Catering Business is Raking in Money Thanks to Alcohol Policy:

KOCHI: The setup of the liquor insurance plan may have incurred a huge loss to the state's tourism industry, but ironically it has helped bring cheers to the wedding caterers business community.
 

Caterers say there has been a significant increase in home gatherings and late evening home parties, following a government ban on offering liquor along with food in three star and two restaurants.

"People these days organize small party with family members or colleagues. Here alcohol goes freely along with food. We get many such party catering orders, inch said Abhishek Nair, overseer of chateau & Make Caterers. He said people surviving in Kochi have no choice but to plan these gatherings at their homes which has recently been going on for a year.

"Also, a relatively small gatherings of say 15-20 people prefer to order food from caterers, band rather than restaurants. Also, after their day jobs people don't have time or energy to serve large crowds anymore, " said Sajeevan CB, secretary of All Kerala Caterers Connection (AKAA).

He said there were a significant difference between the food that caterers, band make and food made in restaurants. "Caterers take special care to provide quality food, " Sajeevan said.

For instance, take those case of Masala Box, a Kochi-based food technology startup that gives you food boxes to specialists who rather eat cooked food.

#AKAA,  #Caterers, #liquor, #insurance, #wedding, #kochi

The World's Best Airline Caterers to be Announced

Every year, quality certification master Medina Quality names the best in-flight food providers in the business at a function festivity exhibited by a worldwide program of significant aircrafts that take an interest in the Quality and Safety Alliances In-Flight Services (QSAI). 

Displayed by Medina Quality, the QSAI honors recognize the top providing food organizations from over the globe out of a list of more than 220 cooking offices from more than 50 nations. 

"Today we are satisfied to declare the main 9 finalists," says Matthew Brown, Operations Manager - Client Relationship Management of Medina Quality - the organization in charge of conveying the QSAI program. "In March, the general victor will be delegated, alongside the top offices in the Americas, Asia, and Europe/Middle East/Africa." 

A year ago's Platinum Award for Worldwide Excellence - the most elevated honor generally speaking - went to LSG Sky Chefs in Munich, Germany, interestingly. The current year's candidate rundown is the freshest ever - 33% of the offices show up on the rundown interestingly. Be that as it may, will Munich effectively guard its position as the world's best? 

"Medina Quality planned the QSAI system to permit carriers to screen and enhance the quality and security of suppers gave by their cooks to guarantee they are ceaselessly meeting the guidelines of their clients" says Matthew Brown. "The QSAI Excellence Awards perceive the devotion these food providers have towards ensuring the wellbeing and fulfillment of travelers and team." 

Members in the QSAI Program incorporate Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge, Air France, Air Tahiti Nui, Aeroflot Russian Airlines, All Nippon Airways, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, Virgin Atlantic Airways, and Via Rail Canada. If you are looking for catering services in Chennai, Call 099620 99785

The chosen people during the current year's gold, silver, bronze and platinum grants are: 

Asia 

Kansai Inflight Catering Co. Ltd. - KIX (Kansai Airport, Osaka, Japan) 

Oberoi Flight Services - DEL (Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, India) 

Delta Airlines Narita Flight Kitchen - NRT (Narita Airport, Tokyo) 

EMEA 

LSG Sky Chefs – MUC (Munich Airport, Germany) 

Saudi Airlines Catering - DMM (King Fahd International Airport, Dammam, Saudi Arabia) 

Servair Nigeria – LOS (Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, Nigeria) 

Americas 

Entryway Gourmet – GYE (Jose Joaquin de Olmedo International Airport, Guayaquil, Ecuador) 

LSG Sky Chefs – EZE (Ministro Pistarini Airport, Buenos Aires, Argentina) 

Entryway Gourmet Canada – YYC (Calgary International Airport, Canada) 

The champs will be declared on March second amid an Excellence Awards Ceremony at the Ritz-Carleton Hotel in Montreal. The current year's celebration is an arrival home following four years of occasions held at select areas around the globe. 

- See more at: http://www.traveldailynews.com/news/article/70017/the-world-s-best-carrier caterers#sthash.12y

Railways starts e-catering at 2 TN stations

CHENNAI: 

  Pantry cars and food vendors at stations and trains may be a thing of the past as railways has introduced e-catering for all trains through which passengers will be able to order and have food delivered to their berths.

Named 'Food on Tracks' the facility will now be available at 45 stations, including Chennai Central and Madurai in Southern Railway. In a sign of things to come, travellers who are ready to pay premium price for quality food will be able to order muffins, burgers, sandwich, rotis and curries and other dishes and get them delivered to their seats. Three brands - Ratna Cafe, Dominos Pizza and Travel Food Services - have been roped in for Chennai. 

