TBM Staff - Mumbai India and the US will have a bilateral meeting during the G20 events in Goa during which both sides will seek to boost cooperation in the tourism sector, officials said. The bilateral meeting assumes significance as it will take place at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to the US on a state visit. About 75 delegates have registered so far for the G20 Tourism Working Group (TWG) meeting, and close to 150 delegates have registered for the G20 Tourism Ministerial meeting, slated to be held in Goa from June 19-22, a senior official in the tourism ministry said during a press interaction. Asked if BRICS countries, including Russia and China, have registered, he said, “Russia has registered, but China has not registered so far.” It was not immediately known if China will attend or skip the two key events in Goa. It had not attended the third TWG meeting in Srinagar held in May.
Asked if delegates from the US and India will have bilateral meetings during the G20 events here, Additional Secretary in Tourism Ministry, Rakesh Verma, said, “The US delegation is having a bilateral meeting with India.” The bilateral meeting is expected to take place on June 21, officials said.
Prime Minister Modi is visiting the US from June 21-24 at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden. Union Tourism Secretary V Vidyavati said that the fourth and the last Tourism Working Group Meeting (TWG) of the G20 taking place in Goa was a “perfect grand finale” of the tourism track meetings held so far. “It is happening at one of the best locations, Goa, rich in cultural heritage and natural scenic beauty. There will be side events too besides the TWG, and at the end of the two meets, the Goa Roadmap and Action Plan for tourism as a vehicle for achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) will come out,” she said. (Source The Print)
