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Museum of the Future, Dubai: A few days ago, the Museum of the Future was inaugurated in Dubai. The building is an eye-grabber for its unique shape, and for the void that is included within it. The museum is elliptical, with an elliptical void inside it. Despite having no columns, the building has seven floors and is 77 metres high. While architect Shaun Killa designed the museum and was its architect, the creation of the museum has been undertaken by the Dubai Future Foundation. Soon after the inauguration of the museum on February 22, Financial Express Online’s Bulbul Dhawan spoke to architect Shaun Killa as well as Dubai Future Foundation CEO Khalfan Belhoul to know more about the Museum of the Future. Also read | Planning a trip to Dubai? Here are the Covid-related health guidelines you need to follow to and from the Emirati city Khalfan Belhoul said, “The idea of the museum is to be the headquarters of all future convenings and dialogues in the world that can be housed here in

Kerala Tourism to roll out aggressive promotional campaigns across the country, targeting diverse segments ranging from family holidayers to working professionals, from adventure-seeking backpackers to honeymooners. During the pandemic, the majority of the classified homestays and resorts in the state were either closed or empty. The reopening of tourism activities is expected to revive the languishing business of homestay entrepreneurs. The campaigns to ramp up the state’s tourism and hospitality industry will be based on a variety of themes such as ‘Long Stays, ‘Homestays’, ‘Drive Holidays’ and ‘Change of Air’ besides new products like ‘Caravan Holidays’. Tourism minister of the state, PA Mohamed Riyas said the pandemic had tapered off considerably across the globe, resulting in the lifting of travel restrictions. “This augurs well for Kerala’s tourism and hospitality industry. We are in a resurgent mode now. We believe the recently launched products will attract the travellers fr

The suspension of scheduled international passenger flights in the country has been extended “till further orders”, aviation regulator DGCA said on Monday. On January 19, the suspension was extended till February 28. Scheduled international passenger flights have been suspended in India since March 23, 2020, following the outbreak of the coronavirus. However, special passenger flights have been operating between India and around 45 countries since July 2020 under air bubble arrangements formed with them. In a circular on Monday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stated: “The competent authority has decided to extend the suspension of scheduled international commercial passenger services to/from India till further orders.” This restriction will not apply to international all-cargo operations and flight specifically approved by the DGCA, it mentioned. Fights under air bubble arrangement will not be affected, the circular said. The DGCA had on November 26, 2021, announce

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Delhi Zoo: The zoo authorities announced today that National Zoological Park, Delhi will re-open from March 1 with an online ticket system. The zoo was shut on January 5 on a temporary basis due to the rising number of covid-19 cases. The portal for the ticket booking was disabled on January 4 itself. All the supervisors in the Delhi zoo have been asked to ensure strict Covid-19 compliance and that the covid appropriate behavior is being followed as the zoo is all set to reopen for visitors. The zoo was opened for visitors on August 1 last year (2021) but it was then shut for over two months due to Delta covid variant wave in the country. The facility was earlier shut for visitors in March 2020 when a pandemic hit the country. Then again, in January last year, it was closed due to the bird flu scare. On Wednesday, India witnessed 15,102 covid cases in a single day. The active cases in the country dipped below two lakh after 50 days, as per the data by the Health Ministry. The activ

IndiGo on Thursday said it will start flights connecting Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh to five cities in southern India from March 27 onwards. “The airline will commence new exclusive flights between Kadapa-Chennai, Kadapa-Vijayawada, Kadapa-Bangalore, Kadapa-Vishakhapatnam, and new flights between Kadapa-Hyderabad,” the airline said in a release. Kadapa will be the 73rd city in the country to be connected with IndiGo flights, it noted. While flights on Kadapa-Chennai, Kadapa-Vijayawada and Kadapa-Hyderabad routes will start from March 27, services on Kadapa-Bangalore and Kadapa-Vishakhapatnam routes will begin from March 29. from Travel & Tourism – The Financial Express https://ift.tt/TaCxj3l

Portals of Badrinath temple are all set to reopen on May 8 after the winter break. The Uttarakhand administration is taking all the possible measures and carrying out extensive preparation to ensure the security of the route. Shweta Choubey, Superintendent of Police, Chamoli reached Badrinath to check the security measures, finer details of the yatra route for Badrinath temple. She checked all the sensitive spots and also planned for smooth conduct of the yatra, ANI reported. “Bajpur Chada, Chamoli Chada, Birhi Bend Chada, and Helang areas have been designated as one-way routes for Yatra”, Choubey said after returning from Badrinath. The potential danger spots identified at the route are Kshetrapal, Pagalnala, Gulabkoti, Helang, Marwari areas. Signboards will be put up accordingly at these places in order to warn people from taking those routes during the yatra, she added. Portals of Badrinath temple were closed in November last year for the winter break. The Himalayan temple, dedic

