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| Sunday, 18 September 2005 |
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Travel Over 1,500 delegates to attend 54th TAAI annual convention by Surekha Galagoda The Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) will hold the 54th annual convention in Sri Lanka from September 24-27. President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, the chief guest will inaugurate the convention on September 24 at the BMICH. Minister of State for Tourism New Delhi Renuka Chowdhry and Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Government of India New Delhi Praful Patel have been invited for the convention as guest speakers. The inaugural ceremony will be held at the BMICH while the five business sessions will be held at the Hotel Hilton. The session titled Inter and Intra Regional Tourism in South Asia will be chaired by Chairman, Sri Lanka Tourist Board (SLTB) Udaya Nanayakkara. According to sources there will be speakers from China and the SAARC region addressing the gathering at this session. According to a spokesman of the SLTB over 1,500 delegates are scheduled to attend the convention. President TAAI Balbir S. Mayal in his message to the 54th convention says " after our highly successful convention in Kolkata last year we have selected vibrant Colombo as the venue to host this year's event to enhance tourism to this tiny coastal paradise and to emphasise on how tourism braves many a disaster only to emerge victorious every time. This is TAAI's fourth convention in Sri Lanka after the successful ones in 1956, 1981 and 1997. The years have seen a huge economic development, many political changes, productive growth in education and an envious rise in tourism with the identification of this beautiful island being the destination in the whole of South Asia for MICE." According to the convention Chairman of TAAI Sunil Kumar R. the convention themed "new waves new ways" it represents the ethos of the current environment in the Travel and tourism industry packed with new approaches, expanding horizons, larger markets, new players more options for customers intense competitiveness like never before, strengthening alliances and several other challenge and opportunities all collectively demanding from success seekers, preparedness and readiness to change. The logo depicts evolution, changing times and solutions for challenges. It also embodies the "Sri Lankan Drum festival" an attraction for the convention delegates. Chairman SLTB Udaya Nanayakkara said" I am happy and proud that I have been able to host this convention during my tenure. The previous time they held the convention in Sri Lanka was when I was the Travel Agents Association Sri Lanka President." SLTB will host the inaugural ceremony and the welcome dinner at the BMICH while the dinner on September 25 will be hosted by British Airways and Air Sahara at the Waters Edge. The farewell dinner will be hosted by Indian Airlines at Hotel Taj Samudra. The delegates will be flown to Sri Lanka by SriLankan Airlines, Indian Airlines, Air Sahara and Jet Air. The Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) was formed towards the end of 1951 by a group of twelve leading Travel agents, who felt that the time had come to create an Association to regulate the Travel industry in India. The primary purpose was to protect the interests of those engaged in the industry, to promote its orderly growth and development and to safeguard the rights of the travelling public. TAAI represents all that is professional, ethical and dynamic in our nation's Travel related activity and has been recognised as the voice of the Travel and Tourism industry in India. With a membership of over 1,800 Active; Allied and Associate members comprising IATA accredited Travel Agencies; Airlines and General Sales Agencies; Hotels and Tour operators; TAAI is the largest Travel Association of India. Ganges Restaurant - the north Indian way by Jayampathy Jayasinghe The Ganges Restaurant conjures up with the mighty Ganges that flows across the Indian sub continent from the great Himalayas winding up at the Bay of Bengal. The restaurant too is no different to the Ganges, in a sense that it caters to different tastebuds of different people from different regions. Basically it is an exclusive Indian Restaurant that specialises in north Indian cuisine. What captivates guests as they enter the dining hall is the huge drawing of the Ganges on canvass hung on the wall, a masterpiece by artist Palitha Alluware. A statue of a white horse placed in the main hall is about a mythical story where a sage who once destroyed a horse re-created it on the pleadings of a king that he invoked God to divert the River Ganges to that region. Ganges Manager Kishore Reddy said although the restaurant, caters mainly to diners, group lunches too can be arranged through one day's prior notice. "We have taken the challenge of preparing any special Indian dish at short notice. Sometimes the ingredients have to be flown from India if it is not available here. Our prices are 40 percent cheaper than other restaurants in the city," he said. The Ganges Restaurant was launched last week and the guests included prominent and well-known social personalities. The restaurant at Colombo 7 is elegantly lit to create a conducive atmosphere for diners. The menu was a blend of several Indian specialities including the
traditionally Moghali soup, Pasanda Boti Kebab, Tandoori specialities
including chicken, Sheek Kebab, Naan, Parathas, Nawabi crab Masala butter
chicken and several other mouth watering specialities. |
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