Tawang chosen as venue for tourism meet, China among countries invited - The Indian Express

The government is set to hold a mega international event in Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh towards the end of this month.

The International Tourism Mart, being organised by the Ministry of Tourism from October 27 to November 1, will bring together delegates from around 20 countries.

Delegates from China have also been invited to the annual event which is held, by rotation, in one of the North-Eastern states. The 2025 edition of the event was held in Sikkim, and was attended by government representatives and industry stakeholders from over19 countries.

Sources maintained it is a routine rotational event, but the decision to hold the event in Tawang is significant, coming as it does weeks after the government identified 27 places/features in Arunachal Pradesh by standard place and feature names on the official maps of Survey of India for “their accurate recognition and better awareness among the public at large”. Tawang in the eastern sector is a primary bone of contention in the boundary dispute between India and China.

Beijing refers to Arunachal Pradesh as Zangnan or South Tibet and claims that it belongs to China. New Delhi strongly rejects China’s territorial claim, reiterating that Arunachal Pradesh is an “inalienable and integral part of India”.

While government representatives from China have not attended the tourism event traditionally, there have been instances of private tour operators participating at the event since it offers a lot of scope for B2B tie-ups. At the 2018 edition in Agartala, over 60 tour operator delegates from different countries participated, including those from Bangladesh, Australia, Canada, China and France.

Sources said invitations for the Tawang event have been sent to all participating countries and industry delegations. Participation confirmation will be known closer to the event date, the sources said.

While a lot of focus is on building travel and tourism ties between the region and its neighbours, particularly the ASEAN and SAARC countries, representatives and stakeholders from other parts of the world also attend the event. Delegates from Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Germany, Italy, France, Thailand and Israel were among those at the 2025 edition in Sikkim.

For the edition in Tawang, the Ministry of Tourism is collaborating with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh. Union Ministers and state ministers will be attending the event over five days. Delegates will also be taken on a visit to Tawang Monastery, Buddha Park, Panga Teng Tso lake and Shernup village.

Divya A reports on travel, tourism, culture and social issues - not necessarily in that order - for The Indian Express. She's been a journalist for over a decade now, working with Khaleej Times and The Times of India, before settling down at Express. Besides writing/ editing news reports, she indulges her pen to write short stories. As Sanskriti Prabha Dutt Fellow for Excellence in Journalism, she is researching on the lives of the children of sex workers in India. ... Read More