Hotel & Restaurant Association of Odisha in association with Tourism Department, Government of Odisha and World Trade Center Bhubaneswar organized 5th Odisha Tourism Conclave 2023 in Bhubaneswar.

The full day conclave aimed to promote Tourism sector of Odisha and showcase Odisha as a major destination hub. The program witnessed technical sessions on crucial subject matters to address the challenges in the sector and to accelerate tourism in the state. The brainstorming sessions were spectated by tour operators, decision makers, industry members, hoteliers, travel agents, civil aviation authorities and government officials.

The Conclave was inaugurated by Hon’ble Chief Minister of the State, Shri. Naveen Patnaik virtually in the presence of other esteemed dignitaries. “Odisha is a land of nature’s bounty and responsible tourism is imbibed both in our culture & also the development vision of our state. To enable more development friendly strategies, the Odisha Tourism Policy 2023 was released during MIO (Make in Odisha) with continuously working on integrated tourism development based on 15 destination master plans to develop diverse tourism platforms in the state. Apart from sustainable infrastructure development, we are branding Odisha as a diverse tourism hub. The Government of Odisha is committed towards sustainable tourism sector with much focus on augmentation of livelihood of the local communities.” he deliberated during his virtual address.

Shri. Sujeet Kumar, Hon’ble Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha graced the program as the Chief Guest in the inaugural session and deliberated on various factors. He spoke about how focus on 41 heritage sites of our country should be ensured to compete with countries like Singapore and other South-East Asian countries in terms of in-bound tourism. He also spoke on the requirement of improved infrastructure, hygiene/sanitation issues in the state, proactive measures for optimal budget allocation for tourism industry to address post-pandemic effects on the sector, promotion of our heritage sites to make Odisha the most preferred state for tourism.

Shri. Surendra Kumar, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary Department Tourism, Government of Odisha spoke about identification of the major selling points and unique amenities of the state, steps to be taken to hold tourists for longer duration in Odisha, development of Deomali, Konark and Bhitarkanika on priority basis and Pilgrim Tourism/Weekend Tourism to be incorporated in the strategic planning to enhance tourism in the state

Shri. Puneet Chhatwal, MD, Taj Group of Hotels highlighted the tourism and travel sector coming up as the emerging sector in the country, tourism Sector to act as the major employment generator with 126 million new job opportunities globally in the next decade

and India contributing to almost 20% of it and how assistance of highest level of subsidies and grants to act as a major boost for this sector.

Shri. Rajiv Mehra, President, Indian Association of Tour Operators suggested more star category/luxury hotel in Odisha is need of the hour, especially around Chilika lake area, convention/MICE Tourism promotion especially for the state of Odisha to be taken up on priority basis, Tribal Tourism promotion in conjunction with neighbouring states should be taken up, similar conjunction to be done for Buddhist Tourism with neighbouring states, Indian hotelier/Tour Operators reimbursement for foreign promotion trips/Foreign road show participation should be increased from Rs.75K to at least Rs.2/2.5L and IATO convention in 2025 to be held in Puri.

Shri. Dilip Tirkey, President, Hockey India in his address spoke about how sports can be the catalytic factor in augmentation of Tourism in the State. He also deliberated on world class sports events to be organized frequently to accelerate Sports Tourism in the State and 2500 Crores allocated for sports infrastructure development which include 90 indoor stadiums in urban local bodies (ULBs) to act a game changer in Sports Tourism of Odisha.

Earlier in the inaugural session, Shri. JK Mohanty, Chairman, HRAO; Chairman, IATO Eastern Region; Convenor, WTC Bhubaneswar Tourism & Hospitality Think Tank & CMD, Swosti Group of Hotels delivered the welcome address and made recommendations on at least 2 destination from Odisha to be on the GOI list of Dekho Apna Desh 2.0 where 51 destinations from India to be developed as major tourist destinations in the country (However in later sessions, Dr. Sagnik Chowdhury, Regional Director, India Tourism announced that Koraput has already been incorporated & another destination yet to be announced). He further proposed to conduct at least one G-20 meet related to Tourism Sector in Odisha, one luxury train a la Deccan Queen, Rajasthan Maharajah Express to be introduced in Odisha, domestic flight connectivity from/to Bodh Gaya, Pune. Udaipur & Allahabad, International Airport in Puri to be expedited as one of the major airports in Eastern India along with another airport in Ganjam District, Odisha, Mega Convention Centre to be constructed under the banner of World Trade Center Bhubaneswar which has been overdue and Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India to expedite revamping Tourism offices in Indian embassy’s/consulates with right knowledgeable manpower.

