At BW HOTELIER’s latest webBlast series, The GM Show, on Tier 2 - The New Mini Metros! Why Must Metros Have All The Fun?, hospitality industry experts engaged in a discussion to put forward the region as an important player in the travel and tourism industry of India

Central India boasts of a myriad locations with cultural and historic importance, be it the UNESCO world heritage site of Khajuraho or one of the oldest stone structures in India, the Great Stupa of Sanchi. The region is also home to unmatched diversity of flora and fauna with innumerable National Parks and Nature Reserves. However, from the tourism point of view, Central India is often snatched of the lime-light. It is time to act upon the pool of opportunities available in these states for developing a strong and resilient infrastructure for tourism.  

In another episode of BW HOTELIER’s webBLAST series titled Tier 2 - The New Mini Metros! Why Must Metros Have All The Fun?, a group of distinguished panellists from the hospitality industry united to discuss the subject. Industry stalwarts who voiced their opinions in the discussion included Vivek Sharma, GM, Taj Ganges Varanasi & Taj Nadesar Palace; Manas Banerjee, GM, Radisson Blu Hotel, Indore; Rohit Bajpai, GM, Sheraton Grand Palace, Indore; Karaan Kapoor, GM, Hyatt Raipur; Gaurav Rege, GM, Jehan Numa Palace Bhopal; Sunil Verma, GM, Novotel, Lucknow Gomti Nagar and Kanika Hasrat, Area Director – MP, Uttarakhand & UP, IHCL & GM, Taj Lakefront Bhopal who also acted as the moderator of the show. 

Opening the discussion, Gaurav Rege shared a few words on Bhopal and underlined the fact that the city’s simplicity and honesty speaks for itself. “When people across India think of Bhopal, they think of 1984 and the gas tragedy. But in the last 38 years, the state government and MP Tourism have been actively trying to put Bhopal on the world map with investments and other businesses coming in. The beauty of the capital city of Madhya Pradesh is the simplicity of life which is very honest. People take pride in the fact that they’re from Bhopal. Tourists and travellers must come here to try its authentic culture and heritage. What’s more! It is easily accessible from every corner of the country,” he said.  

Manas Banerjee brought out Indore’s exclusiveness exacerbated by its potential for business and its quietness. “Indore is the business capital of Madhya Pradesh. It’s just that the state needs to market it properly. I’m predominantly a metro guy who loves the quietness of the city which gives me the comforts of a big city. We have seen this change over the last two years ever since the first global summit for MP took place in 2019 where we witnessed people showing interest in setting up houses here,” he shared. 

Discussing about the state’s capability to emerge as great player in wildlife tourism, Rohit Bajpai emphasised on developing enough infrastructure to support wildlife tourism in the state. “Madhya Pradesh boasts of some premium Wildlife Sanctuaries and National Parks. In fact, Rudyard Kipling wrote The Jungle Book here. Sadly, from a wildlife tourism point of view, it has all not been brought together. As an avid wildlife lover, if I plan to go to Satpura, then to Bandhavgarh, Pench and Kanha, it doesn’t work out because there is no linkage to put all these pearls together into a necklace. These places don’t have dearth of facilities, infrastructure or modern amenities but there is a need for a common thread point that the government needs to look into,” he said.  

Talking about Chhattisgarh, Karaan Kapoor, GM, Hyatt Raipur, said, “Our state is probably one of the youngest so the present times are quite charged up and people are well connected to the cities. I think the focus of the state is just on business because it’s a very resourceful one. We can recall the predominance of this state while talking about the development of the country as it is the cement hub and the steel hub with large reserves of coal and other minerals. That is what gives immense business to the state. Even during the pandemic, while the contribution towards the GDP was going down by most states, this was the only state which showed good numbers.” 

Commenting on the advancements made in Varanasi to attract tourists in the last few years, Vivek Sharma said, “Varanasi is the oldest living city that has attracted people for centuries. Most of the time, religion is the key that people associate this place with but I think culture is the biggest story to narrate. If you look at the last two months, there was a lot of footfall in the city. Marketing, I feel, plays a big role in all this. On December 30, the Kashi Vishwanath corridor was opened but then it was marketed well as it was all over the news and television channels. This got people here to see the corridor. But I don’t think that it’s just the result of what has happened in the last few days; there has been a systematic approach of bringing people to Varanasi.” 

Elaborating on the recent developments in the state that instigated good influx of travel and tourism in Lucknow, Sunil Verma said, “Lucknow is a city of many splendours. We’ve had a great run in the last six months or so and the hotels were buzzing. The city presents a rich cultural and culinary heritage which draws interest in the form of inbound travel. The main reason for development and the good numbers coming in is the city itself. Over the last many years, Lucknow has witnessed a steady development and a major infrastructure push which is a basic prerequisite. We have good connectivity in the form of airports and expressways which makes travellers easier to transit,” he shared. 

Winding up the discussion, Kanika Hasrat talked about the tremendous potential of the region to attract tourism and related opportunities. “Today, when I look at what Uttar Pradesh has achieved with the support of the government, I feel things are changing and that is what I expect from any supportive government which looks at tourism as an opportunity to gain revenues. In Madhya Pradesh, we have some way to go but I think we are on the right path. There is enough push and the MP Tourism seems to be doing quite a bit. It also means that we, as hoteliers, need to engage with the government more,” she concluded. 

The show culminated with Bhuvanesh Raj Khanna, CEO, BW Communities, thanking the esteemed panellists for sharing their thoughts and views on the subject and informing about the next GM Show at 5 pm on January 20, 2022 on Effective Talent Management And Building Leaders Of Tomorrow.