Kochi, June 13. (PTI)
The Left Front Government in Kerala on Monday said it will invest Rs 1000 crore and is looking at generating an income of Rs 10,000 crore from the Tourism sector this year.
The State Government also planned on generating 50,000 employment opportunities from the sector, State Tourism Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said here.

Thursday, June 29, 2006
A 2-day meet on Overseas Marketing of Indian tourism began at New Delhi under the aegis of Ministry of Tourism. Apart from Heads of Overseas offices of India Tourism, various stakeholders in travel industry participate in the 2-day Meet and will have a review of various marketing strategies and action plans for promotion of Indian tourism being pursued in various overseas markets.

The Meet also has Interactive Sessions and Presentations by representatives of Central/State Governments and members of the Travel Industry. Such Interactive Sessions will help in getting inputs and perspective on international tourism trends and marketing strategies vis-a-vis India.

Rajasthan to start 2 more luxury trains
Business Line New Delhi, July 5
In an effort to give a fillip to the tourism sector, the Rajasthan Government is to start two more luxury trains and has recently announced a new hotel policy to ensure that more hotels come up, the State Tourism Secretary, Mr Vinod Zutshi, said on Wednesday.

"We will be starting a second Palace on Wheels train which would operate on the same route as the existing train. The new train should start its commercial run from March next year. In addition, in order to cater to the super luxury segment, the State Government has tied up with EIH Ltd and the Indian Railways to launch a royal luxury train. The proposed project is likely to start in September 2008 and the tariff is likely to be between $950-$1,000 per person per night," said Mr Zutshi.
Hotel policy
Besides, the State Cabinet recently cleared the hotel policy that not only talks of creation of hotel land banks around the State but also offers a special reserve price for hotels and accommodation units that is 50 per cent of the prevalent commercial reserve price.
The policy also offers total exemption from land conversion charges and entertainment tax for not only new budget hotels but also 1, 2 and 3-star hotels. The concessions, however, will be available till March 2010.

Make things easy for Tourist to Visit India
Business Line New Delhi, July 1
The Minister of Tourism and Culture, Ms Ambika Soni, has called for better coordination between the Ministries of External Affairs, Home Affairs and Civil Aviation so as to make it easier for foreign tourists to visit India.

Inaugurating a two-day meet on Overseas Marketing of Indian Tourism here, the Minister said India might have to open some more overseas tourist offices or relocate some of the existing offices in view of the emerging tourism trends.

More Funds for North-East Tourism Sector
Business Standard Press Trust Of India / Kolkata/ Guwahati July 06, 2006
The budget allocation for tourism in the North-East can be increased to Rs 100 crore from the existing Rs 83 crore if viable projects are submitted by the state governments of the region, Union Minister of Tourism and Culture Ambika Soni said.
"The budget allocation for North East comes to Rs 83 crore but this can be hiked if viable project proposals are received as the UPA government has laid special emphasis on tourism for employment generation", Soni said while addressing a review meeting of North East Tourism and Cultural ministers, including Sikkim.

Vishaka Beach plans mega tourism projects
Visakhapatnam , May 18
Visakha Beach Resorts is planning a massive tourism project here at an estimated investment of Rs. 2,000-3,000 crore to promote Vizag as a hot destination and attract 1.5-2 lakh tourists from abroad, mainly from Europe.
Mr Pradeep Sabharwal, a spokesman of the consortium, said here on Tuesday that a MoU had been signed with the State Government six months ago and since then; he had been on the job, working out the arrangements with the various partners.
Feasibility report
He said the UTI Bank and IDFC had already come forward to participate in the project to the extent of Rs 2,000 crore and several other financial institutions were also keen on investing in it. "KPMG is doing the feasibility report and we have tied up with Intercontinental Hotels. We have struck deals with two major travel operators. We are confident of raising the required finances and putting everything in place,
Karnataka to be made world-class tourism destination: CM
Bangalore , May 15
The Karnataka Chief Minister, Mr H.D. Kumaraswamy, extended his full support for improving the tourism sector as a key component of his Government.
He said, "My Government is committed to support the sector and let me assure you that I would leave no stone unturned to make Karnataka into a world-class tourism destination." Private participation
The State Government plans to capitalise on the 100-year old mines by roping in private participation to bring in tourists from within the country and abroad to provide a glimpse of the way in which mining was done and in the process bring Kolar in the tourism map of the State.

Karnataka submits Rs.611-cr tourism proposal to centre
Mangalore, Jan. 9
THE Karnataka Government, which has planned various tourism development activities, has submitted a Rs 611-crore proposal to the Centre.
Addressing newspersons at Udupi on Monday, the Karnataka Tourism Minister, Mr D.T. Jayakumar, said that the development of Maravanthe and Malpe beaches in Udupi district, Panambur beach in Dakshina Kannada district, and Gokarna beach in Uttara Kannada district is included in this proposal.

Make things easy for tourists to visit India
Business Line New Delhi, July 1
The Minister of Tourism and Culture, Ms Ambika Soni, has called for better coordination between the Ministries of External Affairs, Home Affairs and Civil Aviation so as to make it easier for foreign tourists to visit India.

Global air passenger traffic at new high
Kolkata , April 24
Global air passenger traffic carried on scheduled services in 2005 exceeded two billion for the first time, up from more than 1.8 billion carried in 2004, according to preliminary estimates arrived at by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and published in ICAO Journal.

Kochi , June 12

Considering the surge in the foreign exchange earnings from tourism, Kerala Tourism has set a target of Rs 1,000 crore investments during the current year in the State.