Page 181 - Hospitality Recreation
Bhogi celebrations start in Hyderabad
Sankranthi, the harvest festival, is being celebrated in Hyderabad vivacity and will continue for the next three days.The first day of Sankranthi, which is called the Bhogi, will be celebrated today.Bhogi is the first day of the four-day Pongal festival.On Bhogi, people discard old and neglected things and concentrate on new things causing change or transformation. At dawn, people light a bonfire with logs of wood, other solid-fuels and wooden furniture at home that are no longer useful.For Bhogi, the public will organise 'Bhogi bonfire' by collecting the waste at their homes."The Bhogi is the first day of Sankranthi festival which is celebrated on the name of Lord Indra. We will bring the waste material which is there in house and put them in bon fire which we call it as Bhogi Mantalu. At the evening we will pour Bhogi Pallu to children which includes rice grains, berry fruits and sugar cane, as the bad eyes on them will vanish," a person celebrating the festival told ANI.The second .
Pongal celebrated with traditional fervour in TN, Puducherry
The harvest festival of 'Pongal' was celebrated with traditional fervour across Tamil Nadu and neighbouring Puducherry today, with people preparing traditional sweet rice and offering prayers to the Sun God. Every street and locality was decked up with a fresh coat of 'kolam' (rangoli, drawings made of flour) welcoming the Tamil month of 'Thai', the dawn of which is traditionally viewed as a harbinger of new beginnings and prosperity. Homes were decorated with mango leaves and strings of flowers as a mark of ushering in auspiciousness. People offered special prayers at temples and exchanged greetings. Sweet rice (Pongal), made of jaggery or sugar with rice and milk, in a traditional mud pot, was offered to the Sun God along with pieces of sugarcane. The food was also shared with relatives and neighbours. Cinema halls drew huge crowds and almost all business establishments including retail outlets and the ubiquitous tea stalls were shut as the festive mood took ...
West Bengal to unveil revamped tourism policy by Jan-end
The West Bengal government is set to unleash a new revamped tourism policy by the end of this month, a top official has said. The government also hopes to otilise the upcoming tourism fair - 'Destination East'-- to showcase its various tourism destinations to both domestic and international tour operators, before unveiling the new policy. "The draft of the West Bengal governments upcoming tourism policy is ready, and if things go as planned, it will be unveiled by the end of this month," Atri Bhattacharya, Principal Secretary, Department of Tourism in West Bengal said. "We wish to incorporate in the new policy certain relevant points made at the Sectoral Conference on Tourism at the upcoming 'Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS)' and also 'Destination East' to be jointly organized by the West Bengal Tourism Department and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) next week," Bhattacharya said. He said that before unveiling the new policy, the government needs to ...
Tamil Nadu celebrates Pongal with traditional fervour
People across Tamil Nadu on Sunday celebrated the harvest festival of Pongal thanking rain, sun and farm animals.
Odisha man carves mountains to send kids to school
Much like Bihar's 'mountain man' Dasrath Manjhi, Odisha's Jalandhar Nayak has become an inspiring name in the Kandhamal district for moving mountains single-handedly to construct an 8 km long road.Nayak worked for eight hours every day for two years to construct the road which connected his village Gumsahi with the main road in Phulbani town of Odisha's Kandhamal district.Nayak took the step so that his children could easily cross the road to reach school in the townMeanwhile, S K Jena, the Block Development Officer (BDO), assured that he would provide all the facilities to Nayak."It is almost an inhabitable area where he lives, we had earlier invited him to come and live in the city but he refused. Our support is there for him, whether he will be felicitated or not has not been decided yet," he added.Nayak, a vegetable seller, said that he never had access to education and seeing his children suffer in crossing the area forced him to take this step and clear the hillocks to make a ...
Kite, sweet fests kick-start in Telangana
Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Mohammad Mahmood Ali inaugurated the third Telangana International Kite Festival and the first International Sweet Festival at Parade Grounds here.Praising the initiative of organising the fest in the state by Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, Ali congratulated the teams participating in the fests."We also used to fly kites when we were young. Since the Telangana Government was formed we have been celebrating this festival on a wide scale. I would like to congratulate everyone participating in this festival", he said.Mahmood was accompanied by Telangana Minister of Tourism Azmeera Chandulal.The kite festival began Telangana in 2016. The first two edition was hosted by the Aga Khan Academy on its premises in Shamshabad for the first two editions, later on, Telangana Tourism moved from being a partner to the organiser of the event.
Bikaner camel festival begins today
With a colourful procession comprising of decorated camels and folk artists, the two-day international camel festival began today. Beautifully adorned camels and performances by folk artists were the key attraction for domestic and foreign tourists who gathered at the Karni Singh stadium to participate in the fair. The procession began from Junagarh fort and culminated at the stadium where various performances were held. District Collector Anil Gupta, SP Sawai Singh were also present on the occasion. Organised by the Department of Tourism, Art and Culture, Bikaner Camel Festival is a yearly event in January that the city celebrates in honor of the ship of the desert, Camel. The event mainly includes spectacular camel performances like camel dances, camel races, neck shaking camel rides etc.
French call to make Chandannagar a tourism hub
Director of French Institute in India, Bertrand de Hartingh has called upon all stakeholders in Chandannagar in West Bengal to chip in to make the former French colony a tourism hub and the West Bengal government has expressed support for it. "Like Marrakech in Morocco, Chandernagore can be a tourism destination in India if the owners of the heritage buildings are able to refurbish their own properties and manage to get enough support. One possible way will be to invite people from outside to stay in their traditional houses," Harthingh said. Most of the 99 heritage buildings in Chandannagar which retain French influences are now private properties, he said yesterday at the conclusion of a week-long 'Bonjour India' project for Chandannagar. Chandannagar, a former French colony earlier known as Chandernagore is located 35 km from the city in Hoogly district. It became independent in May 1950. A week-long workshop was held as part of the 'Bonjour India' project to ...
