Bhubaneswar: In a bid to promote Tourism in state by forging networks and collaborations across India and globally, the Tourism Department and Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) will jointly host the 5th Edition of Odisha Travel Bazaar (OTB) 2023-24 from February 7 to 9 at Eco Retreat, Konark. This was informed in a presser organised here, Tuesday. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will inaugurate the event virtually Wednesday.
Addressing the media, OTDC chairman Lenin Mohanty highlighted the efforts being made by Odisha Tourism to boost tourist footfalls, and the need for proactive partnership of stakeholders of the travel and tourism industry to popularise unexplored destinations of the state. He said that the primary objective of Odisha Travel Bazaar 2023-24 will be to create a platform for the aggressive promotion of tourist destinations in Odisha to domestic buyers from India as well as in the international market. Strategic actions are being taken in this regard by the state government to establish Odisha as a diverse tourism hub of global standards by pitching a refreshingly new vision of the state, he added.
A total of 70 domestic tour operators from 18 states like Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, GOA, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal and 55 foreign tour operators from across 16 countries like Belgium, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Netherlands, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, and Vietnam are participating in the event. Department of Tourism Additional Chief Secretary Surendra Kumar, Department of Tourism Commissioner-cumDirector Sachin Ramchandra Jadhav, and, Co-Chairman, FICCI Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Committee JK Mohanty also addressed the media.
ARINDAM GANGULY, OP