Shri K Chiranjeevi inaugurated the new campus of Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) at Noida today. 

Speaking on the occasion the Minister said India has a long lived tradition of Athiti devo bhava that has been shadowed by social tensions of modern lives. He said, “We cannot promote tourism if our visitors do not trust hosts and hosts do not welcome visitors. The host community must provide the landscape for tourism. To revive the tradition of Athithi Devo Bhava; tourism students can act as the brand ambassadors and also help the host community in realizing the importance of this industry”.

Referring to many gaps in our tourism supply chain the Minister expressed the confidence that our constant and active efforts shall bridge these gaps and we shall emerge as one of the leading tourism destinations of the world. He said in order to create a pro tourist environment in our country we have given a new lift to Incredible India campaign by targeting both domestic and international tourism. Shri Chiranjeevi said ,”Safety of tourists is our top most priority and there shall be zero tolerance for crime against tourists”.

The Tourism Minister said as you all know that tourism has been an age old activity and it is of no surprise that it has become one of the most important social and economic activity of today’s world. We can gauge the importance of tourism by the fact that tourism’s contribution to employment is estimated to be 6 – 7 % of the overall number of jobs worldwide. He said, “In India, the travel and tourism sector is estimated to create 78 jobs per million rupees of investment compared to 45 jobs in the manufacturing sector for similar investment. The millennium development goal of poverty alleviation can be achieved by the job opportunities available in the travel and tourism industry”.

Underlining the importance of research, the Minister urged the academicians and tourism professionals to actively take part in conducting research on various aspects of the tourism industry, thus providing essential information to enhance the effectiveness of tourism projects. He said, “Research is one area which needs to be carried out continuously in tourism to harness the benefits while avoiding the disadvantages associated with tourism”.