Hospitality industry body FHRAI on Tuesday said it has submitted a representation to Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia seeking his intervention to avoid disruptions in flight movements at the Port Blair Airport. The Andaman & Nicobar Command has directed shutting down the only runway of Veer Savarkar International Airport in Port Blair for four days a week from March to May 2022 for its re-carpeting work and a NOTAM has been issued in this regard. The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India’s (FHRAI) stated that the closure of the runway poses a serious threat to the hospitality and tourism industry in the Union Territory which has already suffered 75- 80 per cent revenue loss due to the pandemic. FHRAI has appealed to the Aviation Ministry to explore alternatives to carry out the work at the airport without shutting down operations. “Tourism is the backbone of Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ economy. Veer Savarkar International Airport is the o

On the occasion of the 367 ‘Urs’ of the fifth Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, tourists will get free entry to Taj Mahal from February 27 to March 1. This exemption is given every year on the occasion of Urs. Raj Kumar Patel, Superintending Archeologist of ASI (Agra Circle) told PTI, “There will be free entry for the tourist on 27th, 28th and March 1 on the occasion of the annual Urs of the Shahjahan at the Taj Mahal.” While, on Sunday and Monday, the tourists entry will be from 2 pm till sunset and on March 1, the free entry will be from sunrise to sunset, Patel said. “We will follow the COVID-19 protocols on all the three days,” he added. Shamsuddin Khan, president of the approved tourist guides association, said on the occasion of the three-day Urs “various rituals such as ‘chadar poshi’, ‘sandal’, ‘gusul’, ‘kul’ and others will be performed.” Shakeel Rafiq, a tourist guide said, “It is only time in a year when visitors are allowed to enter in the basement to see the original graves o

The language and cultural heritage of Rajasthan was celebrated with fervour at the Consulate General of India here on the occasion of International Mother Language Day, showcasing the state’s rich flavours and vibrant colours. The Consulate and Jaipur Foot USA organised the special celebration of the language and cultural heritage of Rajasthan on Monday as part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ on occasion of the 75th year of India’s independence. Consul General Randhir Jaiswal recalled that Bangladesh had started the initiative to celebrate International Mother Language Day. It was approved at the 1999 UNESCO General Conference and has been observed throughout the world since 2000 on February 21.He underlined that the people of India, irrespective of their mother tongue, are in some way or the other connected with the diverse and rich languages and dialects spoken across the country. Jaipur Foot USA Chairman and international convener of Akhil Bharatiya Rajasthani Bhasha Manyata Sangh

Air India completed 46 years of air service between India and Maldives and to commemorate the occasion A-267 was greeted with a water cannon salute at Male airport on Monday. The air carrier operated its first flight from Trivandrum to Male in February 1976. Air India shared a clip of the occasional salute on Twitter. The video showed water propelling from opposite sides and the aircraft moving in between the water canopy as it lands on the Male airport. AI-267 then slowly glides on the runway.  The clip has been viewed, shared and liked by several netizens on the social media platform since it has been shared. “Great achievement. Glory and laurels for the nation. Proud” a tweet said. #Fly AI: AI-267 was welcomed with a water canon salute as it landed at Male airport #MACLmedia today to commemorate 46 years of air service between India & Maldives. Air India operated its first flight from Trivandrum to Male in Feb 1976. pic.twitter.com/lGqfrYFWuo — Air India (@airindiain)

Regular international flights are likely to resume from March 15 and will follow the standard operating procedures effective at Indian airports for foreign arrivals and departure, government sources said on Monday. Given the consistent decline in Covid cases, a decision on resuming scheduled international flights has almost been arrived at by the Civil Aviation Ministry following consultation with the Health Ministry, they said. However, no official announcement has been made by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation so far. “Regular International flights is likely to resume from March 15. The Guidelines for International Arrivals, which came into effect from February 14, will be followed at airports for the passengers of these flights,” an official source said. The ban on scheduled international passenger flights in India is in effect till February 28. Such flights have been suspended in India since March 23, 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Special passenger flights hav

