9th India International Hotel, Travel & Tourism Research Conference 15th – 16th February, 2019

Banarsidas Chandiwala Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology,

New Delhi, India Banarsidas Chandiwala Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology inaugurated the 9th India International Hotel, Travel and Tourism Research Conference (IIHTTRC) on February 15, 2019 supported by National Assessment & Accreditation Council, as well as Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi. IIHTTRC, the two day conference, is one of the most outstanding forum involving Hotel, Travel and Tourism Industry. The aim of this conference is to get industry managers, tourism and hospitality researchers together and to provide a platform, for deliberating on the current trends and issues associated with the travel and hospitality business.

The event commenced with the traditional lamp lighting ceremony in the presence of Chief Guest Mr. Achin Khanna, Managing Partner- Strategic Advisory HOTELiVATE; Dr. Nitin Malik, Joint Registrar, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University; Mr. Nisheeth Srivastava, Principal, Institute of Hotel Management, Kolkata; Dr. Jatashankar R. Tewari, Assistant Professor, School of Tourism & Hotel Management, Uttarakhand Open University; Dr. Sarah Hussain, Principal, BCIHMCT and Mr. Alok Aswal, Dean – Administration, BCIHMCT alongside other dignitaries, trade media, paper presenters, faculty members and students. Dr. Sarah Hussain, Chairperson, IIHTTRC welcomed the guests citing “The real strength of the conference has been the inclusion of quality management for a comprehensive coverage of scientific and social researches involving hospitality business and education” and declared the conference open.

Mr. Khanna enlightened the gathering with qualitative and quantitative aspects for redefining hospitality. Apprising the intellectual crowd with Change - Innovation – Disruption, being the driving force of today’s business, he stated that, “We are in the business of space and time, where space is finite and time is infinite. There has to be a vibe of spontaneity to deliver customized experiences, to the millennial customers”.

Dr. Malik presented a keynote address on “Quality & sustainable education in the field of Tourism & Hospitality – Indian Scenario”. He emphasized on the fact that education encompasses the whole of the culture and understanding as well as incorporating cultural aspects is a vital step towards the future growth of hospitality & tourism industry. He urged the students to be dynamic and imaginative for being worthy of progression in their career.

The “Indian Journal of Applied Hospitality & Tourism Research” Vol. 11, (ISSN 0975-4954) was unveiled by the dignitaries. Selected quality articles, research papers and case studies that highlight the issues related to the theme in different aspects from academicians, practitioners and policy makers have been published in the annual Hospitality Management Journal, indexed with ISRA. Selected papers from the conference have also been published in an ISBN Book no. 978-81-920850-8-1.

Mr. Alok Aswal, Convener, IIHTTRC thanked the guests for participating and making the conference a grand success. The technical sessions following the inaugural ceremony shall cover research presentations on themes related to Hospitality education & managing human resources; Issues & challenges in hospitality & tourism; Hospitality & tourism marketing; Food safety, wellness & trends.