Bhubaneswar, February 24: In a significant step towards positioning Odisha as a premier adventure tourism hub in Eastern India, Odisha Government today signed MoUs with the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) and the Aero Club of India (ACI).
The MoUs were signed here at a special event in presence of Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida and Chief Secretary Anu Garg.
Addressing the gathering, the Deputy CM said safety is the cornerstone of the State’s adventure tourism expansion. Through international partnerships and a new focus on spiritual and experience-based travel, the State Government plans to modernize the sector and attract fresh investment from young entrepreneurs, she said.
Parida appreciated the joint efforts of the Tourism, Sports and Home Departments in opening a new chapter in Odisha’s tourism landscape and called upon all departments to work collectively to make Odisha a world-class tourism destination.
Chief Secretary Garg said the State Government is prioritising tourism development with the vision of achieving Utkarsh Odisha by 2036 and Viksit Bharat by 2047.
She stressed that all departments should explore ways to contribute to tourism growth alongside their core responsibilities and emphasised the importance of collective efforts.
The Chief Secretary expressed hope that adventure tourism would boost local economies and create large-scale employment opportunities, and called upon stakeholders to adopt the mantra “Think India, Think Odisha.”
The Deputy CM and Chief Secretary have also launched Go-Adventure portal. Officials said that the Go-Adventure portal will simplify registration, verification and licensing procedures for adventure tourism projects.
The MoU with the Indian Mountaineering Foundation is expected to strengthen safety audits and training programmes for land-based adventure activities such as trekking and rock climbing. The partnership with the Aero Club of India will regulate aerial adventure sports like paragliding and paramotoring in line with national aviation safety norms, the officials said.
To improve ease of doing business, ‘Licence to Operate’ (LTO) and ‘Recognition to Set Up’ (RTS) certificates were issued to domestic operators, and several adventure tourism operators were formally handed licences during the programme, they said.
Among distinguished guests, former Union Minister and President of Aero Club of India Rajiv Pratap Rudy attended the programme, while Pawan Gupta from the National Institute of Water Sports (NIWS), Goa, joined virtually.
Amongst other dignitaries, DG Fire Services and Home Guards Sudhanshu Sarangi, Tourism Secretary Balwant Singh, Sports and Youth Services Secretary Bhupendra Singh Poonia, and Director Tourism Dipankar Mohapatra were present in the meeting.
General Secretary of Aero Club of India Arvind Badoni and Honorary Secretary of Indian Mountaineering Foundation Kirti Paisa were present for technical collaboration discussions.
IG Fire Services Umashankar Dash also attended to review safety arrangements. Senior officials of the Tourism Department and members of adventure tourism associations were present on the occasion.
The initiative is expected to enhance safety standards, encourage investment, generate employment and promote Odisha as a leading adventure tourism destination in India, said a Tourism Department officer.
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