Assam Chief minister Tarun Gogoi was hard-selling the northeast as the next tourism destination to a gathering of foreign delegates at the valedictory function of the three-dayInternational Tourism Mart here, Gogoi said the northeast's cultural, ethnic, wildlife and landscape diversities along with the hospitable people are the core strengths of the region to become a tourism hotspot. 

"The uniqueness of the northeast lies in its diversity. A region full of diversity and hospitable people itself will make the northeast a tourism hotspot. Hosting the country's first international tourism mart in Guwahati speaks a lot about the region's tourism potential," Gogoi told a gathering of tour operators and delegates from India and other countries. 

The chief minister also conceded that despite potentiality the northeast so far lagged behind in the tourism sector primarily due to the lack of "aggressive marketing." 

"We, in the northeast, are not good salespersons. So our marketing is not aggressive. Now it is time to embark on aggressive marketing. We also want to expand the region's tourism sector to southeast Asian countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan," Gogoi said, while appealing to the foreign and domestic tour operators to help the region by giving their advice on how to improve the sector. 

About 79 delegates from 23 countries along with domestic tour operators attended the mart to get a first-hand feel and explore the region's tourism potentiality. Tour operators had business interactions on how to sell the northeast's tourism products in different parts of the country and abroad. 

Union tourism ministry secretary Parvez Dewan said the result of the business meet, which was held during the mart, is likely to become visible in the second half of this year in the form of more tourists visiting the region. 

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