The facility was launched in September for trains that did not have pantry cars. The railways has now extended it to all trains that start at and pass through the selected stations. Passengers can order food online or from a call centre. 

A senior official said railways has already cut down on the use of pantry cars and are focusing on loading food at enroute stations for trains. "We have been trying to replace pantry cars so that more passenger coaches can be added to trains. The cost of running a pantry car is also high," he added. 

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IRCTC e-catering: Now order pizza, burger to your train berth

The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has launched a pilot project of a ‘station-based e-catering’ service allowing passengers to order meals as per their choice, which will be delivered at stations from popular private caterers.

In the first phase of the project, all trains passing through 45 specified railway stations, including nine in the east zone, namely Howrah, Sealdah, Guwahati, New Jalpaiguri, Patna, Bhubaneswar, Visakhapatnam, Kharagpur and Mughalsarai have been named.

The other stations under this project are namely, New Delhi, Allahabad, Kanpur Central, Lucknow, Varanasi, Chennai Central, Mumbai Central, Delhi, Bangalore city, Madurai, Amritsar, Thiruvananthapuram Central, Chandigarh, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Jaipur, Bilaspur, Anand Vihar, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Ludhiana, Secunderabad, Tirupati, Vijayawada, Chennai Egmore, Ernakulam, Kozhikode, Thrisur, Yasvantpur, Nagpur, Pune, Agra Cantt, Gwalior, Jhansi, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, Surat and Vadodara.

“Station-based e-catering will be only for stations and not on moving trains. The service will allow passengers to either order meals online at www.ecatering.irctc.co.in or by calling 0120-2383892-99/ 1800-1034-139 (toll free) or by sending SMS Meal to 139 with details of PNR and seat number and the meals will be delivered at their berth,” IRCTC group General Manager, East Zone Debashis Chandra told PTI.

Besides food from IRCTC-managed food plazas and fast food units, reputed food chains like McDonald’s, KFC, Switz Foods, Only Alibaba, Dominos, Haldiram, Bikanerwala, Nirualas, Sagar Ratna, Pizza Hut which have a wide variety in menu have entered into a tie-up with IRCTC to serve the passengers passing through these stations.

“On receiving the meals, passengers have an option of making payment online or through cash on delivery mode,” Chandra said, adding, the delivery of food would be made through authorised persons. If you are looking for Caterers in chennai, Call 9962099785 / 9884477695

“We have a dedicated call centre for this entire facility which is functioning from 6 AM to 10 PM,” he said.

Talking about cancellation of orders, Chandra said, “They will also have an option to cancel their order two hours before reaching the station where the meals are scheduled to be delivered to them. In cases passengers have made online payment for their order, the amount will be refunded after deducting a cancellation charge.”

On food prices, Chandra said, “Food prices are to be market-driven but we are focused that the food items supplied are hygienically packaged in eco-friendly, bio-degradable take-away packets and usage of plastic for packaging must be minimal if not totally eliminated. In fact, we will conduct regular checks of stations to ensure that meals items are provided to the passengers.”

It was learnt, that alongside e-catering, IRCTC was offering meals from “Jan Ahaar” (budget food), food plazas and fast food units.

This pilot project will be continued till end of March next year after which a review will be conducted on the performance, he said.

Tags: Caterers in Chennai, catering services in chennai

Largest Kitchens Of India: Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd

The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd.’s (IRCTC) central kitchen is one of the largest kitchens of India. IRCTC has its central kitchen in Noida, Uttar Pradesh that works round the clock in order to provide a hygienic, competitively priced and affordable meals to both rail passengers as well as corporate clients. This state-of-the-art food factory has an optimum capacity of about 25000 meals per day at Sector-64 Noida.

Currently, IRCTC  is operating major Base Kitchens at New Delhi and Howrah railway stations and Mini Base Kitchens at Patna and Ahmedabad. The one in Noida is fully automated and has all the latest equipment.

The four-storey facility makes 10,000 meals and 6,000 snack packets for trains and cater to PSUs, MNCs, BPOs and several educational institutions in and around Noida. Around 120 workers work in two shifts between 11 pm to 6 pm for the next day to supply the ever-increasing orders.

For Catering Services in Chennai , Call    9962099785 / 9884477695

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation: Shop with IRCTC RuPay card

Now passengers can do shopping by using the IRCTC RuPay prepaid card as Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation has expanded its range of service.

