A TAFI delegation led by Ajay Prakash, President, TAFI called on Jyotiraditya Scindia, Minister of Civil Aviation earlier this week to discuss the current situation and to seek assistance for the revival of the travel and tourism industry. Abbas Moiz, National General Secretary, TAFI; Anil Kalsi, Joint Secretary, TAFI and Khushvinder Sarna, Chairman – Northern India Chapter, TAFI were also present at the meeting.

Speaking after the meeting Prakash shared his views on the interaction “It was a very satisfying meeting. We found the dynamic Minister very receptive to our concerns. He has a complete grasp of the business and genuinely sympathized with travel agents and tour operators on the losses suffered over the last 20 odd months. He has taken note of some critical issues and has assured us that he will get back to us shortly. He advised us that he is fully seized of the difficulty faced by agents and travellers alike on account of the suspension of regular scheduled flights and stated the government is closely monitoring the pandemic and will resume normal flights as soon as it is prudent. He directed us to take up some of our issues with the Tourism Ministry and assured us of his support once those matters were flagged to him by the Department of Tourism. Meeting him was a breath of fresh air and we are extremely optimistic,” said Prakash.

The TAFI delegation next met Arvind Singh, Tourism Secretary and also called upon Rupinder Brar, Additional Director General. Singh said that some of the issues raised by TAFI were already
on the radar and had been discussed with the finance minister. He also assured the Department’s
support for the next TAFI Convention which, in a break from past practice, is to be held within the
country. Brar also reiterated what Singh had said about certain issues having been discussed with the Finance Ministry and that she was optimistic about the future. She also made some suggestions regarding the TAFI Convention and assured the delegation that as a Founding member of FAITH, TAFI was an integral part of the Department’s initiatives and activities.

“We have had a series of very productive meetings and we are hopeful that we shall soon see a resolution of some of our long pending issues,” concluded Prakash.