IATO hosted an interactive luncheon meeting in New Delhi (Photo: India and You/Garima Sharma)
Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO), a leading association of tour operators in India, hosted an interactive luncheon meeting in New Delhi, marking the introduction of new agenda and plans of the newly elected Executive Committee (EC).
In his welcome address, Sunil Mishra, Secretary, IATO emphasised it was the first ever meeting after the elections and appointment of Ravi Gosain as the President of IATO.
“I am grateful to everyone who has elected me and my team with majority votes. We will make sure that we bring new ideas and work efficiently for the already initiated agendas. It has been 20 days that we have been in the office and with years of experience and great ideas, my team and I have already started working towards collaborating with the government and encouraging more people to join the association,” Gosain said in his address.
“Over the past few years, we have listened to concerns regarding roadshows, hotel rates and various other challenges. To address these, we are forming a dedicated task force and activating functional sub-committees, each required to meet quarterly,” Mishra said in his address.
The meeting highlighted that high-performing sub-committees will be recognised at the upcoming IATO Annual Convention in Puri, Odisha, from August 22-24.
“The primary objective of IATO in holding conventions within India is to promote our tourism products, as most of our members are inbound operators. By organising these conventions in different states, members have the opportunity to experience and familiarise themselves with local tourism offerings, which was the main idea behind this initiative. This year, we are also reviving the Outbound Tourism Committee to plan and collaborate with international tourism boards, recognising the importance of both inbound and outbound tourism. Around 30 pc of our members are involved in both segments, which aligns with the practices of most international associations. To support this, we have already established a committee that will include representatives from the outbound sector. My aim is to sign MOUs with various tourism boards so that our members are invited to explore and learn from global best practices, not only to generate business but also to understand how operators outside India deliver their services,” Gosain tells India & You.
It was also announced at the meeting that the Kashmir chapter of IATO, in collaboration with the Jammu and Kashmir government, will organise a familiarisation tour for IATO members to Srinagar.
IATO has also expanded its exclusive hotel benefit list and continues to gain strong media coverage, advocating industry issues at the national level.