Now passengers can do shopping by using the IRCTC RuPay prepaid card as Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation has expanded its range of service.

IRCTC Union Bank Prepaid Card was launched in collaboration with the Union Bank of India and the National Payment Corporation of India in May.

Till now, the card is used only for rail bookings.  

The services are now being extended to allow payment at merchant locations like restaurants, malls and also for online shopping as we have got the necessary permission for expansion of the service, IRCTC Chairman and Managing Director, A K Manocha said.

The card allows for easy transactions on the railway booking website, with the first five transactions each month offered free of transaction charges, and an attractive rewards point system on every transaction. People seek bismi catering services in chennai

“The IRCTC Union Bank Prepaid Card has already notched up 7,000 users since its launch, and the number of prospective users is showing an upward trend,” Manocha said.

A PSU of the Railway Ministry, IRCTC had recently tied up with Amazon, a leading e-commerce company, to offer its customers the online shopping opportunities in addition to its regular travel ticket booking and hotel accommodation booking services.

“The IRCTC Union Bank Prepaid Card will further expand the online shopping preferences of our patrons, besides online rail ticketing,” Manocha said.

Tags: Caterers in Chennai| Marriage caterers in Chennai| Outdoor caterering services

Shahid Kapoor's wedding: 10 things you need to know

Shahid Kapoor's parents Pankaj Kapoor and Supriya Pathak are already in the capital for their son's wedding to Mira Rajput.

Tinsel Town and all Shahid Kapoor's fans are all geared up for one of the biggest weddings this year. The actor is tying the knot with Delhi-based girl Mira Rajput on July 7, and one could spot Shahid's parents Pankaj Kapoor and Supriya Pathak make their way to an upscale Gurgaon hotel in the National Capital Region on Sunday (July 5).

As Shahid and Mira get ready to say 'I do', here's a low-down on all you need to know:

1. Venue: After the Chattarpur home wedding, Shahid, Mira and their parents will make their way to the Gurgaon hotel for the after-party.

2. No Greece, No Bachelors': Shahid Kapoor's tight work schedule prevented him from hosting a bachelor's bash in Greece. The wedding, too, it had earlier been speculated, was to take place in the European country. However, owing to work issues, the actor had to give it a miss.

3. Bridal Shower: Mira's bridal shower-cum-bachelorette-party had taken place at her Chattarpur home earlier this year. Shahid was a part of the festivities.

4. Wedding Invite: The invitation card for Shahid-Mira's wedding had made its way to social media a couple of days back. Crafted in off-white and green colours, the card was a visual delight of sorts.

5. Only Family, Please: Pre-wedding ceremonies like the Sangeet and Mehendi is a family- and close friends-only affair.

6. High on Spirituality: The leader of Radha Soami Satsang Beas will also be present at the wedding to bless the couple. Both Shahid and Mira's families are members of the religious group, and it is there that the two had met.

7. Vegetarian Food: The menu for the wedding will be a vegetarian one, given the fact that both Shahid and Mira's families, and several people in attendance are members of the Radha Soami Satsang Beas. For the after-party, however, a lavish spread with dishes from both Indian and Continental cuisines will be on offer.

8. Paan, too: Apart from the food, various kinds of Jaipuri paan will also be part of the menu for the evening.

9. Wardrobe Details: While Shahid's wardrobe has been designed by his friend, designer Kunal Rawal, the task of crafting Mira's trousseau was Anamika Khanna's.

10. For Friends: After the wedding in Delhi, the newlyweds will fly to Mumbai, where a grand reception is planned for July 12. Shahid's film industry colleagues will be part of the celebrations.

Tags: Marriage Caterers in Chennai, Catering Services in Chennai, Caterers in Chennai

E-catering likely on 1,144 more trains

NEW DELHI: 

   The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has identified 1,144 more trains for extension of its ecatering service, which allows passengers to get the food of their choice from leading food chains delivered to their seat via online or SMS booking. At present, the service is available on 201 trains. 

Under the service, the focus is to make available a range of food items -from economy to finer preferences -for rail travellers. Budget food, supplied by `Jan Ahaar', is offered. At the same time, food from reputed brands such as Dominos and Bikanerwala are also made available to ensure good, hygienic and a wide variety of food to a cross section of travelers. 

