OTDC To Target Mumbai’s International Traffic

Bhisham Mansukhani - Mumbai

Orissa Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC) is stepping up the pace of its nationwide tourism campaign with a strategic focus on inbound traffic flying into India’s key gateway-Mumbai. With a Mumbai office established in mid January 2004 and a reinforced budget of over Rs two crore for the fiscal 2004-05, Orissa hopes to lead the charge on the eastern front for tapping the inbound and domestic tourism surge. The Mumbai office is OTDC’s fourth, following openings in Kolkata, Delhi and Chennai. OTDC is head-quartered in Bhubhaneswar.

OTDC’s representative in Mumbai, Samir Roy, while outlining the state’s strategy for the western region, says, ”OTDC was instituted only five years ago and since then, we have had to cope with tremendous competition from neighbouring tourism boards that have been very successful in creating their own niche. The advantage we enjoy are the unique heritage sites, traditional festivals of international renown and rare wildlife wonders that have for many years, promoted themselves. However, a tourism board is necessary to deepen awareness about the state and interact with the trade. All this ties into the OTDC plan for Mumbai which has a strong accent on tapping the numerous foreigners who use the city to enter India. It is a more localised form of international promotion. Besides, the state is ready with infrastructure and a tourism product to meet the potential inflow.”

Apart from upcoming five star hotel projects in Bhubaneswar, the state boasts Panthanivas, OTDC’s chain of budget hotels with facilities in Bhubaneswar, Puri, Konark, Barkul and Cuttack among others and a full fledged transport unit containing a fleet of buses and cars and online booking facilities.

OTDC is gearing up to release its media and print campaign which will also acquaint the urban domestic tourists in the city of its traditional attractions and lesser known treasures. OTDC is putting forth culture and wildlife as its key USP.

Bhubaneswar is being promoted as a heritage capital with several ancient temples and Puri is being canvassed as an international pilgrimage destination, given the sanctity of Jagannath Temple and huge popularity of the annual Rath Yatra in June.

On the wildlife front, Orissa is playing up its unparalleled strengths — one of the country’s largest mangroves Bhitarkanika, a huge white tiger population (34) and country’s largest turtle nest that receives turtles from as far as South America. Orissa also has a number of wildlife sanctuaries and the country’s only lake that opens into the Bay of Bengal. England, Australia and China are Orissa’s largest international markets.