A TAFI delegation led by President, Ajay Prakash called upon Jyotiraditya Scindia, Minister of Civil Aviation recently to discuss the current situation and to seek assistance for the revival of the travel and tourism industry.
Abbas Moiz, National General Secretary, Anil Kalsi, Jt. Secy. and Khushvinder Sarna, Chairman, Northern India Chapter were also present in the meeting.
Speaking after the meeting, Prakash said, “It was a very satisfying meeting. We found the dynamic Minister very receptive to our concerns. He has a complete grasp of the business and genuinely sympathised with travel agents and tour operators on the losses suffered over the last about 20 months.”
“The Minister has taken note of some critical issues and has assured us that he will get back to us shortly. He advised us that he is fully aware of the difficulty faced by agents and travellers alike on account of the suspension of regular scheduled flights and stated the government is closely monitoring the pandemic and will resume normal flights as soon as it is prudent,” Prakash added.
The TAFI delegation next met Arvind Singh, Tourism Secretary and also called upon Rupinder Brar, Addl. DG. in the Ministry of Tourism.
Singh said that some of the issues raised by TAFI were already on the radar and had been discussed with the Finance Minister. He also assured the Department’s support for the next TAFI Convention which, in a break from past practice, is to be held within the country.
Brar also reiterated what the Secretary had said about certain issues having been discussed with the FM and that she was optimistic about the future. She also made some suggestions regarding the TAFI Convention and assured the delegation that as a founding member of FAITH, TAFI was an integral part of the department’s initiatives and activities.
“We have had a series of very productive meetings and we are hopeful that we shall soon see a resolution of some of our long pending issues,” concluded Prakash.