Tourism is one of the sectors that have borne the maximum burnt due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The Covid-induced lockdowns and closures of the hotels had forced people across the globe to remain under home quarantine that also battered the face of global travel and tourism. Now that international travel has started opening up, tourism is now seeing a revival in its trajectory. Talking of some positive takeaways of the pandemic, the industry has witnessed a reset in the way the cautious yet curious traveller plans their travel. People have shifted to digital platforms to plan, discover, shop and book online. According to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Digital Transformation Initiative, digitisation in the aviation and travel industry will create up to $305 billion for the industry and benefits valued at $700 billion for customers. The emergence of the digital economy now craves an experiential element in tourism for travellers along with other stakeholders for equal opportunities

The number of daily air passengers is expected to cross pre-COVID levels in the next two months, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Monday and also urged states to reduce tax on jet fuel to boost the country’s aviation sector. During the pre-COVID times, domestic airlines carried around 4 lakh passengers per day and the number began climbing up after second wave but again declined after the emergence of Omicron infections late last year. Scindia said capacity and fare caps were put in place to make sure that there was a “little bit of an insulated environment in which the industry can function to ensure that all our players survive and all of them get some decent market share and some levels of revenue”. Airlines were allowed to operate at full capacity from October 18, 2021. “In November, December, we started hitting numbers of 3.8 to 3.9 lakh passengers per day. We were almost back to pre-COVID levels… with Omicron, number of travellers tanked… we fell to 1.6 lakh

What all is Rajasthan famous for? Most tourists (and even locals) might say desert, forts, royalty, wildlife or cuisine. Some may get more specific: Maharana Pratap, ker sangri or laal maas. Few are likely to say ‘rocks’. Fewer still would say: Some of the oldest surface rocks you can find in India; rocks so old that it has taken wind millions of years to carve into beautiful formations. Welcome to another part of incredible India—let’s call it ‘Rare Rajasthan’. We travel to this place on a Honda City (a much needed change driving a sedan in this age of SUVs). Jawai About 650 km from Delhi and 850 km from Mumbai, in southwest Rajasthan, lies the Jawai bandh (dam). While Jawai is famous for its wild leopards and crocodiles, and sightings are almost confirmed during jeep safaris organised by local operators, it’s the home of these carnivores that sets the geography apart. Leopards here live on hillocks carved by wind (see photos). It gives them some protection from elements, and nat

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Photos of Sunil Janah show a newly independent India coming back to life from India Today | Leisure https://ift.tt/I2uUwrL

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The most anticipated Telangana’s four-day Medaram Jatara has begun Wednesday. The event is celebrated as Asia’s largest tribal fair which is celebrated over the period of four days every two years. The fair is taking place at Medaram village of Mulugu district. Over 1.25 crore people are expected to come together at the village to celebrate Adivasi icons Sammakka and Sarakka. They were considered to be the protectors of the community. The fair will end on February 19. According to the legends, the story takes us back eight centuries ago where tribal king Medaraju was the ruler of the habitations along river Godavari. The ruler failed to pay a royalty to the Kakatiya kings of the region owing to severe drought. The Kakatiya rulers, after that, invaded the land that led to the death of Medaraju and his daughters Sammakka and Sarakka in the fight. The Adivasi community has it that both the daughters Sammakka and Sarakka turned into caskets of vermillion. The former was found near a bamb

The Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism and Hospitality (FAITH) on Wednesday unveiled the ‘Vision 2035’ road map outlining strategic pillars to achieve tourism goals to mark the 75th year of India’s Independence. The vision lays down action goals in multiples of 75 referencing all indicators. These goals target 75 million inbound tourists, aim for 150 billion of foreign exchange earnings from inbound tourism, eye 7.5 billion domestic tourism visits, and target 15 crore direct and indirect employment from tourism, among other objectives. The vision document proposes four strategic pillars to achieve the goals, including a shared national tourism approach, value accretive regulations, investment drivers and market excellence. It recommends tourism to be a concurrent subject as a shared execution between the Centre & states, and setting up of a National Tourism Council of PM and CMs, among others. The vision also suggests travel credit for domestic travel and MICE (meeti