( Visit for your Catering needs  Catering Services in Chennai, Caterers in Chennai )

A minimum order of Rs 60 has to be placed, at least two hours prior to the train's arrival at the selected station. In case a train is running late and reaches the meal delivery station beyond the service time (6 am-10 pm), the delivery of meal is not guaranteed.If food is not delivered to the passenger, full refund shall be made after deducting bank charges. 

As per its expansion plan, the IRCTC has called for expression of interest (EOI) to rope in high quality and a variety of players on a pan India basis. The PSU is hoping that entry of larger number of brandsproducts will open up a number of options for the passengers.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/E-catering-likely-on-1144-more-trains/articleshow/47608506.cms

Air India denies report of lizard found in meal

MUMBAI: National carrier Air India on Saturday strongly denied reports of any passenger finding a lizard in the in-flight meal served on board a Delhi-London flight on Thursday.  

"Air India has investigated the "incident" and has found it to be false and baseless. No such complaint by any passenger of the flight has been received on board the flight or at the Air India office in London," said the airline in a statement released on Saturday morning.

According to airline sources, the incident took place when the flight attendants were serving lunch on board the said flight on Thursday. 

"A flight attendant got the said meal from the galley and soon after it was placed on to the tray, the passenger was heard screaming," said a source. 

The lunch which was wrapped in a cling film had a lizard scurrying from under a burger, the source added. 

"The passenger was very upset and said that he would lodge a complaint with the airline on landing. He did not file a complaint then and there itself as he said he was not sure about the complaint reaching the airline," said the source. 

The unfortunate incident comes at a time when the national carrier is battling a huge debt of over Rs 40000 crore and one of the consequences was delayed payment to its caterers. 

"For months together the caterers had supplied meals on credit to AI. It then becomes difficult for the airline to crack the whip," said an airline source. 

Twitter Link: https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/609624071408480256/photo/1


Tags: Catering Services in Chennai , Marriage Caterers in Chennai, Wedding Caterers in Chennai

Catering firms fined over poor services to schools in Al Ain

The inspection team has also destroyed food items amounting to 56kg, for not meeting the prescribed standards and criteria.

The Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA) has fined two catering companies for providing poor services to schools in Al Ain.  The inspection team has also destroyed food items amounting to 56kg, for not meeting the prescribed standards and criteria.

According to ADFCA, the companies were fined for not meeting its approved safety requirements during an inspection at schools across the oasis city recently.

“During a visit to my daughter’s school, I found the canteen very filthy and food display was horrible. After that I stopped my daughter from taking food from the school canteen. Now she takes home-made food,” said Amina Hassan, a Pakistani homemaker, living in Hamdan Street.

Another parent Joyti Danesh, an Indian mother, also said she was not happy with the school catering services. “I never allow my son to buy food from the school canteen. He goes to school with home-made food. I don’t give him money fearing that he might be attracted to buy food from the canteen,” she explained.

The inspection, a second one during this academic term, was held during the night and was conducted by the Hospitals & Educational Institutions Control Unit of ADFCA. The inspection team also checked whether the staff were complying with the set health and food safety standards.

Thamer Al Qassemi, acting director of Communication and Community Service Division at ADFCA, said: “The inspections were carried out to confirm that all the school catering services fulfill ADFCA requirements.”

For  Catering Services in Chennai Call 9962099785 / 9884477695 & get best catering servicesfrom   Bismi Caterers in Chennai

Source: https://en-maktoob.news.yahoo.com/catering-firms-fined-over-poor-services-schools-al-060907128.html

Railway catering staff fined for overcharging

The catering staff of two trains have been fined Rs.50,000 each for overcharging passengers for food items following a surprise check here.

In the inspection carried out on Saturday it was found that the catering staff was overcharging passengers in Pune-bound Jhelum Express and Amritsar-bound Sachakhand Express, General Manager NCR Mahesh Mangal told reporters.

The catering staff was also not using a rate-list for the food items being sold. A fine of Rs.50,000 was imposed on both their managers, he added.

He said earlier NCR trains were being checked, now they are inspecting trains of different railways passing through their area.

In the inspection was conducted by Mangal and DRM NCR Agra, Prabhash Kumar, other shortcomings were also found like cleanliness, free movement of beggars on different coaches and the lack of adequate charging points in sleeper class. The general managers of concerning trains have been apprised of these problems, he added.

The general manager also took to task officers for not completing the construction of road of the second entrance to Mathura Junction.

He said the Railways is trying to provide more passenger amenities in A1 class Mathura Junction station and added that security in prestigious trains have been enhanced.

The general manager said they are promoting e-catering in order to provide better food to passengers.

