on the project, Dr Singh said, “The development programme of Mantalai was revived by Narendra Modi-led regime.” “This place is going to emerge as state-of-the-art Health, Wellness and Yoga Centre of international standards,” he said, adding that the spot is also a destination of health tourism from far and wide. “It was stuck up for over 35 years inspite of Yoga guru Dhirendra Brahmachari’s close proximity to Congress party. It was revived by the Modi Govt,” averred the Union Minister. Notably, Mantalai development programme, besides various components, has a state-of-the-art international Yoga centre — a part of the previous NDA Government’s ‘Swadesh Darshan’ scheme launched to develop potential tourist spots in the country. The centre is proposed over a sprawling 125 acre Ashram of late Swami Dhirendra Brahmachari. Sachiv Dev Jamwal, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Patnitop Development Authority (PDA) told UNI, “the mega developmental project has an integrated development of tourist facilities at Mantalai, Sudhmahadev and Patnitop under Swadesh Darshan Scheme”. “Facilities like swimming pool, airstrips, spa, helipads, gymnasium, auditorium, hostels and business convention centre are coming up at the International Yoga Centre,” he said, adding that the project also included cafeteria at Sudhmaha Dev and Patnitop destinations. “The world class facilities will surely boost both the leisure and the health tourism in the area,” he said. The CEO added that the contract was awarded to National Projects Construction Corporation Limited (NPCCL) for development of the Yoga centre and allied infrastructure at Mantalai, Patnitop and Sudhmaha Dev. MoU was signed between the Ministry of Tourism, NPCC and the J&K Govt, he said. He also revealed about mega international level facilities coming up at Mantalai like Yoga centre with associated infrastructure, equipment and counseling rooms, Associated Infrastructure (Landscaping and Beautification, Lightening and Illumination, Solid waste management, Signage), Wellness Spa and Ayurveda Complex with separate area for traditional Indian Spa Therapies with library and archiving centre, Tourist Facilitation Centre with sitting area , toilets, lobby, gathering space and exhibition space to name a few. Situated in Chenani Block of Udhampur district, this charismatic natural place is around 28-kilometres from the Jammu-Srinagar national highway. “Work on the project had commenced in 2017 as part of the government’s initiative to develop Jammu as a tourist destination and was conceived to attract domestic and foreign tourists,” said an official. Once the project is completed and Mantalai has the infrastructure and facility of international level, it will spontaneously come on the global tourist map, he added. Pertinent to mention that the erstwhile Ashram of the late international fame Yoga Guru Dhirendra Brahamchari could boast of many facilities like an airstrip, helipad, swimming pool, zoo, stud farms, cow shelters, orchards and forests but after his death in air crash in 1994, it was shut. Though the project has missed it December-2018 deadline but it is a dream for which people of Udhampur and even from Jammu believe that though late but will certainly be beautiful asset for tourism promotion as brick by brick development has been initiated and Mantalai becoming a hub of tourists, finding a ‘niche on international tourism map.

Read more

Kerala to partner with other states to revitalise tourism

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala will work in tandem with tourism boards of other states to revitalise its domestic tourism which took a beating due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It will also promote ayurveda, eco-tourism and adventure tourism in a major way to get the tourism sector back on its feet. “We expect to welcome guests in the next one or two months,” Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said on Thursday. “Kerala Tourism will work with other state tourism departments to ensure a hassle-free experience to tourists travelling from one state to another. It is also looking forward to collaborating with other states and the Union Tourism Ministry to boost domestic tourists,” Kadakampally said during the valedictory session of a two-day tourism e-conclave on ‘Travel & Hospitality: What’s Next?’ organised by FICCI. “We are starting off by reviving domestic tourism, first in Kerala and then in other states. An action plan for the sector’s revival is being drawn up. Several support schemes, including providing assistance to tourism stakeholders and employees, are under the government’s consideration,” he said.He said ayurveda would be promoted in a major way, considering the importance of healing and wellness in the current Covid scenario. “Plans are also afoot to promote eco-tourism and adventure tourism among domestic tourists,” said Kadakampally, who said the government will fully support the unified guidelines and protocols chalked out by the Tourism Ministry, which, he said, would serve as a roadmap for states to revitalise domestic tourism and reinstate India’s position as a high-value destination. Asserting that Kerala will also make its presence felt on the Incredible India digital platform by providing relevant content, Kadakampally said there were plans to prepare itineraries that include destinations in neighbouring states.He said Covid-19 had shattered economies, with travel and tourism hit badly. “However, Kerala Tourism is slowly finding its feet. We have a long way to go, but are on the right path,” he said.He said the crisis management experience gained from the 2018 floods and the Nipah outbreak also helped Kerala combat coronavirus effectively. “Kerala Tourism stands in solidarity with travel trade and is doing everything to minimise the virus’ impact on travel and trade. We are sure we’ll defeat all odds and make a remarkable comeback. The strong synergy between private and public sectors will be a key driving force on our road to recovery,” he said. Tourism Ministers of Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka, besides Rupinder Brar, Additional Director General, Union Ministry of Tourism, also spoke. Plenary sessions on topics like ‘Spotlight on hidden tourism jewels of India - Exploring the unexplored tourism potentials’ and ‘Role of Technology & Innovation to revive Travel & Tourism and Emergence of New Workforce models’ were held at the conclave. Going digital Kerala will also make its presence felt on the Incredible India digital platform by providing relevant content.

