Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Let us inculcate the habit of travelling for leisure and pleasure among people, Telangana’s tourism minister Jupally Krishna Rao urged industry stakeholders gathered at the India Today Tourism Survey & Awards 2026 in Goa, lamenting the comparatively trifling figure of tourists in a country of 1.4 billion people.
Rao noted that while weekends in western societies were meant for travel and recreation, it wasn’t the case in India. “We need to reset people’s minds. Travelling at least two days in a month would be enough, to begin with,” the minister said in his keynote address on Telangana’s untapped potential as a tourist destination.
advertisement
Rao dubbed Telangana and Hyderabad as the “heart of the Deccan” where the Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb flourishes. “For over five centuries, Hyderabad has stood as a living model of pluralism, where Hindu, Muslim and diverse traditions enjoy harmonious coexistence. Step into our streets, and you will hear Telugu, Deccani and several other languages thriving together,” he said.
Stating that “nowhere such cultural synthesis is more deliciously evident than in Telangana cuisine”, Rao invited tourists to come and “savour the world-famous Hyderabadi biryani and haleem, served alongside traditional, soul-satisfying Telugu vegetarian delicacies”.
Later at the event, Rao received the best culinary destination category award for Hyderabad from Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, the Union minister for tourism and culture.
The Telangana minister listed several top tourist destinations in his state—Buddhavanam at Nagarjunasagar, Kolanupaka Jain temples, Kanha Shanti Vanam near Hyderabad spanning over 1,400 acres, the temples in Yadadri and Bhadrachalam, Warangal’s Thousand Pillar temple, the Alampur group of temples, backwaters at Somashila and Nallamala-Amrabad, and the Kawal Tiger Reserve.
While noting that Telangana currently receives only about 3 per cent of India’s total domestic tourist arrivals, Rao listed incentives, including capital and interest subsidies, that the government is offering under its new tourism policy “engineered for speed, transparency and high returns”. He aptly signed off with his state’s tourism mantra, “Telangana Zarur Aana!”
FIVE KEY TAKEAWAYS
* With over 100 notified forts, including Golconda, Warangal, Medak and Bhongir, and more than 3,000 protected monuments and archaeological sites, Telangana is a living, breathing open-air museum.
* Buddhism flourished in the Telangana region during the lifetime of Gautam Buddha. The state offers a first-mover advantage for spiritual tourism circuits that rival the traditional Buddhist trails of Bihar.
* Although Telangana receives only about 3 per cent of India’s total domestic tourist arrivals, the government sees “a monumental opportunity for visionary investors”.
* The New Telangana Tourism Policy offers incentives, such as capital subsidies up to 25 per cent of eligible capital investments and interest subsidies up to 5 per cent on term loans, full stamp duty and registration reimbursement for mega projects, and state GST share reimbursement for specified durations.
* Telangana offers various packaged circuits—Buddhist Trail, Wellness and Spiritual Circuit, Kakatiya Heritage Circuit, Deccan Sultanate Circuit, and Wildlife Safari Circuit.
Subscribe to India Today Magazine
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