Tags: Catering Services in Chennai, Caterers in Chennai, Marriage Caterers in Chennai

Global Catering Services gets Urban Cultivator

Abu Dhabi-based Global Catering Service has imported a machine called Urban Cultivator, which helps grow herbs, microgreens, vegetables, and flowers in a completely automated indoor growing appliance.

GCS operations manager Alaa Abu Saud said the usage process "is very easy", as watering and light cycles are controlled by an intuitive computer interface.

"In this day and age, we want fresh, healthy and most important but sometimes taken for granted, safe food for our family.

"With food recalls becoming more frequent and now appearing on a wider variety of foods, the right time to start growing is now. With the Urban Cultivator Residential you get 365 days a year of optimal growing conditions. Imagine feeding your family fresh herbs and greens all year long regardless of season," said Saud.

Tags: Catering Services in Chennai, Marriage Caterers in Chennai , Wedding Caterers in Chennai

Female catering staff forced to serve liquor

AHMEDABAD: A 20-year-old girl, employed on need-basis with a catering staff agency , has registered a complaint of molestation and assault on her and three women colleagues with Ranip police on Sunday.

The complaint was transferred to Dholera police station on Monday. In her complaint, Ankita Patel (name changed) has alleged that the event organizers forced them to serve liquor at a private party attended by 50-odd male guests. A chemical truck carrying Indian made foreign liquor (IMFL) worth Rs 27.80 lakh was caught near Bhachau in Kutch on Sunday night. The operation was conducted by the state DGP's monitoring cell. 

"We got personnel to get inside the tanker with torches to look around. The entire storage area was laden with boxes of liquor of various brands and beer. The interiors of the tank stank of chemical and it was impossible to stand inside for more than 20 minutes.Thus, when all 577 boxes containing 8,544 bottles were brought out, it took more than three hours," said a state monitoring cell official. 

The officials had got information about the tanker that was to pass from Bha chau in Kutch on Sunday night. When the tanker with the mentioned number arrived, the cops tried to stop it. However, the driver sped away . After a chase, the cops found the tanker abandoned on the road. 

"The driver had left the vehicle with its engine running. Also, there was no cleaner present. We are yet to get the documents related to the tanker registration. The tanker is registered in Sabarkantha district.Search for the driver and the owner of the tanker is on," said the official. 

The seized goods primarily include beer, whisky and dry gin. Police suspect Rajasthan and Haryana connection as they have got details from the packaging of the bottles about the manufacturer and batch number.

Tags: Catering Services in Chennai, Caterers in Chennai, Bismi Caterers Chennai

Hilton Shanghai awarded the first Outside-Catering Service License in the city

SHANGHAI - Rewarded for its commitment to Quality and Hygiene, the Hilton Shanghai is the proud recipient of the first official Outside Catering Service License issued by the Shanghai Food and Drug Regulatory Administration.

Speaking about this award, General Manager, Gerd Knaust comments, "Hilton Shanghai is honored to be the first-ever Shanghai hotel to be granted this official license. Clients can be even more confident and assured of our continued commitment to delivering superior catering services with a particular emphasis on standards of hygiene."

For more than a decade, Hilton Shanghai has been the official catering services supplier for several major sporting events in the city such as the ATP World Tour Masters and more recently the Volvo Golf Open Championship in Shanghai.

Mr Knaust also states, "This recognition will enable the hotel to strive to become the preferred provider of even more outside events in the city, as it acknowledges that we are dedicated to ensuring safe and superior food preparation within our Catering services."

Tags: Caterers in Chennai, Catering Services in Chennai, Bismi Caterers Perambur

DUM LAGAKE

A third generation chef set to present Bohri biryani in QSR format talks thaal bashing and a 'cocktail' minus alcohol.

History is unclear about whether Nawabi muslims of the north or Arab traders of the south are to be credited for introducing our countrymen to this fragrant rice dish. But every city has tried to add its flavour to the slow-steaming pan. 

So whether you prefer the mildflavoured North Indian biryani, the wetter West Indian variant or the potato fest that is Calcutta-style biryani, chances are you have an opinion on them all. One of the lesser known variants, surprisingly, comes from Mumbai - Bohri biryani. 

To the average Indian, the everyday meals of the Bohra community come across as nothing short of a gastronomic wonder. Several Bohra families still sit around a large thaal in time-honoured fashion and savour course after course of their meal. Though several vegetarian preparations in Bohri cuisine find their roots in Gujarati cuisine (like the festive palidu, a preparation of lentil rice served with curry) thanks to early Bohra settlements in the Kathiawar peninsula, it is the Afghan and Arab influences that stand out in curries and biryani. 