Four labourers choked to death in Lucknow
Four labourers sleeping in the basement of a hotel here were found dead on Saturday, police said.
Tremendous potential for India, Egypt to boost tourism:experts
India and Egypt have a tremendous potential to boost tourism through shared experiences, according to travel experts. The Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture (MACIC) of the Indian Embassy here has organised a seminar on 'Sustainable Tourism: New Avenues for Development' with the participation of eminent Indian and Egyptian speakers. The discussion, held last Thursday, focused on different themes with a primary emphasis on sharing experiences from developments in the space of tourism in countries like India and Egypt which have tremendous scope and potential to benefit from the tourism sector. Sanjay Kandhari, Branch Head of Satguru Travels, said that India has many things to offer for tourists from landscapes to beaches and sites and other, which can be promoted and attract more tourists from around the world. Kandhari also added that Egypt have the same ability to attract tourists also and both countries should promote these attractions in a better way. As an Indian .
Kabir Khan directs sequel to campaign starring SRK
Director Kabir Khan, who has helmed a campaign featuring Shah Rukh Khan, says he has always aspired to work with the superstar.
Train engine derails in UP
The engine of a passenger train was derailed in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district early morning today, a railway official said. However, no loss of life was reported, he said. The incident took place when the engine of the Delhi- bound train was being shunted for its return trip to Delhi, he said. A probe has been ordered in the incident, he added.
Nagila: A vegan restaurant which oozes warmth and freshness (Foodie Trail - Jerusalem)
It's a restaurant that oozes warmth from the moment you step in. Run by a mother and daughter as if it is their home, Nagila offers several innovative vegan delicacies.
Train engine derails in UP, no one hurt
The engine of a passenger train derailed in Shamli in Uttar Pradesh at 1.30 a.m. on Saturday, officials said.
Port Blair, Srinagar rated most wallet-friendly holiday
Srinagar and Port Blair have seen the steepest drop in airfares, while Bangkok has replaced Dubai as the top trending holiday destination amongst Indian travellers, according to online travel marketplace Kayak. These findings are part of Kayak's recently launched tool, Travel Hacker Guide, which provides rankings of the popular and top trending destinations, the most affordable cities to fly to, the best times to book flights as well as travel tips. The Guide has analysed over 1.5 billion annual search queries to collect information for travellers. According to the Guide, destinations such as Port Blair and Srinagar have seen a drop in average flight price of up to 24 per cent, making them most wallet-friendly options for holidaymakers. Other destinations like Jammu, Muscat and Kochi, too, saw airfares decrease by 23 per cent, 22 per cent and 19 per cent, respectively. The ranking on biggest price drop reflects flight destinations with the highest year-on-year percentage
'MasterChef Australia' the best culinary experience: Winner
Diana Chan, who has won the ninth season of "MasterChef Australia", has described it as "the best culinary experience".
Bengal to host tourism summit 'Destination East' from Jan 18
Over 100 overseas delegates from 30 countries, are expected to converge to the city at the 'Destination East' tourism summit from January 18. Announcing this here today, the state's Principal Secretary of Tourism Atri Bhattacharya said that the two-day event would come up at the newly-built convention centre at Rajarhat, New Town, on January 18 and 19. Fourteen delegates from the US, 12 from the UK and 12 from Russia are expected to attend the event, among others. The 8th edition of the event will be jointly organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry and the Tourism Department of the state government, he said. Bhattacharya also said that through the event, the state was keen to showcase many tourism destinations in Bengal to the international tour operators. "We also aim to showcase Gajoldoba in North Bengal among others as a potential tourism destination. There is also an event lined up at Gazoldoba," he said.
Change of guard ceremony tickets available online
People can now book online the tickets to witness ceremonial change of guard which takes place on Saturdays and Sundays, an official statement from the Rashtrapati Bhavan said. The statement said for the month of January, the online booking is open only for Saturday, January 13 and Sunday, January 14. "Visitors who wish to attend the ceremonial change of guard that takes place at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturdays (1000 hrs) and Sundays (1630 hrs) can now book online at www.rashtrapatisachivalaya.nic.in," it said. Online booking shall soon be made available for the subsequent months. The ceremony lasts for about 45 minutes and is free of charge, the statement said. It said in case a particular Saturday or Sunday is a gazetted holiday and the Rashtrapati Bhavan is closed for the visitors, the change of guard ceremony will not be carried out on that day.
Parking policy in Hyderabad to be prepared soon: Mayor
Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) Mayor B Rammohan today said a policy on parking of vehicles in the city would be prepared soon. The Mayor, who held a meeting with the owners of hotels, malls, function halls and others, told them to have adequate parking space, a release issued by the GHMC said. Observing that parking has become a major problem in many cities in the country, he said several measures, including putting in place special parking complexes, would be taken to address the issues related to parking. Referring to the recent fire incident in Mumbai, he said fire safety measures should be put in place in hotels, restaurants and function halls. Rammohan also said the hotels and restaurants should have rain water percolation pits for conservation of ground water.
Adventure Sports Expo Asia to begin on January 27
Adventure Sports Expo Asia, country's first adventure extravaganza is all set to begin from January 27 at Four Points by Sheraton here, it was announced on Friday.