Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao, and other dignitaries launch a coffee table book on Telangana’s tourist destinations and unveil the 'My Telangana, My Story, My Destination' digital campaign poster at Shilparamam on Saturday, ahead of World Tourism Day. — Photo: R. Pavan

HYDERABAD: The government on Saturday unveiled a slew of digital initiatives to give tourism a technology-driven push and promote the state’s attractions globally, on the eve of World Tourism Day.

Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and tourism minister Jupally Krishna Rao launched the initiatives at an event here, held on the theme “Digital Agenda – Reimagining Tourism with AI”.

The initiatives include a redesigned Telangana Tourism website, online homestay registration system, new tourism trailers, an interactive AR/VR-based Learning Management System, a coffee-table book on tourist destinations, the “My Telangana, My Story, My Destination” video and poster campaign and an eco-tourism promotional video.

Bhatti called for greater use of digital technology and AI to take Telangana tourism to international standards and put the state on the global tourism map. He said Telangana had considerable potential in health, temple, rural and nature tourism, citing its tiger reserves, forests, waterfalls, ancient temples and historic structures.

He said work on wellness centres had commenced in Vikarabad and directed officials to step up international marketing of the state’s tourist destinations.

Krishna Rao said tourism had been accorded greater priority in the state budget and that the government was focusing on visitor safety and quality infrastructure. He called for attracting large investments in international-standard hotels and tourism facilities through the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Bhatti suggested special weekend tourism packages for software professionals in Hyderabad and proposed “tourism coupons” to encourage them to visit nature-based destinations across the state. He directed Krishna Rao and tourism secretary Vani Prasad to hold discussions with CEOs of leading IT companies and tourism project operators on the proposal.

Bhatti said tourism was not merely entertainment but also an opportunity for cultural exchange, and expressed hope that Telangana would gain greater international recognition as a tourism destination.

Meanwhile, an MoU was signed between the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Telangana archaeology department in the presence of Krishna Rao. ASI superintendent Nikhil Das and Vani Prasad were present to promote archaeological tourism in Telangana.


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