Amritsar, Rakhee Gupta Bhandari, the principal secretary of the tourism and cultural affairs department in Punjab, announced plans to formulate a dedicated policy to enhance border tourism in the state. Addressing an industry roundtable during the 17th Punjab International Trade Expo (PITEX), she emphasized the importance of developing the overall tourism sector to attract both Indians residing abroad and foreign tourists.
Bhandari stated, “Every day, people from the country and abroad come to see the retreat ceremony held at Attari, Hussainiwala, and Fazilka areas on the India-Pakistan border. A tourism policy will be made, considering the characteristics of the districts in the state.”
During the roundtable, Bhandari disclosed that Punjab witnessed over 88 million foreign tourists in the first six months of 2023. The tourism strategy will focus on promoting destination-based tourism to showcase the vibrant culture of the state, branding it as “Rangla Punjab.”
The PITEX event also saw the presence of foreign dignitaries, including Fiji’s high commissioner Nilesh Roneel Kumar, Kyrgyzstan’s ambassador ACKAP Askar Beshimov, Bangladesh’s high commissioner Mohammad Mustafizur Rahman, Uzbekistan’s trade economic counsellor Khurshidbek Samiev, and Indonesia’s trade attache Bona Kusuma.
