Dr. Vijaykumar Gavit, Minister for Tourism, Shri Vithal Kamat, President, Maharashtra Economic Development Council (MEDC), Shri Anand Kulkarni, Principal Secretary, Department of Tourism and other dignitaries launched Visit Golden Maharashtra with a 2-day business conference at Y.B Chavan Centre, Mumbai on 20th April.
An initiative of MEDC along with MTDC and Government of Maharashtra, Visit Golden Maharashtra is a year long activity that will not only show case Maharashtra to the rest of the world and India, but also promote various segments of tourism through policy initiatives. The launch of Visit Golden Maharashtra in the 50th anniversary of the state also marks a symbolic 'desire of intent' on the part of the various stake holders to come up with policy initiatives, practical guidelines and their implementation to propel Maharashtra to the forefront of international tourism.
In his inaugural address, Anand Kulkarni, Principal Tourism Secretary, announced to the representatives of the tourism trade representatives that Maharashtra would go for quick clearance of projects to boost tourism in the state. The Tourism Minister also re-iterated his Secretary's announcement.
Maharashtra, in many ways, is a microcosm of the world. With a few exceptions, it has almost everything that exists in nature. The beaches of Maharashtra are as good as any in the world. The state offers wildlife, rare flora, forests, a rich heritage of forts and ancient temples, mountains and even back waters. The scope for Adventure tourism and Eco-tourism are incomparable. And then, there are a variety of emerging segments like wine, agri and bollywood tourism whose potential merely needs to be unlocked. And, all these are backed by a strong infrastructure.
"This conference marks the first step of the initiative. By getting the private bodies, the Government, the tourism bodies, the trade bodies, opinion formers and ideators under one umbrella, Visit Golden Maharashtra has already taken a giant step forward," says Vinod Gupta, Vice President, MEDC.
With a tourism base as rich and diverse as that exists in Maharashtra, it is only a matter of time that the state is at the forefront of global tourism. Intelligent promotion and implementation of practical policies of course will speeden the process. And it is precisely to form these guidelines and policy initiatives that we have assembled here today.
In the 2-Day Conference, experts from their respective fields discussed and debated the various ingredients that will go into the successful implementation of Visit Golden Maharashtra. The conference discussed the many challenges faced by the industry and measures that can be adopted to resolve these issues. The end result was documented in the form of a white paper to be presented to the Maharashtra Government with a deadline for Results.
Upon completion of the conference, various activities will be initiated with the objectives of getting high yield tourists, balancing the tourist movement and spreading it across the state, ecology conservation, generating employment through tourism and encouraging tourism consciousness locally.
In effect, the launch of Visit Golden Maharashtra marks a new beginning for tourism in Maharashtra.
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