Priyanka Saxena Ray
Women are an integral part of the tourism industry and often overlooked when it comes to recognition. The main mission behind forming WITT is to strengthen women participation in the tourism sector and address issues related to women welfare in tourism. WITT will act as facilitator to make women equal stakeholders in the nation’s development and recognise the noteworthy contribution made by them – with this firm mission and vision in mind, Ms. Mayal laid the ground rules recently at the very first path breaking WITT Conclave that was held at Le Meridien New Delhi with the theme – Mission with a Vision.
Mr. Bettaiah Lokesh, Hon Secretary General, TAAI and Ms. Mayal set the tone of the event by welcoming and briefing the panellists along with a hall brimming with women achievers about the vision of WITT and their humble mission to extend its reach. Having broken the glass ceiling herself by becoming one of the first women president of an association, Ms. Mayal emphasised that it is time for women to take charge of their own life and believe that nothing is impossible to achieve. With his Words of Wisdom – Shri G Kamala Vardhana Rao, DB Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, sharing examples from the great epics of India – Ramayana and Mahabharata set the tone of the Session – Weaving Tales, assuring women that they are superwomen indeed and should not considerate themselves inferior to any.
Session on Weaving Tales comprised panellists namely Ms. Rupinder Brar, ADG Ministry of Tourism, Govt of India, Ms. Jahnabi Phookan, Past President FICCI FLO, Ms. Navina Jafa, Cultural Activist & Academician, Ms. Shazia Ilmi, Politician & Journalist, Ms. Aarti Manocha, Wedding Planner Milestones to Memories and offering the men’s perspective was Mr. Sanjay Bose, ITC Hotels. This intriguing session, moderated by Ms. Mayal, brought to light some interesting tales of these women professionals – encouraging and motivating the audience.
The next session titled ‘Create your own Sunshine’ comprised Ms. Nandita Kanchan, Commissioner of Income Tax (Audit), Delhi; Dr. Charu Wali Khanna, Advocate Supreme Court, President NGO SAFMA; Ms. Sonia Bharwani, GM – Learning & OD, VFS Global; Ms. Aditi Malik, Soft Skills Expert, Ms. Parineeta Sethi, Publisher and Chief Editor, Glopal Spa & Peaklife and offering the men’s perspective was Mr. Sandeep Dwivedi, COO, InterGlobe Technology Quotient. Moderated by Mr. Jay Bhatia, Vice President, TAAI, this session touched upon the various means and methods that women can adapt and not be dependent on any other to ‘create their sunshine’.
On the occasion, Informa Markets, whose India’s travel portfolio comprises SATTE had collaborated with WITT & TAAI for Shakti – Honouring Women Achievers Awards. Shakti is an independent program that honours women entrepreneurs and achievers across various industry verticals. At the WITT Conclave, Shakti honoured enterprising women professionals in tourism – namely, Ms. Brar, Ms. Phookan, Mrs. Arshdeep Anand, MD, Holiday Moods Adventure, Ms. Jafa and many more.
Concluding the event, Mr. Shreeram Patel, Hon Treasurer, TAAI delivered a Vote of Thanks with a special mention to the VFS Global, SATTE, and Government of India – Incredible India for making the conclave a success.
From the TAAI team, in addition to the Office Bearers, MC members who were present at the WITT Conclave included Shri Anoop Kanuga, Dr. P Murugesan, Shri Ramasamy Venkatachalam, Shri Kulwinder Singh Kohli, and from the Secretariat – Dr Himanshu Talwar, Executive Director.
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