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IT, tourism offer immense potential: VS THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan said here on Monday that the Vizhinjam International Container Transhipment Terminal and the Kannur airport would be commissioned within three years. Inaugurating a two-day All India Convention of Hotels and Restaurants organised by the South India Hotels and Restaurants Association (SIHRA), Mr. Achuthanandan said the government would soon begin necessary work to create the basic infrastructure facilities for the transhipment terminal at Vizhinjam. He said work on the proposed airport in Kannur would commence within four months. Steps have been taken to start Kochi metro and make the National Highway stretch four-lane. The Kollam-Kottapuram waterway has already been made navigable, he said. Focus on infrastructure The Chief Minister said the government had made good progress in creating basic infrastructure facilities. Kerala is ahead of other States in creating basic infrastructure facilities. Mr. Achuthanandan said IT and Tourism hold a promise for the future. The growth achieved in the tourism sector and increase in tourist arrivals was testimony to the fact that the State had become a world-class destination. Mr. Achuthanandan said hotels and restaurants had a major role to play in tourism development. Tourists who come for a holiday expect good and cheap accommodation, good behaviour from the hotel and restaurant staff and good food. He urged the hospitality industry to help increase tourist arrivals. President, SIHRA, M.P. Purushothaman, in his address, urged the State government to bring down the luxury tax to 10 per cent on actuals on room tariff above Rs.1,000 and to remove tax on other services. The government should treat differently the licence levied on bars attached to hotels as it is a service to guests. The SIHRA has also called for rationalising the tax structure and applying industrial power tariff for hotels and reducing the bar licence fee, which is the highest in the country. In his keynote address on ‘India Tourism: Past Learning and Future Earning,’ Secretary, Tourism, V. Venu said the hospitality industry was the vanguard for tourism development and that the country had matured as a destination to cater to all class of tourists. The country is sitting on a gold mine and the brand image is there to attract tourists from across the world. Durability and robustness is there in the industry. An investor-friendly climate prevails in the tourism sector throughout the country, Dr. Venu added. Chairman of the Organising Committee Suresh M. Pillai welcomed the gathering and the Vice-President, SIHRA, Shankar Menon proposed the vote of thanks. Chairman, KTDC, Cherian Philip; Advisor, SIHRA, R. Rangachari; and Secretary, SIHRA, T. Natarajan; offered felicitations. Back |
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