Online tourist facilitator programme to boost tourism -Governance Now

Online tourist facilitator programme to boost tourism

Within five days of the programme roll out, more than 1,500 people have registered for it

Rahul Trivedi | November 21, 2018

#tourism #tourist facilitator #tour guide #Incredible India Tourist Facilitator Certification #IITFC

The secretary, ministry of tourism, Rashmi Verma at the roll out of the Incredible India Tourist Facilitator Certification (IITFC) Programme, in New Delhi

The ministry of tourism has rolled out a six-month online programme, Incredible India Tourist Facilitator Certification (IITFC), on November 15, in order to boost the tourism sector in the country.

Within five days of its roll out, the programme has seen enrollment of more than 1,500 candidates from across the country. The six-month online programme can be joined by anyone who is 18 years of age. The programme is divided into three categories – basic, advance and language. The fee for each category is Rs 2,000 and an additional examination fee.

Rashmi Verma, secretary, ministry of tourism, said, “This online programme will have a lot of advantages like job creation for local people, harnessing local experience and traditional knowledge and it also has the flexibility of any age or any place people to join. This initiative will also ensure an enriching experience for the tourists, as it will address the issue of shortage of tourist guides. It will provide a lot of competition which will further ensure in providing best tourist facilitators.”

Niraj Sharan, additional director general, Travel Trade Division, said that the IITFC programme aspires to reach out to far-flung audience encompassing a diversity of candidates ranging from an enthusiastic student who has recently qualified for higher secondary to an ambitious homemaker willing to grasp tourist facilitation skills from the comfort of their home. It will also act as an enabler for transforming a local citizen with no specified skills having proficiency in a regional language into a potential bread earner for their households.

Sharan further says, “This programme will change the concept of guide and it will be replaced by the tourist facilitators.”

Explaining the whole process, Sharan said, “This is a completely online programme, which can be pursued by the candidates while being in the job too and online course material will be provided to the candidate.”

Explaining the process of getting the certificate, he said, “The candidate has to start with the basic programme. After completion of the basic programme, there will be an internal assessment done by an agency through online test. Without passing the internal assessment, the candidate won’t be able to obtain the certificate or go on to pursue the further advance or language course.”

Comments

Other News

Report of India’s G20 Task Force on Digital Public Infrastructure released

The final ‘Report of India’s G20 Task Force on Digital Public Infrastructure’ by ‘India’s G20 Task Force on Digital Public Infrastructure for Economic Transformation, Financial Inclusion and Development’ was released in New Delhi on Monday. The Task Force was led by the

How the Great War of Mahabharata was actually a world war

Mahabharata: A World War By Gaurang Damani Sanganak Prakashan, 317 pages, Rs 300 Gaurang Damani, a Mumbai-based el

Budget expectations, from job creation to tax reforms…

With the return of the NDA to power in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, all eyes are now on finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s full budget for the FY 2024-25. The interim budget presented in February was a typical vote-on-accounts, allowing the outgoing government to manage expenses in

How to transform rural landscapes, design 5G intelligent villages

Futuristic technologies such as 5G are already here. While urban users are reaping their benefits, these technologies also have a potential to transform rural areas. How to unleash that potential is the question. That was the focus of a workshop – “Transforming Rural Landscape:

PM Modi visits Rosatom Pavilion at VDNKh in Moscow

Prime minister Narendra Modi, accompanied by president Vladimir Putin, visited the All Russian Exhibition Centre, VDNKh, in Moscow Tuesday. The two leaders toured the Rosatom Pavilion at VDNKh. The Rosatom pavilion, inaugurated in November 2023, is one of the largest exhibitions on the histo

Let us pledge to do what we can for environment: President

President Droupadi Murmu on Monday morning spent some time at the sea beach of the holy city of Puri, a day after participating in the annual Rath Yatra. Later she penned her thoughts about the experience of being in close commune with nature. In a message posted on X, she said: