Travel. Enjoy. Respect: World Tourism Day 2017 celebration at Jagran Lakecity University

We weren’t blessed with mobility to spend all our lives in the same place.

Travelling isn’t just about visiting new places, it is about discovering them. We come across different people, cultures and cuisines when we step foot outside of our zone. The journey often isn’t about discovering spaces, but about discovering self. Being introduced to oneself, when looked at from a different perspective is what tourism is all about.

To celebrate the joy of travelling, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) declared 2017 as the ‘International year of sustainable tourism for development.’ Tourism isn’t just limited to the visual aspects of a new place, but also ethical. In honor of the wide cultural diversity presented to us, the theme of this International year of sustainable tourism for development is ‘Travel. Enjoy. Respect’ UNWTO is a United Nations agency in charge of promoting sustainable tourism in the world aimed at inculcating peace and harmony while endorsing economic and intellectual growth.

The year 2017 is special because of the key roles associated with its declaration. This year is aimed at promoting the role of tourism in these five major areas:

·       Inclusive and sustainable economic growth

·       Social inclusiveness, employment and poverty reduction

·       Resource efficiency, environmental protection and climate change

·       Cultural values, diversity and heritage

·       Mutual understanding, peace and security

Under the framework of UNWTO, the JLU School of Hospitality and Tourism joined the rest of the world in celebrating the ‘World Tourism Day’ and more specifically ‘Travel, Enjoy. Respect’ while centering the campaign at Madhya Pradesh. Various segments of the event focused on the key cultural and ethical aspects of Madhya Pradesh. Several interesting competitions such as culinary presentations, exhibitions, itinerary making, creative poster making, traditional attire, and a cultural program of traditional dances of MP, highlighted the beauty of the ‘Heart of India.’

The event witnessed a massive participation from colleges like Institute of Hotel Management (IHM), Bhopal, Oriental College and People’s University. The Chief Guest for the event was Mr. Vishrut Acharya, General Manager, Commercial (Northern Region), Air India and other guests of Honor were Mr. Sharad Nautiyal, Joint Managing Director, MP Tourism and Chef Suman Rakshit, Executive Chef, Noor-Us-Sabha Palace Hotel. The students had an amazing opportunity to learn from the experts while being judged at the various competitions. The winners were as follows:

Exhibition Competition

Team- Chanderi (SOHT, JLU Bhopal)

Culinary competition

Team- Shubham Umre & Shubhashu Soni (IHM Bhopal)

Itinerary making

Team- Mohit Janyani & Sakshi Vijayvargiya (IHM Bhopal)

Poster making

Ashwini Acharya (People’s University, Bhopal)

Presentation

Simran Bakshi (SOHT, JLU Bhopal)

Traditional attire

Female- Meryam Qureshi (SOHT, JLU Bhopal)

Male- Asim Saeed Khan (Oriental College, Bhopal)