The session was followed by technical sessions on various subject matters to compile the recommendations, bottlenecks and how the same can be addressed.

Technical Session – 1 : Marketing Destination Odisha

Shri. Rahul Jain, Senior Vice President – Operations, AirPay in his address accentuated on payment options being an integral part of tourism sector and seamless payment, marketing of authentic local cuisine in hotels of the urban areas is restricted or limited which needs to

be looked upon and travel insurance facilities by the hoteliers, tour operators etc to be streamlined to assist the tourists with safe and comfortable experience at uncertain times.

Shri. Manoj K Mohanty, Vice President – Sales (South Asia & South East Asia), IDS Next spoke about how Government of Odisha must ensure awareness and utilize the active participation of state population through social media to promote Odisha as a destination hub.

Shri. Sanu Rath, Co Founder, PnV Foundation in his address deliberated about co-ordinating agencies among different stake holders to connect the dots for better cohesiveness, Odisha Tourism to focus on global audience instead of only national level footfall, re-invention of the unique potentials of the state in order to provide fascinating experience to the tourists and local artists and culture to be promoted instead of following the mainstream model.

Shri. Ashutosh Kar, Founder, Pure Odisha & Associate Professor, KIIT School of Management accentuated authentic information sources for the tourists and database of tourist destinations lacking attention and visibility to be made accessible, Marketing of waterfalls from all over Odisha and make it a niche’ segment in tourism, Dept. of Tourism must insist upon “Pull Marketing” through social media. He further highlighted expanded categories of Travel packages to be complied by the tour operators and tour planners for an inclusive market strategy and Strategic planning of tourism promotion during off-peak season.

Shri. Sibasis Mishra, CEO, Booking Jini in his address stated various factors like in today’s Digital Era, integration of latest technologies in the sector can drastically help in leveraging the tourism potential of the state, response to the correct algorithms is highly essential in promotional activities through social media channels and content is definitely the king but Department of Tourism must “amplify” the said content through technology.

Shri. Nilambar Rath, Founder, Editor in Chief & CEO, OdishaLive moderated the session and accentuated the significance of brand creation as the preliminary stage which the state has been successful in executing so far. He further highlighted importance of positioning the branding of the state appropriately in the competitive global market.

Technical Session 2 – Developing East India Circuit

Dr. Sagnik Chowdhury, Regional Director, India Tourism highlighted Koraput as being declared as one of the 50 priority destination by Ministry of Tourism, GOI. He further drew attention to Yuva Tourism Clubs by Ministry of Tourism which reaches out to institutions and colleges to conduct excursions, activities, study tours as students can be the best ambassadors in upholding the tourism flag of our country and more stakeholders to opt for the STCI (Sustainable Tourism Criteria for India) Certification.

Shri. Prasanna Pradhan, Airport Director, Biju Patnaik International Airport deliberated on T-3 being the third terminal in the pipeline for Bhubaneswar. He also spoke about Shri Jagannath Airport at Puri, the survey of different agencies (Civil Aviation Ministry, NGT, AAI etc) are almost on the verge of completion and further a cabinet decision to be taken to approve the upcoming airport, Odisha is being given utmost priority by central govt. for different UDAN schemes, thus the Jharsuguda & Rourkela airports are operational within such a short period of time and non-scheduled flight operations proposed by state government to Rangeilunda from 5th March, 2023.

Shri. Debjit Dutta, Chairman, IATO – West Bengal Chapter highlighted how Infrastructure & Human Resources are the two key bottlenecks in sustainable development of the tourism sector of the state and Ministry of Tourism should consider forming a taskforce comprising of all the industry associations in the sector to collectively work on framing a time bound policy to act upon. The taskforce should act on product discovery and developing the circuit. He further expressed his views on entire “East India” (all states of Eastern India including North East) should act/share/work in a cohesive manner as one singular circuit, futuristic approach in the sector in the form of AI like Chat GPT which would simplify the process of planning itineraries and other relevant information for the tourists planning their travel to the state and extreme synergy between the Government (Central/State) and industry bodies is need of the hour.

Shri. Sanjit Bhattacharya, Director Sales – North & East India, Indigo Airlines in his address emphasized on the passenger status of various flights to/from Bhubaneswar turned out to be encouraging for INDIGO Airlines, hence they are considering additional flights in metro city sectors.

