Biren, Prahlad open tourism mart
Source: The Sangai Express / DIPR

Imphal, November 23 2019: Chief Minister N Biren along with Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated the 8th Interna-tional Tourism Mart for North East Region at Hotel Imphal today.

Speaking at the occasion as the chief guest, N Biren Singh said that restoration of peace has contributed to increased inflow of tourists into the State.

He informed that 1,66,032 domestic tourist arrivals were recorded last year, which was a 14% increase over 2016 .

During the same period, foreign tourist arrivals saw a leap of 222% with nearly 10,000 foreign arrivals recorded last year, he added.

Biren, Prahlad open tourism mart

Maintaining that the general perception of Manipur is changing fast, the Chief Minister stated that people have started defying the elements behind disruptions like bandhs, economic bloc-kades and insurgency etc.

Strikes and bandhs had declined significantly by about 88% this year compared to 2016, he said adding that insurgency-related fatalities had also gone down by 98% from 431 in 2017 to 9 this year.

The Chief Minister also informed that many insurgents had surrendered in last two years.

With the return of peace in the State, N Biren said, there is rapid growth in economic activities as well, stating that Manipur's business registration during 2015-19 is 12,438, which is 74% higher than all remaining North Eastern States combined together.

60% of this remarkable growth in MSME business took place in last two years, the Chief Minister said.

Biren said that the International Tourism Mart must continue to generate tangible outcomes commensurate with its objective of highlighting the tourism potential of the North East region in the domestic and international markets.

He also expressed hope that there would be even greater interaction between buyers, sellers, media delegates, Government agencies and other stakeholders, than in previous editions.

Speaking at the occasion, Prahlad Singh Patel urged one and all to extend co-operation and support to the Government in breaking the wrong perception about Manipur and North East India.

He also said that Imphal had earlier hosted International Tourism Mart in 2016 as well.

However, there has been apparently a change in the perception about Manipur this year, he opined.

Stating that peaceful environment is necessary for the growth of tourism and overall development of the region, Prahlad Singh Patel said that people should focus on maintaining conducive atmosphere because the North Eastern region is gifted with bountiful scenic beauty and rich culture which are the prime components of flourishing tourism sector.

The Union Minister said that the Centre had sanctioned Rs 1200 crore for development of different tourism infrastructures in the past five years for the eight North Eastern States under Swadesh Darshan Scheme.

Assam Tourism Minister Chandan Brahma, Arunachal Pradesh Tourism Minister Nakap Nalo, Tourism Secretary, Government of India Yogendra Tripathi, Chief Secretary Dr J Suresh Babu, Additional Director General (Tourism), Government of India Rupinder Brar and Tourism Secretary, Government of Manipur Nidhi Kesarwani were seated on the dais as dignitaries.

Deputy Chief Minister Y Joykumar, Ministers, MLAs, officials from the Central Government, North Eastern States and Government of Manipur were also present.

The Tourism Mart, which will continue till November 25, is organised by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, in association with the North Eastern States with an objective to highlight the tourism potential of the region in the domestic and international markets.

The mart will facilitate interaction between buyers, sellers, media, Government agencies and other stakeholders.

Apart from buyers and delegates from different countries, domestic stakeholders in tourism sector from other parts of the country and sellers from the North Eastern States are also participating in the mart.