India should attract more foreign tourists: Selja

September 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - Tourism destinations need to package themselves attractively to attract tourists repeatedly to India, Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said Tuesday. Inaugurating the fortnight-long Ladakh Festival at Leh, she said it was imperative that destinations diversify their products to allow the tourist to experience the real customs and heritage of local communities.

August 19th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Tourist spots should be kept clean and drivers, waiters and cooks should be trained to ensure that travellers make repeated visits to popular hotspots like the Taj Mahal city of Agra, Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said here Wednesday. "Public awareness campaign about cleanliness must be started in places like Agra where tourists come in large numbers, Selja said when Uttar Pradesh Tourism Minister Vinod Singh met her here to discuss tourism-related projects.

August 19th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Tourism Minister Kumari Selja has said that her Ministry will take along Uttar Pradesh and Bihar while promoting Buddhist Circuit for tourists. She said that Buddhist Circuit is popular both among foreign and domestic tourists and all efforts will be made to make it a star attraction.

August 19th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Meghalaya Governor Ranjit Shekhar Mooshahary called on Union Tourism Minister Kumari Selja here today and told here that Megahalaya has vast tourism potential both for domestic as well as foreign tourists. He said, leave travel concession to the Central Government employees to visit the north-east has made Meghalaya quite popular among tourists.

August 4th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India and Singapore Tuesday signed a joint action plan which, officials said, would help both countries attract more tourists. According to the plan, tourists visiting Singapore will be offered an option to include a four-five day trip to India in their itinerary, thus adding variety to their holiday.

August 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The tourism ministry has, for the first time, organised a three-day training programme for its overseas officials by experts at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi in an effort to sharpen their marketing skills. Talking about the programme, Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said Monday that the ministry's officials will be trained to promote India better.

August 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Seeing the immense tourism potential of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the tourism ministry is organising a number of roadshows abroad to attract travellers, Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said here Monday. "The Commonwealth Games in India next year will be an important event, especially from the tourism point of view.

August 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - India will hold tourism roadshows in London and other capitals of Commonwealth countries in a bid to cash in on the Commonwealth Games here next year, Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said here Monday. "The Commonwealth Games in India next year will be an important event, especially from the tourism point of view.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - With a view to giving a fillip to the tourism industry, which is witnessing a downturn due to the global meltdown, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee allocated Rs.1,070 crore to the sector in the union budget he presented in parliament Monday. Mukherjee also announced custom duty exemption for water and snow equipment to boost adventure tourism.

July 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - Caravan and heliport tourism are among the "niche products" India will offer visitors as its tourism sector tries to cope with setbacks due to 26/11 and global recession, Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said Wednesday. Listing out her 100-day agenda, Selja said they were "developing niche tourism products".

July 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Tourism Minister Kumari Selja on Wednesday said that government would announce new policy guidelines for promoting health tourism to increase the number of foreign tourist arrivals in India. Selja said this while speaking to media persons on the sidelines of the meeting to discuss the '100 days Agenda of Tourism Ministry' in New Delhi on Wednesday.

June 29th, 2009 CHANDIGARH - The inflow of foreign tourists is picking up, according to Tourism Minister Selja. "In the last two years, we have seen an increase in the flow of both foreign and domestic tourists in India, except during the few months when it was affected due to global meltdown and the Mumbai terror attacks," Selja told reporters here Monday.

June 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Union Minister for Tourism Kumari Selja Friday urged Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to offer budgetary incentives for the tourism industry as it is facing a crunch due to global economic slowdown. Leading a delegation of key stake holders from tourism industry, Selja met the finance minister and submitted a memorandum requesting concessions in the union budget to be presented July 6.

June 17th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India plans to hold a series of roadshows abroad, including in Australia, New Zealand and Russia, to showcase the country's rich diversity and attract tourists, officials said here Wednesday. Tourism Minister Kumari selja held a meeting with the captains of the industry and discussed how to attract more tourists to the country in the times of economic recession.

May 30th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India needs to attract more foreign tourists, whose number has dipped after the Mumbai terror attack and due to economic depression, Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said Saturday. "The tourism sector has a lot of challenges apart from attracting foreign tourists to India.