Kapil Chopra, president, The Oberoi Group is chairman; Ashwani Lohani, CMD, Air India is vice chairman
The annual general meeting of the World Travel & Tourism Council, India Initiative (WTTCII) was held on December 9, 2015 at New Delhi. Kapil Chopra, president, The Oberoi Group has been appointed as the chairman of WTTCII for the year 2016. Chopra, who served as the cice chairman of WTTCII for the year 2015, took over from Manav Thadani, chairman, HVS, South Asia who completed his term at the recently held AGM in Delhi. Ashwani Lohani, chairman and managing director, Air India has been appointed as the vice chairman of WTTCII for the year 2016.
Kapil Chopra said, “Maintaining the momentum of the WTTCII Report Tourism Action Plan 2014 presented to the new government, we have recently requested urgent interventions at prime minister Modi’s level. Tourism growth in India has been the slowest in three years and is only 4 per cent over last year. One of the most important interventions needed at this moment is the revival, recasting and relaunching the Incredible India Campaign 2.0. The E-Tourist Visa on Arrival (ETVoA) scheme, currently extended to 113 countries, must be communicated effectively to consumers through the Incredible India 2.0 campaign as awareness continues to be low. Also, this campaign should be on the same scale and magnitude as Make in India across print, digital and social media platforms for India’s key source markets. Both campaigns need to compliment each other.”
Ashwani Lohani said, “Travel and tourism is a universal bridge connecting people, cultures and communities all over the world, while, also being a world leader in contributing to the global economy by creating jobs, generating wealth, and improving the quality of life of its citizens. Despite these benefits, the sector still lacks the appropriate level of political and economic recognition. We would like to point out here that one of the primary needs of tourism is easy access to a destination. Civil aviation and tourism must be linked to address this objective. Delineating or isolating both these functions will not see the desired growth. Tourism and aviation must be integral to make India an accessible and affordable destination.”
