IMPHAL, April 16: The ministry of Tourism, government of India, organized a familiarization (FAM) tour for the officers of Tourism departments of the North eastern states in Guwahati, Gangtok & Kolkata from April 9 to 14 April.
The team Manipur was led by Commissioner, Tourism, Govt of Manipur KK Chhetry, along with Deputy Director, Tourism Dr K Shyamsunder Singh, and Architect of Tourism Department Rajeshor Thoudam, according to an official statement of the Manipur Tourism department.
All the NE States participated except for Nagaland and Tripura.
The objective of the FAM tour was to familiarize the participants to the tourism related products, destinations, best practices of the states of Assam, Sikkim and West Bengal, and interaction with the local tour operators and the hoteliers, the statement added.
In Guwahati, visits were organized to Hotel Kiranshree Portico, Kalakshetra, Silpagram, Hotel Grandeur and Mainland China Restaurant.
Union Tourism Minister Subodh Kant Sahay also met with the NE tourism officials and inaugurated the largest river cruise vessel in India, the “Mahabaahu” on the Brahmaputra River. Few 5 star category hotels are coming up in the near future too, it added.
In Gangtok, visits were organized to Denzong Regency and Mayfair Resort (a 5 star deluxe) and meeting and interaction with the State Government, hoteliers and tour operators. The cleanliness and peace of Gangtok were astonishing niche products of tourism, the statement added.
Further according to the statement, in Kolkata, the hotel industry has taken a quantum leap. Sites visited the Taj Bengal and various heritage places. Best practices involving ecotourism were studied.
Team Manipur successfully showcased the USPs with regard to culture, sports and nature based tourism and made a fervent appeal to the tour operators to include Manipur in their tour and travel itineraries as tourism in India cannot grow without Manipur in particular and NE in general, the statement added.
