Jaipur: A top minister from the Odisha government said that the state is working hard to become one of the top 3 states in terms of tourism in the country.
During his visit to Jaipur on Feburary 3, Minister of Tourism, Odia Language, Literature & Culture, Government of Odisha, Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi drew parallels between Rajasthan and Odisha, saying that both the states are ‘god-gifted’ when it comes to tourism.
“Odisha as a State is doing well in all sectors like education, healthcare, agriculture, road and women empowerment. Tourism has come into the forefront with the revamping of Puri Jagannath and Lingaraj. Odisha has abundant tourism potential that when one steps out of their room, there is a tourism destination,” said Panigrahi while delivering the inaugural address at the ‘Odisha Tourism Road show-2021’ at Hotel Lalit on February 3.
The programme was organized by FICCI in collaboration with Odisha Tourism. Over 500 B2B network meetings were held during the road show.
He further informed that culture and traditions also contribute majorly towards attracting tourists to the State. The culture of Odisha is more than 2000 years old. The State is renowned for its classical dances – Odissi and Gotipua.
Odisha is not just a pilgrimage destination it is also a premier beach destination. One among the 8 blue flag beaches is in Odisha and we are striving towards developing 5 more.
In his Keynote Address, Principal Secretary, Tourism, Sports & Youth Services, Government of Odisha, Vishal Kumar Dev gave an overview of the various kinds of tourism opportunities in Odisha such as spiritual tourism, wildlife tourism, ecotourism, handicrafts tourism, among others.
He also threw light on the post-Covid tourism plan and said that in 2021 the focus will be on developing cruise tourism, home stays, heritage hospitality as well as upgrading of ecotourism facilities in the state.
It is to be recalled that FICCI aims to work shoulder to shoulder with the State of Odisha to plan, strategies and implement the best practices to revive travel & tourism sector. The theme of the conference is to promote Odisha as a popular global tourism destination.