Shri. Gagan Sarangi, Chairman, IATO Odisha Chapter sought attention to Tribal Tourism promotion for International audience, longer duration stay for all tourists to be promoted aggressively to ensure better experience for the tourists allowing them ample time to explore more number of places in the state.

Shri. Debasish Mishra, Director, Pure Trip & VP, EKTTA stressed upon Soft Skill Infrastructure development in a proper strategized manner and State Governments of Eastern India to collectively brainstorm for a differentiated travel experience for the tourists to preserve exclusivity.

Shri. Debasis Patnaik, MD, Crown & Founder, Dalma Restaurant Chain moderated the session.

Technical Session 3 – Strengthening Eco-Tourism

Shri. Yugabrata Kar, Director, Heritage Tours Orissa moderated the session and in his address featured the strategies to be formulated for pitch Odisha tourism in a way that it sells better, generates more revenue and invite active in-bound tourism in the state. He

further spoke on USP generation and diversification to create a holistic image of the state and Tour Guide training programmes to be initiated at a larger scale.

Smt. Anshu Pragyan Das, DFO, Hirakud Wildlife Division, (Sambalpur – Bargarh Districts of Odisha), Department of Forest, Government of Odisha spoke about Bio-Diversity Board to train the Eco-Guides to impart better experience to the tourists in wildlife and tribal dominated areas.

Princess Mrinalika Bhanj Deo, Managing Director, The Belgadia Palace highlighted urgent need for well educated, skilled “tourist guides” in Eco tourism destinations, especially in Mayurbhanj district areas, Private Investors & Govt to take up “Community Development” as a priority in every Eco Tourism area and Experiential Tourism to be prioritized and local art forms like Chhau Dance, Dokra Art etc. to be promoted.

Shri. Sila Siba Prasad, Joint Director, HRAO expressed concern for Debrigarh being most under rated destination in state, needs much marketing efforts by Govt, development of a massive curated horticultural garden in the style of “Vrindavan Gardens” in Mysuru to be considered by the state government to attract more tourists and PPP Mode investments to be proposed for enhanced development of infrastructure.

Shri. Anil Dhir, Historian & President, INTACH Odisha accentuated on Man-Animal conflict in all fringe forest areas to be resolved by State Government and identification, listing, maintenance and promotion of all the unnoticed heritage structures of the state to be prioritized.

Interactive Session – Odisha Hospitality Sector Speaks

Shri. Sanjeev Patnaik, Vice President, Mayfair Group of Hotels in his address shared that concerted effort by all stake holders to hold back the manpower within Odisha as entire hotel industry is facing huge attrition rate and man power crunch across the board.

Dr. Srinivas Subudhi, Working President, HRAO deliberated on GST rate slab to be considered to be lower than 12% for smaller hotels with tariff under 3000/-as it becomes unviable & unaffordable for guests’ profile of such hotels and Govt of Odisha as well as Financial Institutions [banks etc] to come-on board &collaborate further to allocate loans specifically for hotel projects at reasonable and long-term interest rate.

Shri. Raj Kishore Patra, Managing Director, Holiday Resort deliberated on setting up of world class Water Park in Puri with timeline, all year round active “Urban Haat” of Puri along with its wide promotion and publicity, evening cultural shows every day in the haat with live demonstrations by the artisans in line with Kalabhoomi, World class museum with interpretation centre in Jagannath Ballav themed on on the Jagannath temple, its culture with replicas of all ‘Veshas’ and miniature Rath Yatra chariots as a huge attraction for foreign tourists and Hop on - Hop off buses covering Puri beaches, Temples, Mathas,

Chandrabhaga beach, Konark Sun Temple, Pipili, Raghurajpur, Alarnath Temple and Satapada.

Shri. Abhisek Lath, Member, HRAO made deliberations on tourism potential for Western Odisha is immense & so far it has not been promoted in such much scale like other conventional destination of Odisha. It must be taken up by the Government, number of “waterfalls” with different flora & fauna can be made a separate niche’ destination as “Waterfalls of Odisha” and proper tourist office with right manpower to be set up in every tourist destination of Western Odisha.

Shri. Priyanath Behera, Vice President, Swosti Group of Hotels spoke on the CSR activity of every Tourism stake holder to be highlighted by themselves and the govt. authorities to make the population aware of sustainability of our industry in/around the local community and manpower retention by hotels to be the utmost priority.

Shri. Abhijnan Talukdar, Hospitality & Tourism Consultant, Founder, Hotelelementary.in moderated the Interactive Session.

