Eying the increasing spending capacity of the middle class in India, Germany on Thursday launched a campaign showcasing itself as a tourists-friendly travel destination with an aim to boost tourism in the ongoing year.
The theme of the campaign would be, ‘Germany- Traditions and Customs’, and the social media would be used to strengthen the country’s image as a traditional and cultural destination, highlighting its culinary delights and art and crafts.
German Ambassador to India Michael Steiner and the Director of the German National Tourist Office Romit Theophlus enlisted the measures being taken by the country in this regard such as “affordable hotel rates” and the vibrant cultural and social milieu of the tourist-friendly country. Citing a recent survey, they said that Germany had the world’s largest number of “livable” cities which offer an “unmatched” quality of life.
“We are going to promote our tradition, modernity as well as technology. The lesser known but equally fascinating multicultural cities, which makes the country more diverse, would also be promoted,” Steiner said while talking to reporters here.
Giving his overview of the major cities, which he said captured the variety of the country, Steiner observed, “While Berlin is vibrant and Hamburg is open, Munich is more settled than the rest.”
He said that since 2007, the number of “overnight stays” by Indians had seen a jump of over 72 per cent. “We are expecting a six to seven per cent growth from the visitor segments from India.” Romit said.
German envoy for transparency on part of NGOs, authorities
New Delhi: A day after US Ambassador Richard Verma expressed concerns over “challenges faced by NGOs operating in India”, the German envoy too spoke in support of the NGOs. German Ambassador Michael Steiner on Thursday asked India to support the NGOs saying there should be transparency on the part of both authorities and the civil society groups. “NGOs are doing impressive work in India. The country can be proud of having these NGOs. I think the fundamental approach should be to support their work. I share the view of those Indian friends and those also in the Government who say that we should support them,” Steiner said. Steiner cited the example of work being done by Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi’s NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan. “NGO’s enrich the society. One of your best representatives in this field recently won the Nobel prize. I think India should be proud of the rich variety of NGOs that are active here,” he said.