Being held for the third time in India from September 6-8, 2015 in Bengaluru, the 38th PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association) Travel Mart (PTM) 2015, hopes to host over 1000 delegates from across the globe. Jatinder S Taneja, honorary treasurer, PATA India Chapter, informed that PATA is expecting participation from more than 60 countries and is hoping to have over 350-400 buyers. “In order to benefit one and all, we have fixed a competitive registration fee and are offering discounted rates of about 20 per cent for the local sellers to exhibit,” he added. The event, being hosted by the department of tourism, Government of Karnataka, will be held at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC). Looking to boost the tourism potential of the state, R V Deshpande, minister for higher education and tourism, Government of Karnataka, mentioned that the event will lead to an increase in domestic and international tourist traffic. The pre- and post-event familiarisation trips will expose the delegates to other prominent tourist destinations in Karnataka. Deshpande added, “We have appointed consultants to review accommodation options in the state and to coordinate the logistic arrangements for the mart. We have also recently set up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to develop infrastructure at tourist destinations across the state under Public-Private Partnership (PPP).” PTM 2015 will also include ‘Tourism Investment Forum’, ‘Travel Technology Conference’ in partnership with Phocuswright, and PTM Talks. This year’s mart will feature a Technology Pavilion providing a business platform for travel technology professionals to feature their products and services to both PATA members and travel industry stakeholders.