Tourism News

Kerala Tourism releases ?God?s Own Country?

Department of Tourism recently released an illustrative book on Kerala, titled God?s Own Country, a masterful depiction of Kerala by M. F. Hussain and Shashi Tharoor. At a function held at the Government Guest House, Thycaud in Thiruvananthapuram, the Hon?ble Speaker of the Kerala State Legislative Assembly, Mr. Vakkom Purushothaman released a coffee table book on Kerala, titled ?God?s Own Country,? brought out by Kerala Tourism. The book is a compilation of drawings made by M. F. Hussain when he travelled the length and breadth of Kerala for a period of one month. His work in this series has been dubbed as ?Kalyanikuttiyude Keralam,? where he depicts the emblematic Kerala woman in all her splendour. The book also features, the exclusive thoughts of Mr. Shashi Tharoor, the Kerala born writer and the Under Secretary General of United Nations, rendering an immaculate blend to the masterful strokes of Mr. Hussain?s brush. Speaking on the occasion, the Speaker said that, Kerala Tourism should attain the level of perfection akin to Maldives, where 30-40 chartered flights touch down every day. He also lauded the farsighted initiatives taken by the officials of the Tourism Department, especially that of the Tourism Secretary, Mr. T. Balakrishnan and the Tourism Director, Mr. Alkesh Kumar Sharma. Tourism Minister Prof. K. V. Thomas, who addressed the gathering, said that Kerala today is not competing with other states in India but with the international giants like Malaysia, Indonesia, Spain and Germany in the field of tourism marketing. He cited the Kerala Tourism?s CD-ROM ?Kerala- The Green Symphony? as an example of a widely acclaimed marketing tool. The Union Government has cleared the Kerala Tourism?s proposal to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Singapore for tourism promotion. The State is also planning to bring in a Conservation and Preservation Act, which would be the first of its kind in the country, the minister added. Delivering the welcome speech, the Secretary of Tourism, Mr. T. Balakrishnan said that, ?Kerala tourism today stands out due to its innovative ways of publicity campaigns through the traditional media like the print, and also the new age media like Internet. The Director of Tourism, Mr. Alkesh Kumar Sharma delivered the vote of thanks. According to Mr. Sharma, the book ?God?s Own Country? is really an enthralling and illuminating piece of work by a gifted artist and a brilliant writer and therefore guarantees to be a delightful accompaniment to other tourism books in the State. The occasion also saw the Hon?ble Speaker releasing three brochures on Kerala viz. ?When the heavens touch the earth,? ?Heal yourself here? and ?Blossoming Business.?