The Bohra community, we are told, will form an opinion about a wedding, based solely on the food, not by the gold adorning the bride. "You'll see an 80-year-old and a 10-year-old sitting side by side, bashing the thaal", remarks Chef Mohammed Bhol. The chef who previously helmed the kitchens at 212 Bar and Grill and Cafe Sundance, comes from the famous Bhol Caterers family at Nagpada.

In the frugal '60s, when India faced its most severe food shortage, prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri pleaded with the people to skip one meal every week. A single serving of vanilla ice-cream and Coca Cola was served at most weddings, and rice too had become a luxury. Bhol's grandfather, Hussenibhai Bhol would accommodate all budgets, despite the scarcity, and unflinchingly cater Bohra functions out of his modest home in Nagpada. From here, they grew to cater to large numbers and even ran a canteen in the Mantralaya building in the 90s.

For nearly four decades, the Bhols have safeguarded traditional recipes and immersed themselves in the family business. Now, together with partners Anurag Mehrotra and Krishna Kant, Chef Bhol aspires to make Bohri cuisine, and its aromatic biryanis in particular, more accessible through an upcoming Bohri biryani delivery service, Charcoal. 

Cooked the dum way with charcoals over a slow-fire, the marinated meat is smoked, then layered with half-boiled rice and slow-steamed in a sealed pot for two hours to trap all the aromas. The seamless marriage of flavours during the cooking process yields a moist biryani, instead of a drier pulao. 

Bhol's new creation, the cocktail biryani, adds chicken meatballs reminiscent of Delhi's kofta biryani in addition to chicken and mutton. The rice is perfectly cooked and the combination of shahi jeera (caraway seeds) and badi elaichi (black cardamom) lend fragrance to the dish without overpowering it. It is served alongside their creamy raita, or customary cold soup of split pigeon pea (toovar) called sarki. It's traditional meets contemporary. German equipment allows meats to be smoked on a conveyer, before being packed in large vessels to cook dum. 

Tags: Catering Services in Chennai, Caterers in Chennai, Wedding Caterers in Chennai

Traveller's diary: Mark the dates for Mumbai's food-fest and Karnataka's International Travel Expo

ET-Travel offers you events in luxury, entertainment, food, sports, music and nightlife to experience around the world.

Homegrown food festival 

When: May 16, 2015

Where: Khar Gymkhana grounds, Mumbai

- Here's a chance to visit India's premier homegrown food festival with a convergence of India's talent in food, music and entertainment. The festival will host over 40 locally sourced and freshly produced food and beverage products.

Visitors can enjoy the 12 live food stations by local restaurants, home-chefs and caterers each with unique cuisine to offer. A bazaar with a Goa-style night market vibe will showcase new-age and upcoming talent in fashion, lifestyle and art. Designer Salita Nanda will host a pop-up style studio with her summer collection and tips to look fresh this season. 

Tangerine Arts Studio will pop-up with a variety of workshops for the evening and a lovely Kids Area brimming with activities such as canvas splashing, art with veggies and more for the young ones.

Karnataka International Travel Expo

When: June, 2015

Where: Karnataka

- The Karnataka Tourism Forum (KTF) will organise the first edition of the Karnataka International Travel Expo (KITE) in Bengaluru in June 2015. .. 

Read more at:

Tangerine Arts Studio will pop-up with a variety of workshops for the evening and a lovely Kids Area brimming with activities such as canvas splashing, art with veggies and more for the young ones.

Karnataka International Travel Expo

When: June, 2015

Where: Karnataka

- The Karnataka Tourism Forum (KTF) will organise the first edition of the Karnataka International Travel Expo (KITE) in Bengaluru in June 2015 It will be a by-invitation-only event, and the attendees can choose one-on-one appointments from a select community of suppliers. 

C B Ramkumar, President, KTF shares his view, "KITE will be an international event where we will have a fixed number of hosted buyers who will be able to have an exclusive interaction with suppliers at pre-decided time slots. It will be a very systematic and planned event wherein we will aim at showcasing Karnataka to the world." 

Tags: Catering services in Chennai, Caterers in Chennai, Catering services Chennai

How travel startups like Footprint Holidays, Thrillophilia are catering to wanderlust Indians

HYDERABAD: 

  From chasing polar bears in the Arctic, a summer sojourn in freezing Antarctica, to a peaceful escape, ringing in World Yoga Day in serene Bhutan, all these and much more are on offer for the wanderlust Indian.

