Business Plans
iDeCK has assisted the Department of Tourism, Karnataka, in setting up of Karnataka Tourism Infrastructure Limited (KTIL), an initiative towards institutional strengthening. KTIL has been set up to promote tourism, invest in the development of tourism infrastructure, identify land banks and develop flagship projects.
Transaction Advisory Services
Since inception, iDeCK has been advising tourism departments of various states in the areas of tourism infrastructure development and redevelopment of tourism assets. Tasks include carrying out feasibility studies/DPRs, structuring projects for appropriate implementation framework, preparation of bid documents and bid process management for selection of developers/operators/contractors. Some of the other significant accomplishments include:
- Successfully closed the TA services for the International Convention Centre, Bangalore worth INR 10 billion.
- Successfully bid out about 40 tourism properties, belonging to KSTDC in Karnataka.
- Successfully bid out about 27 tourism properties, belonging to JTDC in Jharkhand.
- TA services for about 9 dam site developments in Karnataka & Jharkhand.
- Successfully closed TA services for 4 beachside luxury hotels in Andaman & Nicobar Islands and 1 in Daman & Diu.
- Successfully closed TA services for a 3 star hotel property belonging to a quasi-Government entity in Karnataka.
- Development of tourist complexes and facilities in Kerala.
- Operation of Golden Chariot luxury tourist train in Karnataka.
- Development of tourism-related infrastructure at Mana palla lake, Udupi.
- Development of Heli tourism in Karnataka.
- Development of Malpe Isle Beach resort at Malpe Beach, Udupi.
- Development of Buddha Smriti Udhyaan at Patna.
- Development of aerial passenger ropeway at Pahari Mandir, Ranchi; Kauleshwari Devi Mandir, Chatra and Dalma Hill at Saraikela-Kharsawan in Jharkhand, India.
Tourism Program Management Units
Program Management Unit, DoT Jharkhand
iDeCK has established a tourism PMU (Programme Management Unit) in DoT, Jharkhand for a period of 4 years. The PMU consists of a front-end team (13 members) and a back-office team (15 members). The front-end team assists the DoT on day-to-day managerial and administrative works. The back office team assists in creating a road map for tourism and undertakes the preparation of master plans, feasibility studies, DPRs and transaction advisory services for the department. As a part of the PMU, iDeCK has been assisting in various activities such as:
- Preparing master plans, feasibility studies and DPRs for various destinations and circuits pertaining to spiritual tourism, ecotourism, adventure tourism and tribal tourism.
- Assisting the Government of Jharkhand for the selection of media/creative/event management agencies for the promotion of Jharkhand tourism.
- Assisting the Government of Jharkhand in the preparation of necessary support documents related to the selection or allocation of works to empanelled consultants for the development of tourist infrastructure in the state.
- Participating in various stakeholder coordination meetings, tourism events and marts, meetings convened by state/central Governments within as well as outside the state.
- Assisting in conducting site inspections and third party scrutiny of detailed estimates and drawings.
- Monitoring the work of other sub-consultants and vendors.
Program for the Implementation of Karnataka Tourism Vision Group (KTVG) Initiatives.
Karnataka Tourism Vision Group (KTVG) Initiative is an ambitious initiative of the Government of Karnataka launched with an objective to provide a road map for making Karnataka a tourist experience destination on par with international standards.
The effort required planning, strategizing and coordination with 25 eminent citizens of Karnataka towards facilitating the development of various tourism projects. iDeCK undertook the following activities as part of the effort.
- Assisted in conceptualisation of projects in terms of experiences that could be developed to attract footfalls and create a fulfilling visitor experience.
- Prepared ToRs and conducted bid processes for the selection of suitable consultants/vendors to execute identified projects.
- Monitored the progress of works allocated to any consultants/architects/vendors and provided weekly progress reports to KTVG related to pending works and completion of major milestones.
Strategic Program for the Development of Tourism Infrastructure
iDeCK has conceptualised and initiated the Strategic Program for Development of Tourism Infrastructure in Karnataka, an initiative to develop tourist destinations in the state and identify new destinations with potential. iDeCK has appointed tourism consultants in each district on behalf of DoT to be led by the iDeCK team. These consultants work closely with the district administration and iDeCK to collect requisite information, which is further assessed and analyzed by iDeCK to arrive at a desired outcome for the identification and development of tourist destinations.
The effort resulted in:
- Increased efficiency at district offices due to placement of tourism consultants, trained by the team.
- Identification of more than 1200 tourist spots in the state of Karnataka (most of which are not popular among tourists)
- Availability of data/information on tourist destinations, infrastructure status, tourist statistics and project in formation on a MIS platform.
MIS Tourism Platform ( PRATHAMA )
iDeCK has developed ‘PRATHAMA’ (Pravasi Thana Mahiti), a holistic online MIS platform for the Government of Karnataka, a-first-of-its-kind solution in India for collecting, collating and disseminating key information on the tourism sector. PRATHAMA is a unified information database providing important ground-level information that would be of use as a decision making tool for the department to plan and implement projects.
PRATHAMA also has a Notification and Alerts feature through auto-generated SMS and email, promoting users on the action to be initiated. The portal could also be used to register home stays with an option for the owner to register his property with the department. The home stay owner is intimated at each stage of the process through an auto-generated SMS and email.
PRATHAMA has the following key modules:
Tourism Resource Inventory which would capture information relating to:
- Existing natural, cultural and man-made tourism spots in the state (forests, hill-stations, temples, forts, beaches etc.)
- Tourism infrastructure such as hotels, homestays, heritage locations, transport and transport enablers.
- Facilities created for supporting tourists: public sanitation, information kiosks, parking, security.
- People/communities involved in the tourism activities (cultural performers, artists, craftsmen, wildlife/temple guides, historians etc.)
Data on Tourists: This would capture information on tourists visiting the spot/destination.
Status of Projects: This module would capture up-to-date information on various projects of the department, funds disbursed, funds utilized and the status of the project.
Query and Reports: The system allows for obtaining query-based reports on various parameters. Queries and reports also have a map-based visualization which would bring out spatial dimensions of tourism in the state. Data and reports on various tourism-related aspects would now be available to the department at the click of a button.
Program for Rating of Tourism Products & Services
iDeCK is also the nodal agency managing the rating of tourism products in Karnataka, a novel concept where rating is done by independent agencies, a-first-of-its-kind initiative in India.
The Government of Karnataka has identified about 18 tourism products as part of the Karnataka Tourism Policy 2015-20 eligible to avail incentives and concessions from the Government. In order to ensure quality of service delivery the Government has linked the rating of the assessed product/service.
For the effort, iDeCK has assisted the Government in empanelling 4 SEBI Registered Rating Agencies and has devised rating parameters after intense deliberations with these agencies.