Page 80 - Hospitality Recreation
Uzbek President fascinated by Taj's beauty
Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Sunday expressed admiration for the Taj Mahal as he spent some 30 minutes at the 17th century Mughal monument here.
Roads coming faster on Chinese side, say Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims
Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims said they have returned home impressed by the infrastructure coming up on the Tibetan side of the India-China border beyond the Lipulekh pass. While a robust infrastructure is being built up fast by China across the border in western Tibet, the work on the Indian side is disappointingly slow, pilgrims returning from the recently concluded yatra told PTI. Sudhir Verma, a resident of Nainital district, who was part of the 16th batch of the yatra this year, said the Indian roads may be still 75 km away from the pass whereas the Chinese have already reached around 500 metre. The three motor roads being constructed to link the last Indian border post along the India-China border are progressing at a disappointingly slow pace, he said. According to Dharchula Sub Divisional Magistrate R K Pandey, work on Sobla-Sela-Tedang motor road in Darma valley of Pithoragarh is stuck at Pangbawey locality due to huge leaning rocks, while the construction of ...
Cheers to 'new-age' whiskey, spiked with butterscotch, tea and more
The overtly masculine image of amber liquid sloshing gently on rocks of ice as gentlemen hold their glasses and clouds of cigar smoke swirl around is changing rapidly with whiskey brands tapping into a diverse customer base and experimenting with flavours as diverse as coffee and tea. The staid whiskey spirit is getting a fun makeover with cocktail connoisseurs joining in too, either using ingredients to enhance the velvety smooth flavour of whiskey or disguising it, to woo those who usually stayed with sweeter fruity cocktails. Shreshta Saha, who kept away from whiskey for almost half a decade, now says Whiskey Sour is her drink of choice. "Whip up a cocktail or dilute it enough with water to make the taste of hard liquor go away," 26-year-old Shreshta told PTI. A sweet-n-sour concoction, a classic Whiskey Sour mellows the flavour of hard liquor with the addition of a sweetener, a dash of lemon and sometimes egg white. Leading brands are hoping to break the old school imagery of ...
Female wine drinkers in India are on par with male drinkers: India's Master of Wine
Women are an increasingly important market segment of the wine industry, making wider lifestyle choices with a propensity to spend marginally more than men on a bottle of wine, says Sonal Holland, India's first and only Master of Wine (MW), one of the most prestigious titles in the world of wines with a count of 370 Masters across 30 countries.
The coffee culture is here to stay (October 1 is World Coffee Day)
India is the third-largest producer and exporter of coffee in Asia and the seventh-largest producer and fifth-largest exporter of coffee in the world. It accounts for 3.66 per cent (2017) of the global coffee production. The country produces more than three lakh tonnes, with Karnataka contributing 85 per cent of this. Coffee in India has a rich history of 300 years, offering a livelihood to more than 15 lakh families. India grows mainly Robustas (70 per cent), with Arabica accounting for the rest.
Baralacha Pass reopens for traffic
Closed for over a week owing to heavy snowfall, the road link between tourist resort Manali and Baralacha Pass was reopened to motorists on Sunday on completion of snow-clearing operations, an official said.
2 India Gate parks to be fenced to maintain 'design uniformity'
The Central Public Works Department (CPWD), which maintains the area around the India Gate, has started erecting five-foot fence around two nearby parks to ensure uniformity in design, which has been affected by the upcoming war memorial there. Officials have, however, clarified that the move was not aimed at restricting entry of visitors. An official of the CPWD said that all six parks near the India Gate will be getting fenced as part of the agency's efforts to maintain uniformity in design due to work on the National War Memorial. According to the official, out of six parks inside the C-hexagon area, three are being taken up for the war memorial while there is children park in number four park. "Three parks (number 1 to 3), which are being taken up for the work on war memorial, will also get fenced. Children park (number 4) is already fenced. Work is underway in remaining parks (number 5 and 6) for five-foot fence to ensure uniformity in design of the area," he said. "The fence ...
