 "weddings, marriage")
The tourism industry in Rajasthan is looking to intensify efforts to grow the destination wedding market.
“We are ready to work with the government,” said Kuldeep Singh Chandela, president, Federation of Hospitality and Tourism of Rajasthan (FHTR).
Executives from the tourism industry said although Rajasthan hosts several royal weddings every year, the involvement of the tourism department seems to be lacking.
“We are seeking the support of the state government in this sector,” said a manager of a travel agency, who wished not to be named.
According to Bhavani Shankar Mali, general secretary, All Wedding Industries Federation, Rajasthan, the state hosts 1.5-2 million marriages every year on average. Of these, 25 per cent have a low budget, 50 per cent a medium budget up to Rs 10 lakh, 20 per cent have a high budget up to Rs 50 lakh and 5-7 per cent marriages boast a Rs 50 lakh to Rs 3 crore budget. In some destination weddings, the expenditure even reaches Rs 5-10 crore.
“In such a situation, if efforts are made and there is an increase of 2-5 per cent in destination weddings, then it will be very beneficial for the economy of the state,” he added.
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Ranvijay Singh, senior vice-president, Hotel Federation of Rajasthan, said that development of infrastructure in Tier-II and Tier-III cities of the state, promotion of destination weddings in tourism-related advertisements, and running campaigns for destination weddings in small towns would give a boost to the sector.
“We plan to hold talks with the government soon regarding connectivity with air traffic and promotion of event managers so that more destination weddings could be organised in the state,” he added.
Chandela said that Rajasthan was a favourite for destination weddings across the world. This provided a lot of employment opportunities to a chain of services from hotels and caterers to flower sellers and folk musicians.
“We are ready to work together with the government to make Rajasthan a destination wedding centre. If this increases, new employment opportunities will be available to millions of people. The government will also get revenue and people associated with the hotels and tourism sector will also get good business,” said Chandela.
