Expectations have been raised that a large shopping festival in Kerala will help bolster tourism in the state
The upcoming Grand Kerala Shopping Festival (GKSF) is being targeted as an event to help establish Kerala as a major hub of tourism and shopping for visitors to India.
People will be catching flights to Thiruvananthapuram to enjoy the festival from December 15th this year to January 31st 2013 and the importance of it to the local economy was highlighted by executive director of the South Indian Bank (SIB) Abraham Thariyan.
Speaking as he signed a deal with the state’s tourism minister Anil Kumar for SIB to remain the GKSF title sponsor, Mr Thariyan remarked: “Tourism and trade are among the fastest growing sectors in Kerala.
“GKSF has successfully brought the two together to the advantage of both the consumer and the government.”
Visitors to Kerala can discover the joys of the state for themselves, before the rest of the world is alerted to its tourism attractions.
Among these is the Western Ghats region of forest and mountains, which became a Unesco World Heritage site this year.
Written by Anthony Nicholson
