Nagaland Is Hosting 'International Tourism Mart', Highlighting Tourism Potential Along Northeast

Nagaland Is Hosting ‘International Tourism Mart’, Highlighting Tourism Potential Along Northeast

27th November 2021

NET Web Desk

Nagaland is hosting the “International Tourism Mart”, a three-day event commencing from November 27-29 at Kohima, which will be attended by over 300 delegates including government officials, industry stakeholders and local participants. Guests are all set to arrive at the Dimapur Airport this afternoon.

The three-day event will be jointly inaugurated by the Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio; Minister of State (MoS) for Tourism & Defence GoI, Ajay Bhatt; and MLA & Advisor Tourism, Government of Nagaland, H Khehovi Yeputhomi at 6:30 PM today. Other dignitaries from Central Ministries and the North Eastern States will also attend the occasion.

Organized by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India (GoI), this annual-event aims to highlight the tourism potential of Northeastern regions in the domestic and international markets.

This edition of the Mart will emphasize on “Domestic Tourism”, with deliberations on the promotion of tourism in the North East Region in general.

During a press conference, the Assistant Director General (IT Delhi & Event) Ministry of Tourism, Vibhava Tripathi asserted that events of the mart will be based on the celebrations of “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”, where tourism and products of the NE will be exhibited to rest of the nation.

It will provide a platform to NE states for promoting cultural ties, and providing enhanced connectivity of these states with other parts of the country. The event has been planned and scheduled to facilitate interaction between buyers, sellers, media, government agencies, and other stakeholders.

According to the programme schedule, the event will discuss about “Major Hotel Chains and alternative accommodation in Northeast”, “Potential of Fairs and Festivals for Tourism in Northeast regions”, and also “Potential of Food & Wine Tourism in Northeast”.

The event will be attended by the High Commissioner of Brunei Darussalam; High Commissioner of Malaysia; Ambassador Extra Ordinary, Republic of the Union of Myanmar; Ambassador of The Socialist Republic of Vietnam, amongst others attending dignitaries and diplomats.

Meanwhile, other high-ranking officials from participating Ministries/Government bodies are also going to be a part of the event.

In line with the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’, the delegation will also incorporate students from across the nation who, as part of a study tour, will be interacting with local students and immersing themselves in the region’s rich heritage and culture.

Around 50 buyers from different regions of the country will participate in the Mart and will engage in one-on-one meetings with 75 sellers from the North East Region, thereby enabling the tourism product suppliers from NE to reach out to domestic buyers with an aim to promote tourism.

However, domestic buyers will be engaging in business-to-business meetings with sellers from the North Eastern Region as well.

The event will also include presentations by state governments on their tourism potentials, whereas a vibrant exhibition by State Tourism Departments from the North Eastern region will showcase the tourism products of respective participating states.

To further enrich the experience of the participants, the Ministry has also organized a visit to Kisama Heritage Village, Kisama War Museum and Morungs, Khonoma Village and Kohima World War II War Cemetery. The visiting delegation will be introduced to the local community, art and culture, and the rich heritage of Nagaland.

Its worthy to note that the concerned event will be organized in continuation to the Tourism & Culture Ministers’ Conference of North Eastern Region (NER) held during September 2021 in the state of Assam – an effort to deliberate and discuss the way forward for tourism along the North Eastern region.

The International Tourism Marts are organized annually across the North Eastern States on a rotation basis. Nagaland is hosting this Mart for the first time, while the earlier editions were held in Guwahati (Assam), Tawang (Arunachal Pradesh), Shillong (Meghalaya), Gangtok (Sikkim), Agartala (Tripura), and Imphal (Manipur).