The Union Minister of Road ,Transport and Highways & Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises,  Shri Nitin Gadkari and the Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (Independent Charge), Shri Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated the India Tourism Mart (ITM) 2019 in New Delhi today. The Ministry of Tourism and the Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism and Hospitality (FAITH) have jointly organized this Mart. Over 240 international delegates from 51 countries and 160 exhibitors from across the country are taking part in the second edition of ITM.

Union Minister, Shri Nitin Gadkari said that great positive outcome can be expected from the well  organized Mart and the type of stake holders who are participating. India has language, culture & food, which attracts new tourists. We are focusing on cleanliness and infrastructure which will also boost the tourism sector. He added that tourism sector has employment potential and this is the most important agenda for our government. He expressed faith that the Tourism Ministry will show great results given its commitment to promote tourism and travel in the country.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Prahlad Singh Patel said that collaboration of Ministry of Tourism and FAITH will increase the trust of tourists. India has diversity in its culture and I appeal to the delegates, they must visit our state stalls in the Mart. They will get to know about the beauty of our culture. He further said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is our brand ambassador and we have seen this in Howdy Modi event. He added that tourism is the best way to connect to the world and our efforts are in right directions.

Earlier , addressing the media at a press meet in the morning today, Shri Prahlad Singh Patel said that the objective of the Mart is to provide a platform at the national level for the trade and hospitality service providers to interact and conduct business with their counterparts from overseas.

The Union Tourism Minister further said that he is  thankful to the Prime Minister and the  Finance Minister  for the recently announced GST rebates which  will benefit the hospitality sector and will go a long way to promote tourism industry. He added that India is a very beautiful and vibrant country and there has been a definite change in the perception of international tourists due to which we have seen growth in international tourists. The Tourism Minister invited the participants to freely give their suggestions which will be taken up by the Ministry to help all the stakeholders in the tourism and travel industry.

FAITH  is  the apex  organization  of  important  trade and hospitality associations   of  the  country and will drive the event, with support of the Ministry  of  Tourism,  with the  objective of  positioning the   tourism  destinations  and  products of the country in international source  markets. 

This is the second edition of the Mart being organized on lines of major international travel marts held annually in countries across the world. The Mart will provide a platform at the national level for trade and hospitality service providers in the country to interact and conduct business with their counterparts from overseas.

Buyer Delegates from important and potential source markets overseas have been invited to participate in the Mart and over 240 international delegates have confirmed their participation. These delegates are from 51 countries including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, UK, USA and others.

The  profile of the international buyer delegates include tour operators and travel agents  who  are  already  selling  India as a tourism destination amongst their clients  as  well  as  potential  buyers  who  have  shown interest  in  the  country. The  event   will   provide  an  opportunity  for the  buyer delegates  to  see for themselves the world class tourism facilities  available  in the  country – the Airports, Hotels,  tourist  destinations and products, MICE  facilities, etc., which will enable them to promote the same more effectively amongst potential consumers in their respective countries.

The Mart has an Exhibition area with approximately 175 stalls, where seller delegates from across the country, including Tour Operators, Hoteliers and other stakeholders will conduct B2B meetings with the international buyer delegates and whereparticipating States & Union Territorieswill get the opportunity to showcase  their  unique  tourism  destinations  and  products. 

The State of Gujarat is the Partner State at ITM 2019 and other participating States are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Daman & Diu, Goa, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.

The B2B meetings and networking sessions between the buyer and seller delegates will be held on 24th and 25th September 2019.  The Buyer Delegates will be taken on post-Mart Familiarisation Tours to different tourism destinations in the country. Various itineraries and programmes on diverse themes have been designed for this purpose. 

On this occasion Tourism Secretary Shri Yogendra Tripathi; DG Tourism Smt. Meenakshi Sharma ;Chairman FAITH Shri Nakul Anand; Chairman  ITM 2019 Shri Subhash Goel and other senior officers of Ministry of tourism  were present.