US, UK top foreign buyers list at Kerala Travel Mart
: The ongoing 10th edition of the Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) here has the highest number of foreign buyers from the US and the UK, signalling the growing interest of visitors from these countries in the state. As many as 42 buyers have arrived from the US while around 40 buyers have turned up from the UK for business interactions with sellers, at the event being held at Willingdon Island here, a release said Saturday. Incidentally, this edition of the KTM has the highest number of foreign buyers, which stands at 545, and they have come from 66 countries. There are 37 buyers representing the UAE and 36 buyers have come from Germany, it said. Buyers from other countries include Australia (32), Russia (31), Malaysia (26), Poland (24), South Africa (17), the Philippines (14), Italy (13), China (12) and Sweden (10), who are active in reaching business-to-business deals. "I am first time here. I'm looking for new partners and information in tourism sector in the state," said ...
Customised service, updated packages needed to woo young
Kerala's tourism warrants renewed approach that promotes customised service as well as night life besides technology and packages that are updated with times so as to woo back young visitors to the state, experts said Saturday. Digital media and even artificial intelligence are proving to be key requirements for tourism promotion to get newer audiences across the globe and God's Own Country can't be an exception, speakers told a seminar at the Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) here. All the same, "over-tourism" should not disturb the normal routine of the hosts even as Kerala needs to explore the scope of non-conventional hospitality such as home stay and bread-and-breakfast, they noted. The seminar 'Changing Trends in Travel and Tourism' was organised as part of September 27-30 KTM that aims to boost the state's tourism prospects. Joint Secretary of Union Ministry of Tourism, Suman Billa highlighted 'commoditisation' as an urgent requirement of tourism in Kerala. "Select a ...
Goa govt gives Mandovi River casinos 6-month extension
The Goa government has granted an extension of six months to casinos operating on Mandovi River, state Public Works Department Minister Sudin Dhavalikar said Saturday. A 6-month extension granted earlier in April this year will expire Sunday and the latest extension allows these off-shore casinos on the river to operate till March 30, 2019, he said. "Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has signed the cabinet note (in this connection)," said Dhavalikar. There are six offshore casinos operating on the Mandovi River. The Goa government is currently in the process of drafting a casino policy that will spell out the future course of action to shift them from the river.
Ravin, Manish win gold in U-23 National Wrestling
Ravin and Manish were among the 10 gold medallists in the inaugural Under-23 National Wrestling Championship, taking place in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan. The gold medallists of the event will get to compete in the Under-23 World Wrestling Championship, which will be held in Bucharest (Romania) from November 12-16. Ravin and Manish won gold in the 55kg and 60kg greco-roman category respectively. The other gold medallists on Friday were Ranjeet (63kg), Ravinder (67kg), Ajay (72kg), Sajan (77kg), Sanjeet (82kg), Sunil (87kg), Deepanshu (97kg), Ravi (130kg).
Govt hikes duty incentives for exports of 28 milk products
The government has again hiked duty benefits for exports of as many as 28 milk related products such as cheese and yoghurt under a scheme to boost their overseas shipments. The duty benefits were enhanced under the Merchandise Export from India Scheme (MEIS). Under this scheme, the government provides 'duty credit scrip' to exporters. The rates vary from product to product and the export destination, as envisaged in the foreign trade policy. Rewards under the scheme are payable as percentage of realised free-on-board value and MEIS duty credit scrip can be transferred or used for payment of a number of duties, including the basic customs duty. "The MEIS benefit for certain items have been enhanced to 20 per cent from the current 10 per cent," the Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in a public notice. The products which would enjoy the incentive include butter milk, fresh cheese, grated or powdered cheese, skimmed milk, milk food for babies, whole milk and condensed milk The ...
'Godzilla' actor fascinated by humanity in India
"Godzilla: Final Wars" actor Jonathan Legg, who will be seen on Indian television screens with travel show "Road Less Travelled" for which he explored India, says "humanity" is a good word for the country.
Two cops suspended for creating ruckus at hotel
Two police constables have been suspended by the authorities at Jalna in central Maharashtra for allegedly creating ruckus in a drunken state. Additional Superintendent of Police Samadhan Pawar said that action was taken against constables Sandeep Rathod and Aatish Choudhary. The two are accused of creating a scene at a hotel at Ghanswnagi on Thursday night after the hotel owner asked them to pay for the food and liquor they had ordered. They are also accused of manhandling the owner. A departmental inquiry has been ordered against them, ASP Pawar said.
