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Airline industry now picking up - Jeyaraj Fernandopulle

The airline industry has picked up from the recent shocks of the LTTE bomb attack at the BIA on July 24. The report of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on the BIA has maintained that the security has been favourable and that is why the US $ 80 insurance levy on airline tickets has been exempted.

The message has also reached the international travel community that Sri Lanka is a very safe travel destination and the industry is gradually picking up fast towards its pristine glory.

This should augur well for the tourism industry and the arrival figures are keeping on improving day by day. The shocks of the set backs are now vanishing.

There is a lot of potential for the local industry as the western tourists who fear travelling through Dubai and other Asian destinations, are now preferring to fly through Colombo and there is every bit of room for improvement in the industry.

The Government will also provide further incentives to the domestic travel industry where locals will able to avail themselves of the vast facilities and opportunities that are available for travel from within.

We need a national policy - Milinda Moragoda

Sri Lanka should act fast to capitalise on the advantages it has in the promotion of the tourism industry, otherwise the countries in the region will steal a march over us.

An important aspect in promoting Sri Lanka, is to give adequate priority to promote tourists from the Indian subcontinent. Here is potential as for tourists from Mumbai and Chennai and other cities of Southern India will find it much closer and cheaper to arrive in Colombo than in New Delhi.

The tragedy is that Sri Lanka right now has a hotel room which has been priced at less than US$ 100 while neighbouring Maldives, it is over US$ 300 per day. This is indeed tragic that Maldives which has only the beaches to boast of, in contrast to Sri Lanka, which has a diverse array of resources.

Tourism is also an industry which is sensitive to civil turmoil and the current war has also had a bearing on the tourist arrivals. Other sectors which also need improvement are the domestic air services such as helicopter tours which are currently banned due to security considerations. Sri Lanka should be treated as the gateway to Asia.

What is also important to remember is the importance of adoption of a non partisan national development policy before going into the sectoral policies.

One could have arguments based on the policy differences but rancour and acrimony will certainly not help in the future.

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