The 2nd edition of 3 day CII Tourism Fest, organized by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), partnered by Ministry of Tourism, GoI, with Chandigarh as the Host city, Punjab as the Principal Partner state, in addition to participation of Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and 5 countries viz Abu Dhabi, China, Japan, Mauritius and Thailand concluded with an overwhelming response at Parade Ground in sector 17, here today.
Mr Anil Kumar, Home Secretary cum Secretary Tourism, Chandigarh Administration, while congratulating CII for organizing a successful and much pertinent Tourism fest shared that “ We are working hard to get Chandigarh nominated and declared as ‘Trans Border UESCO World Heritage site’, as part of the famous French architect Le Corbusier's many works, next year in January 2015. We have completed all necessary documentation work regarding the same. Chandigarh’s Capitol Complex is already called as Modern Heritage”.
“If the city gets the status, it would further boost tourism in the city and attract lot of foreign tourists as well”, he added.
“In 2006-07, Chandigarh came up on the tentative list drawn up by UNESCO but in 2010, decision on it was deferred again. India along with France, Belgium, Argentina and Switzerland will be sending a transnational nomination for the architectural works of Le Corbusier”, he added.
"The new building of Chandigarh International Airport is also under construction and would further boost the tourism in the city", he added.
“I also thank CII for choosing Chandigarh as the location to organize this mega event. The Chandigarh Administration is fully committed to support tourism and hospitality industry and remove bottlenecks, if any”, he added.
“Further, Chandigarh has tremendous untapped potential as a Film city to cater to the Punjabi and Bollywood film industry. Presently, the directors have to go all across to Mumbai to get Sound mixing, editing, dubbing and other processes done to get the final output. If we have a proper full – fledged film city here, it would save the directors from a lot of transportation costs and booking troubles. Further, it will boost Chandigarh’s economy by creating huge employment as also will bring Chandigarh on national and global map as a preferred filming and shooting destination. Hence, we would try to promote it as an ideal film city.
“I also feel that it is critical to retain the old character and beauty of Chandigarh and add modern technology, economic advancement and eco-friendly industries to it”, he emphasised.
“Chandigarh acts as a nice ‘Gateway’ to the other states of Chandigarh, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, J &K, etc. But to increase tourism in the region, there should be a Single Permit system - north of Delhi applicable to all northern states viz to make seamless travel possible for tourists, especially tourist buses and cars coming here”, he added.
“CII Tourism Fest was overall an exemplary show with around 60 exhibitors. There was huge International participation as well. We received participation from 5 countries viz Abu Dhabi, China, Japan, Mauritius and Thailand. Various B2B meetings and tie ups were forged between counterparts from India and abroad. 83 per cent of the exhibitors have said that they would exhibit at the next edition, reflection of strong exhibitor satisfaction. A total of1,215 business queries were generated. 28% exhibitors received queries related to leisure, tours and pilgrimage, while 23 % received queries on exploring new business opportunities & strategic tie ups, 26% received queries related to heritage and F & B. 96 per cent of the visitors rated Tourism Fest 2014 as Excellent or Good. 97 Per cent of the visitors said that they would like to visit the next edition of Tourism Fest.,” said, Mr Man Mohan Singh, Co Chairman, CII Tourism Fest 2014 & CEO Aroma Group.