Record number of cheeses to compete for 'Swiss Champion' title
Hundreds of cheese afficionados were descending on the Swiss city of Lucerne on Friday to show off their varieties in a bid to pick up awards at an annual competition that would see a record number of the much-loved dairy product.
Tourism Awards: Ahmedabad best heritage city, Qutub Minar best monument for differently-abled
UNESCO World Heritage City Ahmedabad and Mandu were Thursday jointly declared as the 'Best Heritage City', while Qutub Minar bagged the top award in the differently-abled friendly monument category at the National Tourism Awards here. The awards were presented by Union Tourism Minister K J Alphons at a ceremony held at the Vigyan Bhavan. India's first World Heritage City Ahmedabad is well-known for Indo-Islamic monumental art and architecture, intricately carved wooden havelis. Founded by Sultan Ahmed Shah in 1411 on pre-existing sites of Ashawal and Karnavati, the city was encompassed by massive brick fortification on banks of Sabarmati. "Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation is a pioneer in people-centric urban conservation since 1996, with establishment of the first heritage cell in India. This has led to awareness creation, framing of heritage regulations, conservation and restoration of invaluable heritage buildings," the citation for the city read. Mandu, an ancient city in Madhya ...
Ker CM inaugurates KTM event, underscores promotion of
The tenth edition of Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) began Thursday with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan emphasising on on safeguarding the ecology of prime destinations and promoting responsible tourism. "The calamity reminds us the need to protect the nature, especially for the growth of tourism in a state where the beauty of nature is the prime attraction," he said. The Chief Minister inaugurated the four-day event that brings entrepreneurs across India and abroad to state's unique tourism products and services. "We are duty-bound to preserve and protect the nature. A place develops itself into a Responsible Tourism centre when the entrepreneurs and the local community join hands," he said, formally declaring open the September 27-30 festival that comes a month after the state faced its worst deluge and landslides in 94 years. The KTM ceremony, which began with a colourful cultural evening that focused on Malabar as a core theme, saw the presence of an array of ...
'Resilient' Kerala bags most number of tourism awards
Efforts of Kerala to rejuvenate its tourism sector in the wake of the recent floods got a boost with the state bagging four of the nine National Tourism Awards 2016-17. Presenting the awards at a function held at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi Thursday, Union Tourism Minister K J Alphons Kannamthanam said the worst was over for Kerala after the calamity and the state was ready to receive tourists with full gusto. Overall, its tourism department walked away with four awards, including the Best Tourism Film (Live Inspired) and the second prize in the category of 'Best State/Union Territory- Comprehensive Development of Tourism in Rest of India', a press release said. In the Hall of Fame awards section, the two other official entries of the department which got prizes were Excellence in Publishing in Foreign Language and 'Responsible Tourism Project, Wayanad for being the Most Responsible Tourism Project/Initiative, the release said. The private players swelled the kitty of ...
National Tourism Awards: MP wins Hall of Fame, 10 other awards
Madhya Pradesh bagged the Hall of Fame National Award, given to a state for being judged the best one for tourism three years consecutively, at the National Tourism Awards function Thursday. The Union Ministry of Tourism annually presents National Tourism Awards to various segments of the travel, tourism and hospitality industry. These awards are presented to state governments, Union Territories and other stakeholders in recognition of their performance in their respective fields. MP also won 10 other awards at the function held in Delhi, a state government official said. These include Best Heritage Walk to Indore, Best Heritage City to Mandu, Best Adventure State shared with Uttarakhand, National Award for Swachhata to Indore and Best Airport Award to Indore's Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport, the official added. The award was presented by Union Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge) K J Alphons to Madhya Pradesh minister of state for tourism (independent ...
Actress Disha Patani set to be part of 2nd Saksham Pedal Delhi
Bollywood actress and fitness enthusiast Disha Patani is all set to pedal at the second edition of Saksham Pedal Delhi, Indias premier cyclothon, scheduled to be held on October 7 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here.