The New Indian Express ·
TNIE Tourism Summit 2026: An exploration of embedded beauty
On Tuesday, the ballroom at ITC Grand Chola was brimming with ideas and solutions to boost India’s tourism sector at TNIE’s Tourism Summit 2026. The one-day event drew a vibrant crowd, ranging from industry insiders to enthusiasts, students and members of the public.
At the event, KM Pandurang, commissioner and secretary, Information, Public Relations, Languages and Culture Department, Government of Haryana, announced that Haryana would have film and music festivals this year and is also planning to collaborate with private partners to create a stronger live-performance ecosystem.
K M Pandurang, commissioner and secretary, Information, Public Relations, Languages and Culture Department, Government of Haryana
Speaking at the session titled ‘Land of Mahabharata - The Epic Odyssey’, he said six museums, including the Rakhigarhi Museum depicting the Indus Valley Civilisation, a war memorial, and a museum on the Battle of Rewari, are being developed. For those interested in history and culture, he highlighted Rakhigarhi, an important Indus Valley Civilisation site where excavations are ongoing. He also spoke of the 40-year-old Surajkund International Festival, which has grown in terms of the number of days and participants.
Among the experts on stage was Ashish Kundra, chief secretary, Union Territory of Ladakh. Speaking on the topic, ‘Culture, Nature, Adventure - Travels to the Top of the World’, he said that Ladakh’s tourism infrastructure is set for a major leap, with daily flight capacity at Leh to rise to 54 from 18 by next year, while a new airport terminal will be inaugurated next month. The Air Force strip at Nubra Valley is being readied for civilian use too, by next year, which would let tourists fly directly from Delhi to Nubra to see Pangong Tso.
On road and power connectivity, Ashish pointed to the Zoji La tunnel breakthrough, which will enable year-round road access to Kashmir, along with power grid connections extending to Siachen, Drass and Zanskar this year.
He addressed environmental concerns, spoke of progress on Ladakh’s demand for a governance framework with legislative, executive, and financial powers, and revealed plans to strengthen Ladakh’s presence on the international Buddhist pilgrimage circuit.
In the afternoon session, the focus first shifted to Madhya Pradesh, which has invested Rs 25,000 crore in tourism infrastructure with a focus on improving connectivity and developing a major religious and heritage tourism circuit.
Speaking about the challenges faced by India in attracting international tourists, Ilayaraja, secretary, CM and Government of MP, Tourism Department, said the state was aware of concerns over sanitation, cleanliness, hygiene, visa-related issues and connectivity, and the need to address basic infrastructure issues to improve the visitor experience. “Tourism is completely dependent on these things, and the tourism department cannot do it alone,” he said, stressing the need for coordination with local bodies and district administrations.
The State has also created a reputation management cell within the tourism department to monitor feedback on social media and share visitor concerns with district administrations, while providing support and resources to address them.
Highlighting MP’s tourism potential, he said the Ujjain-Indore region would form part of an Omkar circuit covering Indore, Omkareshwar and Ujjain. With Ujjain set to host the Simhastha mela in 2028, the State is strengthening road connectivity and other infrastructure to support the expected influx of pilgrims.
Its neighbour, Chhattisgarh, too, is poised for a major expansion in tourism, with the administration focusing on infrastructure, hospitality investments, skill development, and aggressive destination marketing.
Solai Bharathi Dasan, secretary, Tourism, Chhattisgarh Government, said the State was already attracting interest from leading hospitality brands and investors, particularly in emerging destinations. He also pointed to Chhattisgarh’s road network and said the State’s tourism potential could grow at least 10 times, while acknowledging that Chhattisgarh was still relatively young compared to other parts of the country.
Saumil Ranjan Chaubey, MD, Tourism Board, Chhattisgarh, described the State as a tourism opportunity that visitors and investors should explore before its destinations become more widely known. “People should explore Chhattisgarh before it grows and becomes expensive,” he said.
Saumil identified the lack of sufficient hospitality infrastructure and tourist footfall as a “chicken and egg problem”. “Hospitality partners would come in where there is tourist footfall, and tourists would come in where there are hospitality partners. So that is why we are stepping in,” he said, adding that the government’s role was to act as a facilitator by incentivising investors while simultaneously stepping up tourism marketing.
The administration is also working on destination-specific skill development, with different requirements identified for Bastar, northern Chhattisgarh and the Raipur-Bilaspur belt. “Bastar storytelling will be different, so only local people will be selected,” the officials said, stressing that tribal culture would be preserved while creating employment opportunities for local communities.
