The Kaziranga National Park (KNP), famed for one-horned rhinoceros, was opened to tourists on Wednesday, after being closed for seven months due to COVID-19 pandemic. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal formally reopened the KNP and expressed hope that this will revive the states tourism sector which has been severely hit by the pandemic. The KNP remains shut for around five months every year since April-end during the monsoon season when floods also occur in the state. The Park was closed in March this year after the government imposed lockdown. Sonowal said that unemployed youths in and around Kaziranga would find meaningful employment again through jeep safari and other tourism-related activities. He said that the state government had provided a one- time financial ...
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Rapid outbound COVID-19 testing for passengers has been launched at London's Heathrow Airport, designed to return results in an hour, in an effort to re-open restricted routes and boost traffic for airlines. Travel industry has largely welcomed this, who has been calling for a rapid and cost-effective testing on departure regime at airports around the world for several months now, so this is a step in the right direction. The tests were launched on Tuesday in conjunction with the airport, IAG's British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Cathay Pacific, initially for flights to Hong Kong, where incoming passengers must be able to show proof of a negative test. Many countries currently require passengers to provide evidence of a negative COVID test prior to departure, but allow for test...
Read MoreThe Belur Math, global headquarters of Rama Krishna Math and Mission, has decided not to allow devotees during the Durga Puja for the first time in its history due to the pandemic situation and will live stream the proceedings instead. A Belur Math spokesman said, "we request our lakhs of devotees, who visit the Belur Math temple compound and pandal on the four days every year, to sit at home and watch the rituals on YouTube from October 21 to 26 (the day of Panchami to Dashami). The devotees can watch the rituals live on YouTube, he said. This is for the first time in the 119-year history of Durga Puja in Belur Math that pilgrims will not be allowed to witness the puja started by Swami Vivekananda in the same complex in 1901, the spokesman said. The puja will be held inside ...
Read MoreKerala on Monday opened its tourism destinations, barring beaches, for visitors by strictly adhering to COVID-19 protocol, signalling the revival of the revenue-generating industry that remained shut for the last seven months following the outbreak of the pandemic. As per the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) issued by the Government in this regard, the visitors will have to follow Break the Chain norms including wearing of masks, use of soap and sanitizer and social distancing. The destinations and services that have resumed receiving guests include houseboats on backwaters, personalized boating and adventure tourism spots, which normally have controlled access where it is easy to implement the SMS (Social distancing, Mask and Soap Sanitizer) ...
Read MoreManufacturer studies provide insight into extremely few incidents of COVID-19 inflight infections The International Air Transport Association (IATA) demonstrated the low incidence of inflight COVID-19 transmission with an updated tally of published cases. Since the start of 2020 there have been 44 cases of COVID-19 reported in which transmission is thought to have been associated with a flight journey (inclusive of confirmed, probable and potential cases). Over the same period some 1.2 billion passengers have traveled. “The risk of a passenger contracting COVID-19 while onboard appears very low. With only 44 identified potential cases of flight-related transmission among 1.2 billion travelers, that’s one case for every 27 million travelers. We recognize that this may be an underesti...
Read MoreHong Kong has led the way in introducing anti-virus measures since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, with citizens and businesses working together to adopt some of the world’s most stringent hygiene measures. Businesses in the tourism sector have been particularly active in implementing hygiene measures supported by advanced cleaning technologies into their daily operations. Now, in a significant stepping up of the city’s fight to control the virus, the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has launched a standardised hygiene protocol in partnership with the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA), one of the leading conformity assessment bodies in the territory. The protocol aims to provide a unified set of guidelines on hygiene and anti-epidemic measures for tourism-related ...
Read MoreAirports Council International (ACI) World and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) have today made a joint call for a globally-consistent approach to testing international passengers as an alternative to quarantine measures. The global shut down of air transport as a result of COVID-19 travel restrictions has had a catastrophic impact on employment. Some 4.8 million industry jobs have been lost or are under threat. A Covid testing facility at Heathrow Airport Governments must cooperate to remove quarantine restrictions and restart air travel. A systematic approach to COVID-19 testing will provide an effective way to give governments the confidence to re-open borders without quarantine. The aviation industry, focused on the health and safety of passengers and the...
Read MoreAssam's World Heritage site Manas National Park will be the first among the five National Parks in the state to reopen for tourists from Friday with strict COVID-19 protocols, park officials said. The park, which usually closes for tourists in April, had to shut the gates from March 17 due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Chief Conservator of Forests A M Singh will open the Manas National Park at a programme scheduled to be held at the Bahbari range, officials said. The park authorities said that strict COVID-19 guidelines, including mandatory wearing of masks and social distancing, must be maintained by the tourists while entering the park. Only three persons would be allowed in the jeep safari inside the park. The authorities have taken all measures...
Read MoreThe World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is to work with California-based Eightfold.ai to help connect tourism jobseekers with employers and so drive the global recovery of the sector. The new partnership will see UNWTO harness the power of the Eightfold Talent Exchange, a marketplace connecting workers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with available jobs. Using advanced deep-learning AI, the Exchange matches people to the right jobs in companies that are hiring, creating a bridge between those looking for a job and organizations that need to hire quickly. All 159 UNWTO Member States, as well as the more-than-500 Affiliate Members will benefit from direct access to the platform. They will also be able to offer Talent Exchange to workers who have lost their tourism-related jobs du...
Read MoreSouth Africa will keep barring tourists from high-risk countries including India
South Africa will not allow tourists from countries with higher coronavirus infection and death rates, including India, Britain, the United States and France, to enter when its borders open up on Oct. 1, ministers said on Wednesday. But business travellers with scarce and critical skills including diplomats and investors from countries considered “high-risk”, which also include the Netherlands and Russia, can enter, Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said. “We will review the data every two weeks,” Pandor told a news conference, saying the government would be guided by epidemiological data when deciding which countries were deemed high-risk. President Cyril Ramaphosa this month loosened pandemic restrictions in South Africa, which had one of the world’s strictest lockdowns at the...
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