Travel startup are seeking out the discerning Indian traveller, offering them customised experiences at a premium.

With a potential of 50 million outbound tourists from India by 2020, players such as Footprint Holidays, Thrillophilia and new entrant Byond Travel are serving a niche market for the evolving Indian tourist. "The large and ultrahigh net individuals (HNIs) are an underserved segment. While we do plain vanilla holidays as well, nearly 35% of our market share comes from the luxury travel segment. Most of the other travel sites only borrow or buy technology," says G Viswanathan, CEO, Footprint Holidays.

Curated holiday packages don't come cheap; in fact, they can cost up to Rs 4 lakh per person on an average, around 10x the industry average. "Indians are willing to splurge on living in the best hotels across the world and often plan tours based on the property," adds Viswanathan. Unlike the online travel agents, these startup charge a premium on the range of services offered and ease of transaction. "Experiential holidays are a differentiator in the space and while these focus on tailoring an experience, we focus on the do-it-yourself model, where the planning can be done without a single phone call," says Amit Taneja, chief revenue officer at Cleartrip.

"Typically, planned holidays using our offering on small world or weekend getaways constitute 45% of the bookings. These bookings show approximately 15% difference in ticket-size as the customers value the experience more than economy," says Taneja, adding that the portal will look at introducing a common platform to make content-supported planning easier.

The number of Indians looking beyond Switzerland or Mussorie as vacation destinations has been on the rise, while many prefer travelling with interest groups focused on activities such as golfing, biking or local music and culture.

"There has been a clear shift to activity-focused vacations and there is no clear leader in the Asian market for the category. Activity segment can be high adventure such as hot air ballooning, low adventure or in the luxury space, a dinner on a yacht. Typically, we get multiple last-minute bookings, after people reach a destination and are looking to explore activities," says Chitra Gurnani Daga, CEO and co-founder of Thrillophilia. The travel site which works on a marketplace model for various tour and holiday operators raised an angel round in 2013 and is in the market to raise a subsequent round. Kyron-incubated Byond Travel focuses on delivering experiences along with a technologybased concierge service to users.

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Caterer killed in accidental firing, cops launch probe

TNN | May 10, 2015, 01.07 PM IST
INDORE: 
  Police are yet to make any arrest in Friday's late night accidental death wherein a 22-year-old caterer was killed after a loaded gun went off accidentally at Ghoonghat marriage garden on Kesar Bagh road. 

Annapurna police have registered a case under Section 302 of IPC and have launched a massive search to nab the two persons, whoa allegedly fired bullets. At midnight, the drunk duo, first fired shots outside marriage garden and then went to attend the wedding function. They also greeted few people minutes before the gun went off accidentally and the bullet hit the caterer Mahesh Bhargava on his head leading to death. Four caterers Mukesh Patankar, 21, Pappu Mujalde, 18, Avinash, 20, and Sohan Arya, 18 were injured in the incident. 

CSP Annapurna, RS Ghuraiya said, "Our teams are investigating the matter. We are capturing CCTV footage and video recording of the marriage function. We are also interrogating invitees to gather information about the accused. It seems to be a case of unintentional killing as the victim had no past rivalry." 

According to one of the eyewitnesses, an auto-rickshaw driver Shivam Yadav informed police that he was present when the accused fired shots outside garden. Later, the duo apologized. He also told police that one of the persons, who was wearing a Sherwani, fled the spot soon after the bullet hit one of the caterers. 

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Railways claim 39 budget promises on track

NEW DELHI:

  Railways on Wednesday claimed to have implemented 39 announcements made in the budget, ranging from passenger amenities and managing funds to infrastructure development in 36 days of the current financial year. 

The focus is on cleanliness as the transporter has set up a new department for housekeeping, introduced disposable bags for garbage disposal and dustbins in new non-AC coaches. 

While NIFT has been engaged for designing of bedroll, three new mechanized laundries have been started to supply clean linen which take the total to 33. Twenty nine more locations have been identified. 

Infrastructure upgradation was given a big push as the transporter signed MoU for creating an SPV with the coal ministry and Odisha government for coal transportation in coastal state. Similar pact was signed with the Jharkhand government. 

Rail connectivity to Dighi Port was approved through PPP. 

As fund crunch was the key issue, railways signed MoU with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) to provide highest ever funding of Rs 1.5 lakh crore. The move would help railways' growth through augmentation of its financial resources. 

Negotiations for financing railway projects through World Bank has also started. 