Travel booking portal Cleartrip announced its partnership with another travel portal Yatra Online. Cleartrip customers will now be given access to Yatra’s inventory of 94,000 hotels and homestays of various kinds from luxury to mid-range in 1,400+ cities and towns with this partnership. Both domestic and international travellers will get a wider range of relevant and ideal accommodation with Cleartrip’s real-time pricing to meet their travel needs, the company said in a statement. The travel company is hopeful that this agreement with Yatra will expand and increase business avenues for hotels partners association with the brands. Yatra will also benefit from the large customer base of Flipkart and Cleartrip. Cleartrip was acquired by e-commerce giant Flipkart making it a Flipkart Group company in 2021. In the last few months Cleartrip added new travel products such as Flexifly, TravelSafe and EzCancel to address customers prioritizing flexibility and safety in their travel plans. Ay

New Delhi: The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has directed health officials and district magistrates to ensure the Centre’s revised COVID-19 guidelines for international arrivals are followed at the IGI Airport from Monday. The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare on February 10 released detailed guidelines for international arrivals at airports and seaports in the country, doing away with the quarantine provision. According to the guidelines, all the passengers will show self-declaration form on arrival at the airport. The passengers found to be symptomatic during screening will be immediately isolated and taken to medical facility under health protocol. If tested positive, their contacts will be identified and managed as per laid down protocol. The protocol post arrival mandates that two per cent of the total passengers in a flight will undergo random testing at the airport. Such travellers in each flight will be identified by the airlines concerned, preferably fro

Dubai Expo 2020: Dubai Expo is in its last month and a half, and February is all about food! The Expo already had a dedicated “Eat At Expo” section for visitors, and now, between February 14 and March 13, Expo is going to be full of “unique foodie moments”. Between February 14 and February 27, visitors would be able to enjoy the Expo Restaurant Week, while the BBQ Festival will commence on February 18 and end on March 16. While these are special events around food being held at Expo, there are several great restaurants that can be visited at the Expo site for a good time. Financial Express Online is listing out some of them for you in case you decide to visit Dubai! Also read | A must-visit for fine dining! This Dubai-based Indian restaurant is inspired by ‘raw beauty of home cooking’, says Celebrity Chef Vikas Khanna What to eat at Dubai Expo 2020? ADRIFT ADRIFT is a burger bar by Michelin Star Chef David Myers, which serves food inspired by global cuisine. With alcohol, happy ho

The Mughal Gardens — often referred to as the soul of the presidential palace — will open for the public today, Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a statement. However, like the previous year, there will be no walk-in entry available as a precautionary measure against Covid-19. Visitors will only be allowed inside through advanced online booking. The gardens will remain open till March 16. This year, the main attraction of ‘Udyanotsav’ will be the 11 varieties of tulips that will bloom in phases during February. Flower carpets will also be on display in the central lawns. The dominant colour scheme of the ornamental flowers this year is yellow, white, orange, and red. A small cactus corner has also been landscaped alongside some air-purifying plants. President Ram Nath Kovind opened Rashtrapati Bhavan’s annual ‘Udyanotsav’ on Thursday. The Mughal Gardens will remain open for the public from February 12 to March 16 between 10 AM and 5 PM. The last entry is at 4 PM. The gardens will remain

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The government has eased quarantine and Covid-19 testing requirements for international travellers, with daily Covid-19 positive cases declining by 80% from peak levels a month ago and test case positivity falling below 5%. V K Paul, member, health, Niti Aayog, expressed optimism with an overall reduction in daily new cases to under one lakh for the last four days and test case positivity falling below 5% in the country. Paul said despite the drop in cases, the pandemic has not ended. Paul cautioned against  lowering guard against the pandemic. The virus could get smarter and break the vaccine defence, he warned. The government has issued new guidelines for international travellers, which would come into effect from February 14, 2022. The ‘at-risk’ tag for countries has been removed. The Union health ministry has scrapped the mandatory seven-day quarantine for international travellers who have to self-monitor their health for 14 days after arrival. They have to isolate in case they d

The government has eased quarantine and Covid-19 testing requirements for international travellers, with daily Covid-19 positive cases declining by 80% from peak levels a month ago and test case positivity falling below 5%. V K Paul, member, health, Niti Aayog, expressed optimism with an overall reduction in daily new cases to under one lakh for the last four days and test case positivity falling below 5% in the country. Paul said despite the drop in cases, the pandemic has not ended. Paul cautioned against  lowering guard against the pandemic. The virus could get smarter and break the vaccine defence, he warned. The government has issued new guidelines for international travellers, which would come into effect from February 14, 2022. The ‘at-risk’ tag for countries has been removed. The Union health ministry has scrapped the mandatory seven-day quarantine for international travellers who have to self-monitor their health for 14 days after arrival. They have to isolate in case they d

