In order to strengthen regional connectivity, IndiGo on October 26 announced the launch of direct flights between Shillong in Meghalaya and Dibrugarh in Assam under the Regional Connectivity Scheme. The flight route was inaugurated with the lighting of a ceremonial lamp at the Shillong airport by Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia. The thrice in a week flight be available on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. “These new domestic flights will strengthen regional connectivity and promote trade, commerce, as well as tourism through increased accessibility. The hill-station of Northeastern India, Shillong, is known for its natural beauty and indigenous cultures,” IndiGo’s…
Author: Prasenjit Chakraborty
After nearly 20 months, Iran has finally reopened its borders for international tourists who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The country had shut down its borders soon after the virus breakout. But recently, the anti-virus taskforce allowed to reopen the borders on the advice of the tourism ministry. To enter the country, tourists must be fully vaccinated and they must also carry a RT PCR negative certificate conducted within 96 hours. During 2020-2021, the nation’s tourism sector was hit hard due to the pandemic and recorded a deficit of USD 1.2 billion. A number of hoteliers and tour operators had…
Today, the Biden Administration has come out with additional guidance related to the much-anticipated reopening of their borders next month. This updated policy puts in place an international travel system that is stringent, consistent across the globe, and guided by public health. The new protocols will replace the prior restrictions based on physical presence in specific countries in favour of screening each individual against universal public health criteria. “Brand USA is thrilled by this announcement and ready to welcome the world back to our shores. We have spent the past 19 months keeping the drumbeat of inspiration alive and positioning…
Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) signed a Memorandum of Understating (MoU) with the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) to promote and enhance bilateral tourism. The MoU specifically focuses on promoting mutual interests and tourist arrivals through collaboration and a cooperative approach on a reciprocal basis in the years to come. Speaking on this, Jyoti Mayal, President, TAAI, said, “We are focusing on Tourism Product Promotion which includes bilateral assistance in promoting tourism through the organization of events, roadshows, conclaves, summits, webinars etc., to demonstrate the tourism potential of both our countries.” Mayal also opined, that India and Nepal share borders…
The footfall at the Mumbai airport is returning to pre-Covid times. During the nine-day Navratri festival, 665,985 passengers flew in and out of the airport between October 7 and October 15. Over 317,000 of them arrived at the airport and 348,740 departed it. During the same time last year, about 284,000 passengers flew in and out of the Mumbai airport. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, around 844,000 passengers flew in and out of the airport during the Navratri festival from September 29 to October 7, 2019. “From October 7 to October 15, 2021, CSMIA (Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport) played host…
Budget carrier SpiceJet will launch 28 new domestic flights across the country from October 31 onwards. It will launch multiple new non-stop flights connecting the tourist hotspots of Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Udaipur in Rajasthan with key metros and cities as part of its new winter schedule, SpiceJet said in a statement. SpiceJet will also connect Bagdogra with Ahmedabad, Kolkata with Srinagar and add two new flights on the Bengaluru-Pune sector. The airline will be shifting part of its domestic operations to the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport Terminal 1 (T1)with effect from 31 October. Talking about the impending changes,…
With AirAsia India getting close to obtaining international flying rights, conglomerate Tata Sons, will in the near future, have four airlines with permits for overseas operations. At present, only Vistara operates on international routes. The development assumes significance since Tata Sons’ subsidiary Talace is expected to soon acquire Air India and Air India Express after conclusion of the share purchase agreement (SPA) with the Centre. Both Air India and Air India Express operate international flights. Recently, AirAsia India, in which Tatas own a majority stake, received security clearance to operate international flights, said industry insiders. Nevertheless, many procedures with the…
As per the recent updates, the government of India and Bangladesh have announced to increase the frequency of flights under the air bubble arrangement from 7 to 21 per week, as both the countries registered a drop in COVID-19 cases. The move will likely benefit passengers travelling between these countries for medical and business purposes. In a tweet, the High Commission of India in Bangladesh stated, “Frequency of flights between India & Bangladesh to increase! India & Bangladesh have mutually decided to increase the frequency of flights under the Air Bubble arrangement from 7 to 21 per week per country.…
Fully vaccinated travellers, who are coming from a country with which India has reciprocal arrangements for mutual acceptance of World Health Organization (WHO) approved Covid-19 vaccines, shall be allowed to leave the airport and need not undergo home quarantine and testing from Monday, according to the revised guidelines for international arrivals released on Wednesday. They will, however, have to produce a negative Covid-19 RT-PCR report. These guidelines for international arrivals supersede all others issued on and after February 17 this year, the Union health ministry has said. “The global trajectory of Covid-19 pandemic continues to decline with certain regional variations.…
The first international flight services from Srinagar to Sharjah flagged off by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on October 23 will enhance the economic bonds between India and UAE, said Srinagar Mayor, Junaid Azim Mattu. Mattu said, “It is a big milestone. It is the very first international flight connecting two regions, which have deep cultural, social and hopefully will have economic bonds too. This will boost the tourism too, people from the Middle east can visit easily now.” “This will give a boost in the tourism sector. The government is taking a good step towards the welfare of the…
