International Tourism Mart kicks off in Shillong, CM says Northeast seeing unprecedented growth

Shillong: A three-day mega tourism conclave kicked off in Meghalaya's scenic capital Shillong on Tuesday with Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma describing as "unprecedented" the kind of economic growth being seeing in the Northeast in the last few years.

The 11th edition of the International Tourism Mart (ITM) was inaugurated by Union Minister of State for Tourism Shripad Naik in the presence of Chief Minister Sangma, Meghalaya Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh, Union Tourism Secretary V Vidyavathi late evening.

The famous Shillong Chamber Choir also performed on the occasion with a special tribute piece in Khasi language for Meghalaya.

The mega event seeks to highlight the tourism potential of India's northeast region and its rich biodiversity while laying emphasis on the government's Mission LiFE.

"The kind of economic growth we are seeing in the Northeast is unprecedented. In the last many years, the kind of support that has come from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government of India and different ministries has been unprecedented," Sangma said in his address at the event.

There is a very, very strong and special focus to ensure that the Northeastern states move along with the rest of the country, and together ensure that economic development reaches the region, he said.

"So, whether it is for infrastructure development, youth-oriented programmes, agriculture sector or socio-economic sector like tourism, there has been a tremendous support from government of India...bringing Northeast as a whole into the overall economic map of our nation," the chief minister said.

Sangma said of the 3.8 million population of Meghalaya, there are roughly 80,000 youths who join workforce every year.

Hence, the government must look at strategies to move ahead to be able to create job opportunities. All governments face the challenge, and tourism is one sector which can create jobs, Sangma added.

"Tourism is an important policy for our state government. Our policy needs to be tailor-made to the strength of our state. Caves.. we have longest caves. I was just sharing with our secretary that we as a state government want to work with the Assam government to see how we could protect our elephants.

"We have one one of the largest population of elephants in the entire subcontinent. Hence, can we have an elephant corridor permanently marked which could also serve as a tourist destination where people could come, experience and see elephants and at the same time elephants and humans can live in peace and harmony. These are the kind of ideas we need to work on," he said.

At the ITM launch event, the ministry also announced that it has sanctioned Rs 29.32 crore for development of four key iconic religious tourism sites in Meghalaya under the PRASHAD scheme -- Nartiang Shakti Peeth, Nongsawlia Presbyterian Church, Aitnar Pool and Charantala Kali Temple.

Later in a post on X, Sangma also said, "Glad that Shillong is hosting the International Tourism Mart for the second time. GoI under the dynamic leadership of Hon’ble PM, @narendramodi continues to ensure NE is growing with the rest of the country by unleashing its potential across sectors, promising a greater future of economic prosperity for the region: Today we also unveiled the PRASAD Scheme- Pilgrimage Rejuvenation And Spiritual Augmentation Drive for Meghalaya for development of Pilgrim Amenities at Nongsawlia Presbyterian Church, Nartiang Shakti Peeth, Aitnar Pool and Charantala Kali Temple".

Glad that Shillong is hosting the International Tourism Mart for the second time. GoI under the dynamic leadership of Hon’ble PM, @narendramodi continues to ensure NE is growing with the rest of the country by unleashing its potential across sectors, promising a greater future of… pic.twitter.com/yZGD7kKiEL

— Conrad K Sangma (@SangmaConrad) November 21, 2023

Naik in his address said the ministry and the Centre is working to bring more development in the Northeast region while emphasising on sustainability.

This ITM is a "unique event" as is being held as a 'green' event by adopting low-carbon options on the lines of the action points formulated by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for the implementation of Mission LiFE, officials said.

Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) is an India-led global mass movement to nudge individual and community action to protect and preserve the environment.

The ITM is an "annual event held by the Ministry of Tourism in one of the Northeastern states on a rotation basis, with an objective to provide a bigger platform to the stakeholders in the Northeast to interact with their counterparts from both within the country and overseas markets as well as to create awareness about the tourism potential of Northeast region," the ministry said.

The earlier editions of this ITM have been held in Guwahati, Tawang, Shillong, Gangtok, Agartala, Imphal, Kohima and Aizwal. Shillong will be hosting this event for the second time, since its inception, the officials said.

The ITM aims to highlight the northeast region's unique tourism products, rich biodiversity, its intangible heritage, including local traditions, dance forms, arts, handicrafts and handlooms, to a domestic and international audience.