International Travel guidelines: The Union Ministry of Health and Family Affairs on Thursday issued a fresh set of guidelines for International Arrivals. These guidelines will now supersede all of the guidelines issued in this respect on or after January 20, 2022. The guidelines, listing out the protocol to be followed by international travellers along with airlines and ports of entry. According to the Ministry’s order, the guidelines will come into effect on February 14, i.e. Monday at 12:01 am, and stay in place till further notice in this regard is issued. Also read | Boost to Andaman and Nicobar Islands tourism! Department of Tourism begins streamlining digital booking options As per the new guidelines, travellers wishing to come to India would need to fill complete and factual information in the online self-declaration form available on the Air Suvidha portal, before the scheduled travel. This form would also require travellers to fill in the details of their travel taken withi

Andaman and Nicobar Tourism: The Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands has seen a heavy surge in tourist footfall in 2021, according to SaaS platform BookingJini. The hospitality-focused platform also stated that there were also expectations of a hike in the tourism of the island UT post the third wave of coronavirus, as many people were planning trips to the destination. Against this backdrop, the platform tied up with the Department of Tourism under the Government of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. With this, the booking system in the state would be upgraded. In this aspect, BookingJini said that it would be catering to booking requests as well as other queries related to travel. For this, automation and state-of-the-art technology would be harnessed. As per the statement, all of the properties owned by the Department of Tourism in the UT would be catered to by the platform for booking, while it would also pair up with more than 200 other exclusive hospitality providers as we

By (Mrs) Amb Narinder Chauhan How many are aware that the famous River Danube runs its longest and widest in Serbia? The Danube is the second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through much of Central and Southeast Europe, from the Black Forest into the Black Sea. It derives its name from its source confluence in Donaueschingen onwards. The Persian King, Darius crossed the river in the late 6 th  century BCE to invade Scythians. King Alexander advanced from Macedonia to as far as the Danube to conquer tribal chieftains. Under the Romans, the Danube formed the border of the Empire with the tribes to the North. Once the longstanding frontier of the Roman Empire, the Danube Connects  the largest number of countries in the world – 10, the Nile is second with 9. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows Southeast for 2,850 km (1770miles), passing through or bordering Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Ukraine before drain

The government on Monday said decisions regarding domestic scheduled flight operations and relaxation in fare capping are subject to prevailing coronavirus situation, status of operations and passenger demand for air travel. Fare bands are in force for airlines, while the capacity restriction on domestic flight operations was done away with from October 18, 2021. Minister of State for Civil Aviation V K Singh said that during the past two years, the coronavirus pandemic has adversely affected the revenue streams of businesses, including the aviation sector. “Under normal circumstances, airfares are neither established nor regulated by the government. However, due to the unprecedented circumstances, fare bands with upper and lower limits were introduced by the government as a special measure. “The fare bands serve the dual purpose of protecting the interests of the travellers as well as of the airlines,” he told Rajya Sabha in a written reply. He noted that fare bands were revised

Work on the construction of Ram Temple at Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya is going as per plans and original timeline. Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra member Anil Mishra informed the ANI that the target is to install the idol of Lord Ram in the sanctum sanctorum by 2023 for the devotees to visit the shrine and start offering prayers. Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust was delegated the task of  undertaking the construction of the temple in February 2020. The trust was constituted with former principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nripendra Misra as its chairman. A two-day meeting of the temple construction committee was held in Ayodhya. Various aspects of the temple construction like lighting, security, construction of retaining wall, plinth, etc., were discussed at the meeting, he said. 17,000 granite stone from Bansi Pahadpur has already reached Ayodhya for plinth construction. 80-100 stones will now reach Ayodhya every day to pace up the building works. Each stone

By Reya Mehrotra The hologram of Subhas Chandra Bose installed at India Gate in Delhi has given rise to heated debates on the necessity of the move. However, the first-of-its-kind hologram statue has also managed to capture the attention for being a unique idea. We bring you the most famous hologram projections from around the world. Michael Jackson In 2014, Michael Jackson ‘reappeared’ onstage at the Billboard Music Awards to perform ‘Slave to the Rhythm’ with a band and dancers. It could happen after months of planning, choreography and filming. Dressed in gold jacket, white T-shirt and red trousers, he enthralled the audience. A special stage was set up for his performance and Jackson was seen rising from a throne, and then breaking into his trademark steps, including a moonwalk. The song belonged to Michael Jackson’s second posthumous album Xscape which was released in 2014 and made up of a previously unreleased track. PM Narendra Modi The Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose hologram i