A helpline (182) has already being made functional for emergencies like crime against women, onboard unlawful activity, train accidents, need for medical attention and fire. Another helpline (138) has been launched to work as an interface for queries/complaints related to medical emergency, cleanliness, food & catering, coach maintenance and linen. 

'Operation 5 minutes' has been launched to help passengers purchase unreserved tickets within 5 minutes. 

Among other passenger services, railways is going to launch e-ticketing portal in Hindi while e-catering facility in 134 trains has been already being introduced. This enables passenger to place an order for a meal at his seat through a phone call or SMS. 

E-concierge services has been started in 22 railway stations. 

Passengers can now book retiring rooms online and can get SMS alert for advance arrival of train at destination. 

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New Tourism Policy to Make India Incredible

NEW DELHI:For long, India has been promoted as a spiritual hub. Now, the government wants to promote it as a honeymooners paradise, and everything that may fall between these two ‘destinations’. 

To promote India as ‘Must Experience’ and ‘Must Revisit’ destination, the Narendra Modi government has come out with a national tourism policy 2015 draft. The new policy gives direct access to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) in deciding the course of the crucial sector that is expected to contribute 6.7 per cent to the country’s GDP. One of the key co-ordination committee announced as part of the policy will be under the PMO, many aspects of Modi’s vision like Make in India, Swachh Bharat, Smart Cities, International Yoga Day and Skill Development are part of the draft policy.

The policy aims to cash in the tourist wanderlust to increase India’s share in world tourist arrivals from the present measly 0.68 per cent to 1 per cent by 2020 and then take it to two percent by the year 2025.

What makes the new policy different from the last one is the hike in ‘tourism products’ being offered, and the concrete roadmap to achieve that. It calls for putting tourism—currently a state subject—to the concurrent list to help the Centre play a significant role instead of being a mere accountant disbursing funds. From setting up a new university, volunteer force, policy for vintage cars, promoting separate boards for yoga, Ayurveda, heritage tourism, wellness and using the 25 million Indian diaspora, the 50-page policy touches on all aspects.

The policy will give something to everyone—from catering to weary souls looking for spirituality, India will market spirituality circuits based on Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism to ancient India’s contribution now discovered world over through yoga. It will also offer products based on medical and rural tourism, Ayurveda and heritage.

The draft policy released this week also lists beaches, rivers, backwaters, cruises, adventure, wildlife, festivals, shopping destinations,  cuisine trails showing the diversity of food, cinematic tourism, emerging concepts like heritage walks, and  lesser-known wedding destinations. If Hollywood is coming to India to get married in opulent palaces of Rajasthan in colourful and elaborate rituals, then Honeymoon Tourism will be a part of it. The new policy says it all.

“India is over-blessed with an array of offerings, each able to create a compelling invitation for travellers. This, however, risks causing confusion for travellers as to what to experience. It also risks overwhelm when travellers try to do too much on one trip,” says the policy, explaining the reason for careful preparation of these tourism products to help the discerning tourist decide on their itinerary.

The action plan suggests setting up of a National Tourism Advisory Board  headed by the Union Tourism Minister and state tourism ministers as members and an inter-ministerial coordination committee headed by the principal secretary in the PMO and comprising babus from other ministries. The Authority will also have ministry officials and industry representatives for execution of policies.  Officials said these bodies would help in addressing problems faced by state governments and stakeholders who offer services.

The new policy has also recommended setting up of a full-fledged university to prepare skilled workforce for the hospitality sector. The policy says that a certification mechanism will be started that will give an “India Specialist” certification. This certificate will help tourists to seek their services in choosing from an array of products and packages on offer.

The policy also suggests using the 25 million strong NRI community in 189 countries to act as brand ambassadors.

Policy Recommendations:

■ Tourism to be put on concurrent list

■ National Tourism Advisory Board under Union Tourism Minister

■ Inter-ministerial coordination committee under PMO

■  National Tourism Board

■  Empowered Regional Councils in different regions

■  India Tourism offices overseas to be nuclear but outsource PR and event management

■ Increase number of heritage sites on Unesco list

■ Certain percentage of ticketed revenue be given to monuments for preservation

■  Night viewing at ASI Archaeology monuments

■  Policy for vintage cars

■  Develop ‘Culinary Trails’ to showcase culinary heritage

■  Invite MasterChef Australia and similar culinary reality shows to India

■ Deploy ex-servicemen and trained volunteers at important tourist sites

■ Special Tourism Zones on the lines of SEZs

■ Provide free Wi-Fi connectivity at tourist centres in India

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