The Tourism Committee of PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry (PHDCCI) organized the 3rd edition of National Talent Competition for Skill Development in Tourism & Hospitality Sector with the theme ‘Opportunities & Challenges of Digital Transformation in Tourism and Hospitality Sector’ on 20 September 2019 at PHD House, New Delhi.
The objective of organizing the Competition was to create a robust and sustainable eco-system for skill development in the tourism industry and enable the youth to get blue-collar jobs by participating in such programmes.
Inaugural Session was graced by H.E. Mr. Sulton Rahimzoda, Ambassador of the Republic of Tajikistan; Mr. Piyush Tiwari, CMD, India Tourism Development Corporation; Mr. Vinod Zutshi (Retd. IAS), Former Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India; and Mr. Rhys Williams, Project Director, Victoria University. Mr. Vishal Jindal, Chairman – Skill Development Committee, PHDCCI; Mr. Rajan Sehgal, Co-Chairman – Tourism Committee, PHDCCI; and Mr. Yogesh Srivastav, Principal Director, PHDCCI were also part of the Inaugural Session.
While inaugurating the programme, H.E. Mr. Sulton Rahimzoda, Ambassador of the Republic of Tajikistan, said that Tourism is one of the best ways to develop bilateral relations between India and Tajikistan. He also informed that their Government has recently liberalized visa schemes for tourists visiting the country.
Mr. Piyush Tiwari, CMD, India Tourism Development Corporation, said that there is no dearth of talent in our country, but it needs proper guidance and structure to develop completely. Programmes like these help create platforms and opportunities for managers at all levels to come together and enhance their professional competence and skills.
Addressing the participants, Mr. Vinod Zutshi (Retd. IAS), Former Secretary – Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, said that the theme of the Competition is very important as digital transformation has overwhelmed the entire travel ecosystem, triggering a formidable rise in competition. The management education in India has undergone a sea change. It is essential that the curriculum is constantly adapted to cope up with the changes in the business world and meet the aspirations of the industry.
Mr. Vishal Jindal, Chairman – Skill Development Committee, PHDCCI in his address said that tourism has great capacity to create large scale employment and generation of massive productive employment opportunities is what India needs the most. He also highlighted as to how education and skill development can help boost the quality of tourism and hospitality industry in the country.
Mr. Rhys Williams, Project Director, Victoria University,congratulated PHDCCI for organizing this programme and said that it will further refine and revalidate the student’s information base and harnesses their presentation skills, which will be a big boost to their career.
Mr. Rajan Sehgal, Co-Chairman – Tourism Committee, PHDCCI, said that this competition will help the corporates for retention of young talent pool and at the same time provide unique opportunity to the budding Managers to demonstrate their creativity and professional prowess.
A total of 13 Colleges and Universities took part in the Competition which was evaluated by distinguished panel of Jury Members – Mr. Vinod Zutshi (Retd. IAS), Former Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India; Mr. Rajan Bahadur, CEO, Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council; Ms. Vasudha Sondhi, Managing Director, Outbound Marketing; and Ms. Meena Bhatia, Vice President & GM, Le Meridien New Delhi.
Institute of Hotel Management (IHM), Bhopal was adjudged as the Winner of the Competition. The Tourism School, New Delhi and Chitkara College of Hospitality Management, Punjab were the 1st and the 2nd Runners-Up respectively. Ms. Rishika Khosla from IHM Bhopal was selected as the ‘Best Budding Manager’ among all the participants. All the Winners were awarded with Prize Money, Trophies and Certificates.
The Valedictory Session was graced by Mr. Suman Billa (IAS), Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India who also awarded the Winners along with H.E. Mr. Radu Octavian Dobre, Ambassador of Romania; Mr. Pronab Sarkar, President, Indian Association of Tour Operators; Ms. Radha Bhatia, Chairperson – Tourism Committee, PHDCCI; Mr. Kishore Kaya and Mr. Rajan Sehgal, Co-Chairmen – Tourism Committee, PHDCCI.
H.E. Mr. Radu Octavian Dobre, Ambassador of Romania, said that programmes like these help create platforms and opportunities for professional managers at all levels to come together and enhance their professional competence and skills.
Mr. Pronab Sarkar, President, Indian Association of Tour Operators, said that competitions like these are an opportunity for the students and budding managers to meet eminent industrialists and entrepreneurs from various sectors, both at the national and international level and gain a chance to build a network and also to be inspired by their success.
Inaugurating the valedictory session, Mr. Suman Billa (IAS), Joint Secretary – Ministry of Tourism, Government of India lauded PHD‘s efforts to create such platforms for the young minds to get inspired and always strive for excellence. The inbound tourism industry in India is in a great shape currently. The rising interests of travellers from across the world indicate a healthy shift and a positive growth in Indian inbound tourism sector. Unlike the past, there is an increase in the share of visitors looking to spend their vacations or explore exotic Indian destinations.
Ms. Radha Bhatia, Chairperson – Tourism Committee, PHDCCI, spoke about the importance of skill in the education field. She also stated that whole world is looking up to India as the biggest resource as it is also one of the fastest growing economies in the world. She encouraged and advised the students to grab opportunities like the NCT which can help them hone their skills.
Mr. Yogesh Srivastav, Principal Director, PHDCCI, delivered the concluding remarks, where he expressed his gratitude to the eminent dignitaries and said that PHDCCI will continue to organize such programmes to bring the best out of best talent to the fore.
The programme was supported by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and attended by more than 180 delegates from the tourism and hospitality management institutes.