EMBASSY OF INDIA

DOHA

P R E S S R E L E A S E

“INCREDIBLE INDIA TOURISM KNOW INDIA SEMINAR IN DOHA, QATAR”

27.10.2014

The Gulf and the Middle East region are emerging as an important tourism generating market for India. Realizing the importance of the State of Qatar which is an important source market in the region, the India Tourism, Dubai, in cooperation with the Embassy of India in Doha is organizing a “Know India Seminar” which would be taking place at Hotel Radisson Blu on Monday, the 27^th October, 2014. The Seminar will be inaugurated by Mr. Sanjiv Arora, Ambassador of India to Qatar and Mr. Manas Pattanaik, Regional Director, India Tourism (Dubai).

The Know India Seminar is being organized to provide a glimpse of the attractive tourism products as well as the countless cultural, spiritual and travel experiences that India offers as a tourist destination. The highlight of the Seminar would be to depict the country as a multi-faceted tourist destination for Luxury, Wildlife, and Wellness / Medical tourism. India has evolved as a round the year destination and all efforts are being made to develop niche areas like wellness and medical tourism; adventure and wildlife tourism; film tourism; monsoon tourism; golf, polo and sports tourism and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Events) tourism, while at the same time adding, further attraction to the unique cultural and heritage appeal of the country.

The members of the Travel Industry and Media of Qatar would be getting an opportunity to meet members of the Indian travel industry and know more about the tourist attractions of India and also experience traditional Indian cuisine during the Seminar.

The Gulf and the Middle East has been showing a positive growth of Foreign Tourist Arrivals to India over the last 2 to 3 years with 3,43,113 tourist arrivals registered during 2013 showing a growth of nearly 17.9 % over the previous year. As far as tourist traffic from the GCC to India is concerned, there has been an impressive over 25% growth last year which clearly indicates the growing interest in choosing India as a favorite Tourist destination.

We expect more traffic from Qatar to India during the current year as the awareness about India is growing every year. The Seminar in Doha is a part of the three events being organized in the Region i.e., Muscat, followed by Doha & Kuwait to promote the India Tourism and the range of options in these important markets.

Foreign tourist arrivals into India have witnessed a steady increase over the years, touching 6.96 million in 2013, with an annual growth rate of 5.9 %, This year till September 2014 the Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India stood at 5.18 Million.

India Tourism has launched a new International Campaign ‘Find What You Seek’. This campaign indicates a paradigm shift with the focus now being on the consumers. The campaign highlights that tourists from the world over can find the destination or product of their desire in India, be it heritage sites, forts, beaches, backwaters, lakes, mountains, adventure, wildlife, culture, festivals, medical, wellness, MICE, religion or shopping. India offers something for everyone and is truly an incredible destination with a range of products as found nowhere else. The new campaign will help in further promoting India as a multi-faceted all - year tourist destination.

Medical & Wellness tourism…….

India has emerged as a Destination for Medical / Wellness Travel in GCC countries. The percentage of Foreign Tourist Arrivals visiting India for Medical Treatment has been increasing over the years and growing rapidly since the year 2000. India is poised to become a hub for medical tourism because of several factors viz. world class hospitals with latest technology; highly skilled Indian physicians and surgeons; low cost of treatment; excellent quality of care and nursing; comparatively less waiting time for availing of medical services; India’s traditional healthcare therapies like Ayurveda & Yoga combined with allopathic treatment providing a holistic wellness destination.

India is also popular for Wellness Tourism with the ancient practice of healing, yoga and Ayurveda which has been known for more than 5,000 years and now it is time for the world to experience it. Wellness tourism involves rejuvenation of the body, mind and soul and India has its own edge because it has world-class facilities. Further, the people of Gulf region have a high comfort level with India due to historically strong ties.

The State of Qatar can be a major contributor to India’s Medical & Wellness tourism as India is a short haul destination and also due to the confidence bestowed in the Indian Medical Facilities / infrastructure make it an attractive medical destination for the Qatari people.

India has taken many steps to liberalize the visa regime:

The introduction of Tourist Visa on Arrival (TVOA) facility to citizens of 11 countries visiting India for tourism purposes, was one such decision. These countries are Cambodia, Finland, Indonesia, Japan, Luxembourg, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam. Tourist arrivals from these 11 countries through the facility of TVOA have recorded a growth of 26.2 percent in 2013 as compared to the previous year. The Visa on Arrival facility is now available at 8 airports in the country. More countries would be able to avail this facility soon.
Foreign tourists in groups of four or more arriving by air or sea and sponsored by Indian travel agencies approved by the Ministry of Tourism and with a pre-drawn itinerary are granted Collective Landing Permits for a period not exceeding 60 days, with multiple entry facilities to enable them to visit neighboring countries.
The provision relating to the two month gap between two visits to India by a foreign national on tourist visa was lifted quite sometime back.
A proposal for further liberalization of visa regulations is under active consideration.

For further information, please contact:

India Tourism, Dubai - Tel: +971-4-2274848; Fax: +971-4-2274013;

E-mail: goirto@emirates.net.ae or visit www.incredibleindia.org

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