The department of tourism in Kerala, which is expecting more than 10 per cent rise of tourist inflow into the state, has launched a new campaign in which non-resident Keralites (NRKs) are being offered special discounts and incentives through accredited tour operators for marketing the state.
“The campaign started last month and we are getting good response for it. Using this, we are trying to rope in Keralite and Malayalee associations abroad for promoting tourism,” said Suresh Kumar, deputy director(publicity), department of tourism, during a promotional event in Kolkata recently.
Through this initiative, the NRKs can invite friends from abroad and within the country to visit the state. “They will be rewarded based on the number of friends who visit Kerala. With the help of this scheme, more than 10 per cent increase will take place in the number of tourists coming to the state,” Kumar said.
The state saw an 8.6 per cent rise to 85.9 lakh in the domestic tourist inflow in 2010, as compared to 79.1 lakh in 2009. In terms of international tourists it witnessed an 18.3 per cent rise to 6.59 lakh in 2010 from 5.57 lakh in 2009.
“Through these techniques, we expect the number of domestic and international tourists to grow by 10 per cent and 20 per cent simultaneously,” he added. The state has allotted about Rs 25,000 crore in its annual budget to promote tourism.