Technical Session 4 – Building of Tourism Infrastructure & Skilled Manpower

Dr. Md. Sabir Hussain, Associate Professor & Nodal Officer, IITTM Bhubaneswar in his address spoke on the pay scale structure rationalization in hotel industry.

Shri. Prasant Kumar Panigrahi, SIMSS deliberated on dedication of hotel management aspirants are lacking. All Institutes & hotels upon it for their students & employees to ensure skilled manpower in the sector.

Dr. (Chef) Sandilyan P.R., Ranjita Institute of Hotel Management & Catering stressed on the students of Hotel Management Institutions in Odisha to be encouraged by college authorities, hotel owners and Dept. Of Tourism, Govt of Odisha. Focus on cuisine development to be ensured especially focusing on the local cuisines of Odisha.

Dr. Sapan Kumar Sadual, Dean, SOA School of Hotel Management deliberated on the bottlenecks related to logistics to be addressed.

Shri. Pankaj Satija, Managing Director, Tata Steel & Mining Limited and Chairman, FICCI – Odisha Chapter advocated on community participation to be ensured in heritage sites for better understanding of the local culture, heritage and craftsmanship, Rapid Transport Systems to be introduced, Digital Infrastructure to be focused on and revamping other sectors like Medical Facilities, Wildlife and Nature Diversity, General Education for the comprehensive development of the entire state.

Shri. Rajen Padhi, Commercial Director, B-One Business House underlined integration of entire state of Odisha as one single entity in Tourism marketing instead of different regional associations or regional tourism circuits, development of soft skills of people in the

hospitality industry to be achieved and four vital A’s to be focused on – Attraction, Access, Accommodation & Amenities. He also deliberated on stable Internet and connectivity to be ensured in remote parts of the state with high potential of tourist attraction.

Shri. Milind Gupta, Secretary General, HRAO moderated the session and deliberated on the opportunities in Medical Tourism, Religious Tourism, Adventure Tourism in current scenario.

Technical Session 5 – Tourist Safety & Cyber Security

Shri. Harman Pal Singh, Managing Director, Hotel Pal Heights moderated the session.

Smt. Anila Anand, Inspector of Police – Cyber, CID Crime Branch, Cuttack sensitized the audience on Cyber frauds and careful approach before clicking on any random link received through SMS, Email, or any other source to avoid any Malware or fraud.

Shri. Debasis Kumar, Director, Victoria Hotel emphasized on advisory for awareness in all trade expo and advertisement of this advisory in leading print & electronic media, regular cyber security assessments of IT assets, early detection and reporting of fraudulent activities upon identification and close tie up between police and DNS service providers like Big rock, Go daddy and others so that fake websites can be blocked.

Shri. Rabi Sahoo, Member, HRAO & Shri. Deepak Kumar Nath, Cyber Security Consultant also presented on the concerted efforts by financial Institutions, hotels, cyber security agencies, experts and govt. authorities to be made together in cohesion to prevent recent cyber frauds happening in hotel industry.

Shri. Harman Pal Singh, Managing Director, Hotel Pal Heights moderated the technical session.

Shri. Ashwini Kumar Patra, Honourable Minister (Ind. Charge) Tourism, Odia Language, Literature & Culture; Excise Department, Government of Odisha graced the valedictory session as the Chief Guest and deliberated on the new tourism policy and how the state has been working on the infrastructure development, employment generation in the sector etc.

Shri. Sachin Ramchandra Jadav, IAS, Director – Tourism, Government of Odisha said “Odisha is blessed with scenic locales and mesmerizing landscape. The dept. is working in the area of new tourism offerings to unlock its full potential". He further emphasized on more hotels in the luxury segment, representation from the state to the Ministry of Forest, Government of India for the relaxation of Coastal Zone Regulations, confidence of investors to be boosted by planning and proposing more number of eco-retreats in the state and infrastructure development at Chandrabhaga & Ramchandi and introduction of water sports and other experiential activities.

Dr. Lenin Mohanty, Chairman, OTDC, Bhubaneswar in his address featured the relevance of community development and heritage tourism.

Shri. Ravi Gosain, Vice President, IATO, New Delhi deliberated on package development for the travellers, participation in domestic and International Travel Mart is crucial along with practical approach by the stakeholders and synergy between the states to take up best practices.

The conclave was conducted on 23rd February, 2023 at Chanakya Hall, Hotel Swosti Premium.