- Tuesday, February 25, 2025
Subhash Goyal, chairman of Aviation and Tourism Committee at ICC, in a statement urged tour operators in relation to the recent “anti India feelings expressed by the ministers of Maldives”.
By: Shubham Ghosh
THE Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC), one of the country’s oldest trade bodies, on Monday (8) appealed to tourism and trade associations to stop promoting the maritime neighbour of Maldives.
Subhash Goyal, chairman of Aviation and Tourism Committee at ICC, in a statement urged tour operators in relation to the recent “anti India feelings expressed by the ministers of Maldives”.
According to him, the remarks against India were made despite the fact that India is one of the biggest sources of foreign exchange and creation of employments in the Maldives.
Read: Indian travel agency suspends Maldives flights over posts against PM Modi
Tourism Sector in India running a massive #Boycott_Maldives campaign in full force. Maldives President @MMuizzu in an embarrassing position on his maiden visit to China. Massive self goal by someone who led “India Out” Campaign and was spreading hatred. pic.twitter.com/BDLqwDPrJP
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) January 8, 2024
“Please divert all such enquiries to Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar Islands which are even better than Maldives in many ways and other destinations which can be promoted in the Indian ocean area are Srilanka, Mauritius, Bali, Phuket etc,” Goyal said, according to a Business Today report.
Read: Maldives summons Indian envoy to ‘explain’ its story over row
Three deputy ministers of the Maldives, who have been suspended now, made controversial remarks against India and prime minister Narendra Modi after he visited the Indian islands of Lakshadweep, located around 750 kilometres from the Maldives. Many in the archipelago felt Modi’s efforts to promote tourism in Lakshadweep were aimed at luring away those from the Maldives, known for its tourism industry worldwide.
Goyal also requested all Indian carriers operating to the Maldives to suspend operations and focus more on places such as Lakshadweep.
Goyal said the FHRAI (Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India) and the Hotel Association of India should seriously look at investing in Lakshadweep Islands, asserting that it would earn them better returns on investments than Maldives.
He said the appeal has been made as a patriotic India in the larger national interest. His statement was addressed to various travel bodies such as Indian Association of Tour Operators, Travel Agents Association of India, Travel Agents Federation of India, Adventure Tour Operators Association of India and Association of Domestic Tour Operators.
Modi visited Lakshadweep on January 2 and 3 to inaugurate several projects. He posted on his social media account pictures of him doing snorkelling and early morning walks on the pristine beaches.
“For those who wish to embrace the adventurer in them, Lakshadweep has to be on your list,” he wrote.
Soon after, the government officials mocked Modi over his visit to Lakshadweep, saying he was trying to project the Indian islands as an alternative tourist destination to the Maldives.
The Maldivian government soon got into a damage-control mode saying those remarks did not reflect its official position.
The incident also took place just days before the newly elected president of Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, made his first state visit to China.