Read more

WB govt extends restriction on flights to Kolkata from six cities till Aug 15

The Kolkata airport has announced extension on restrictions of flights arriving in Kolkata from six cities--Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Nagpur, and Ahmedabad, till August 15 in view of rising COVID-19 cases in the city. "The restriction on arriving flights to Kolkata Airport from 6 cities viz Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Nagpur & Ahmedabad has been extended up to 15th August 2020," Kolkata Airport tweeted. Earlier, on July 17, flight operations to Kolkata from Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Nagpur, and Ahmedabad were suspended on the request of West Bengal government till July 31. All these cities are COVID-19 hotspots and have reported the highest number of cases in the country. The West Bengal government had earlier announced a ban on a passenger flight to Kolkata from these cities from July 6 to July 19. IndiGo, SpiceJet, Vistara, and Air India are some of the affected airlines due to the ban. On Thursday, West Bengal reported 46 COVID-19 fatalities, increasing the death toll to 1,536. The number of active cases stood at 19,900. The discharge/recovery rate stood at 68.33%.

Read more

Nepal to reopen Everest to climbers despite coronavirus case rise

Nepal will reopen its Himalayan mountains including Mount Everest to climbers for the autumn season, officials said on Thursday, to boost the tourism-dependent economy despite rising coronavirus infections. Home to eight of the world’s 14 tallest mountains, Nepal shut down climbing and trekking in March to stem the novel coronavirus, which has so far infected 19,547 people and caused 52 deaths in the country of 30 million. "We have reopened mountaineering and will issue climbing permits for the autumn season," tourism department official Mira Acharya said, adding that climbers must follow health protocols issued by the government. The autumn climbing season in Nepal runs from September to November. While infections in many Western nations are falling, South Asian countries including Nepal are still witnessing a steady rise in the caseload. The absence of climbing in the popular April-May season caused Nepal millions of dollars in losses. Hundreds of foreign travellers and some 200,000 sherpas, guides and porters were hit. Though the government now wants to reopen climbing, international flights are shut until mid-August and travel restrictions within Nepal remain, meaning climbers will still be kept away in the short term, expedition organisers said. "Some climbers to smaller mountains may come but I have doubts about big ones," said Ang Tshering Sherpa, an expedition organiser in the capital Kathmandu. Nepal on Thursday also allowed the reopening of hotels and restaurants with some restrictions. No conferences, seminars, gyms or casinos would be allowed, said Binayak Shah, vice president of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN)."Now it is (about) which hotel is safe, not which offers better services," Shah said.

Read more

Odisha tourism plans to promote Road trips post Covid-19

The tourism department is looking to better the tourism situation in Odisha post COVID-19, and so the road trip campaign is going to be a major breakthrough in this regard. As rail and air transport are severely affected because of Covid-19, Odisha tourism is planning to promote road trips in Odisha. The campaign called Road Trip To and Through Odisha, will be promoted if the situation looks better by October this year. The tourism department is looking to better the tourism situation in Odisha post-COVID-19, and so the road trip campaign is going to be a major breakthrough in this regard. According to the state tourism secretary Vishal Dev’s statement, bordering states such as West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Andhra Pradesh would be targeted. So, tourists from Ranchi, Kolkata, Raipur, Visakhapatnam, Bilaspur, Jamshedpur, and Bilaspur are going to be invited for road trips to Odisha. There`s also going to be some attractive packages for these travellers.

Read more

Pride Group of Hotels announces reopening of its five resort properties

Pride Hotels has announced reopening of its resort property in Goa, Indore, Bharatpur, Rajkot, and Dharamshala. As a part of the ‘New Normal’, the Pride Group has also launched the ‘Pride Safety Assurance’ initiative. With travelers being extremely thoughtful about their accommodation, this assurance is designed to cover hygiene guidelines, booking policies as well as precautions to be taken by guests and staff to ensure safety and flexibility. “We’re grateful to our loyal guests who have bestowed us with their trust during this pandemic. To ensure the safety of the guests and employees, we have enforced rules and regulations in place that strictly adheres to all the protocols introduced by the government. The hygiene and sanitation protocols will be followed at every Pride property, at every step. Moreover, following and maintaining social distancing during operational hours will be our topmost priority. We have also made the usage of masks and gloves mandatory across all departments. We want them to feel safe when they walk through the doors of our hotels at all times. This is a small effort to extend our services to ensure our guest’s experience enhances a safe environment.” says, Satyen Jain, CEO, Pride Group of Hotels. Additionally, to boost travel, tourism and hospitality industry which has been deeply impacted by COVID-19 the Pride hotel has launched the campaign ‘India Dekho with Pride’. The initiative is in the direction of promoting India as a safe, interesting and viable destination for tourism. Besides, this, the hotel group has also launched packages like ‘Pride Escape’ and ‘Save Now, Vacay Later’ for welcoming its guests to the new normal wherein their safety will be given utmost importance.

Read more