‘Nepal is back on top of the world’
Bangalore, September 4
At a press conference held here today at the Bangalore Press Club, leaders and stakeholders of Nepal’s tourism industry interacted with the media in Bangalore for the promotion of tourism to Nepal.
Spreading the message that tourism is back in business after the devastating earthquake in April, and heralding in the tourist season, the delegation informed the media that surveys conducted have shown that tourism infrastructure has suffered relatively little damage and Nepal is open and safe for travel and tourism. The press conference also informed about the resumption of direct flights to Bangalore from Kathmandu by Nepal Airlines from September 1.
Govind Bahadur Karki, director general at the Department of Tourism, said, “Nepal has bounced back quicker and better with a stronger zeal to welcome tourists. The earthquake affected only a few districts and almost 80 per cent of the country and most tourist destinations remain untouched by the quake.”
Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) requested the media to focus more on factual reporting and to spread the news that Nepal is welcoming visitors and that the best way to support Nepal after the earthquake was to visit Nepal.
Ujwala Dali, officiating director of NTB, said, “India has always been a special value and volume market for Nepal. Nepal has also started tapping into younger Indian tourists venturing into trekking and mountaineering.”
In 2013, there were 14 expeditions from India and in 2014, the total number of tourists from India via air was almost 120,000, as per NTB.
Saroj Kasaju, commercial director of Nepal Airlines, informed about the resumption of direct flights to Bangalore. “With our new aircraft, we are looking at expanding our flight service to various cities in India, including Bangalore, Mumbai and Kolkata,” he said. The national flag carrier announced its special offer of ‘Buy two get one free’ for Mumbai and Bangalore.
Suman Pandey, chairman of Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter, also interacted and took questions from the local media here. “We have come not to share our sorrows but our happiness to be back in business again. We had a problem after the earthquake but now we are in control of the situation and we are here as part of our campaign to let you know that Nepal is back on top of the world,” he said.
To specifically address the revival of tourism, a national committee has been formed by the government. The delegation informed that air and land transport links, hospitals, hotels and communications across Nepal are inoperation and destinations like Chitwan, Pokhara, Bardia and Lumbini were unaffected by the earthquake.
A cultural dance troupe also performed at the programme to showcase Nepal’s cultural richness. The Nepali delegation will attend the PATA Travel Mart to be held here from September 6 to 8.
A version of this article appears in print on September 05, 2015 of The Himalayan Times.