Latest news with #MohammedRiyas
India Gazette
08-07-2025
- Business
- India Gazette
Kerala's gender-inclusive tourism policy will support new entrants: Tourism Minister Mohammed Riyas
Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], July 8 (ANI): Kerala Tourism Minister PA Mohammed Riyas on Tuesday said the state government will go ahead with its action plan to support newcomers, especially women, to the tourism sector, aligning with the vision of inclusive and sustainable development of tourism. The Minister was delivering the inaugural address to the state-level consultation workshop to bring out a Gender Inclusive and Women-Friendly Tourism Policy as part of the women-friendly tourism initiative here. The workshop was organised by the Department of Tourism in collaboration with Kerala Responsible Tourism (RT) Mission Society and UN Women India. The two major objectives of the gender-inclusive project that took off in 2022 were to create women-friendly tourism centres and create a network of women enterprises in the tourism sector, the Minister said. 'It is vital to extend support to the newcomers to the tourism sector, especially women, to ensure that they flourish in the competitive ecosystem,' Riyas said. 'Initially, around 17,631 women had joined the project with diverse enterprises and services. These included exclusive women tour units, homestays, souvenir units and services like community tour leaders and tour operators. After imparting training to them, tourism activities are being conducted in a coordinated manner,' he said. The government also has allotted funds for the women's ventures through RT's subsidy scheme, Riyas said. The Minister said Kerala Tourism's women-inclusive project was greatly appreciated by the UN Women India, which also extended technical support in areas like destination safety, gender audit and training programmes. Riyas said Kerala was the first state to conduct a gender audit in the country. This has been completed in six centres and will be held in another 14 tourism centres this financial year. Also, a safety audit has been completed in 68 tourism spots, and activities are in full swing to implement women-friendly initiatives there. Holding that the women-friendly initiative will help overcome the challenges in the sector, Riyas said post-COVID-19, the state clocked a record in domestic tourists' arrival while outpacing other states in the national average of foreign tourists' arrival. In her opening remarks, Kerala Tourism Director Sikha Surendran said the women-friendly initiative of the state has become a global model for others to emulate it. 'Apart from firming up Kerala's position on the global tourism map as an all-season experiential destination, our RT initiative has brought significant benefits to the local communities, especially women as its major stakeholders,' she noted. S K Sajeesh, Chairman, Kerala Tourism Infrastructure Ltd (KTIL), presided over the function. A panel discussion followed the inaugural session. In her keynote address, Kanta Singh, Country Representative, UN Women, India, said Kerala has been showing the way for the country in many things, and it is a privilege to partner with the state government and the RT project to do more for women in the tourism sector. In his presentation of a framework for Gender Responsive Tourism Policy, K Rupeshkumar, CEO, Kerala RT Mission Society, said the upcoming policy will lay down guidelines for implementation, monitoring and evaluation of gender inclusive practices. 'The major objectives of the policy include fostering women's participation in the tourism industry, ensuring safety and security and women's empowerment,' he said. It will also address such issues as workplace practices, ensure safe work environments for employees and development of inclusive and accessible infrastructure and services in destinations. Rupeshkumar added an action plan for the implementation of each component of the policy will be worked out as a backup for the policy. The Gender Inclusive Tourism Policy will include stakeholders like tourism entrepreneurs, tour operators, hotels, local communities, tourists from diverse backgrounds, especially women. Mini Sukumar, Member, Kerala State Planning Board & Governing Body Member, The Gender Park, said a positive transformation has happened in the tourism sector after the implementation of a women-friendly initiative. S Swaminathan, Secretary, Kerala Travel Mart Society, and Jose Dominic, Founder, CGH Earth, also spoke. The speakers at the panel discussion included Veda Bharadwaja, Country Programme Manager, UN Women India and Dr Peeja Rajan, State Coordinator, UN Women India. (ANI)
Hindustan Times
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Kerala govt responds after RTI says ‘spy' Jyoti Malhotra visited as part of tourism campaign
Kerala tourism minister Mohammed Riyas on Tuesday clarified that the state government had no role in the selection of social media influencer and YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, who was arrested in May on suspicion of spying for Pakistan. YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra is under investigation for alleged espionage links with Pakistan. (File) 'Jyoti Malhotra was invited by the designated agency well before any case against her surfaced, and the Kerala government had no role in selecting influencers,' said Mohammed Riyas told reporters. Mohammed Riyas made the statement in response to allegations that Jyoti Malhotra, who has been arrested on espionage charges, was invited to promote tourism in the state. Some Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, including spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla, had cited an RTI reply to claim that Jyoti Malhotra had visited Kerala on an invite of the state government. "So Bharat Mata is blocked and Pak spies are given red carpet by the Left," Poonawalla had said. On Monday, the Communist Party of India (CPI) strongly condemned the alegations. "The Communist Party of India strongly condemns the BJP's attempt to drag the Kerala government into the Jyoti Malhotra espionage case to cover up its own grave failures on national security," CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar said in a statement. Kumar said it was outrageous to suggest that a state government was responsible for a YouTuber's travel to Pakistan when passport issuance, visa clearance, and intelligence monitoring are all under the control of the Union government. "Did the Kerala government approve her visits to Pakistan? Did it place her in contact with ISI handlers in Delhi? This is a desperate and politically motivated deflection," Kumar said. He also alleged that the BJP had a long list of embarrassments involving its members linked to "espionage and terrorism." National security is a central subject, and the BJP, which governs the Centre, cannot wash its hands of "repeated intelligence lapses and the growing list of individuals with links to espionage and terror from within its fold," the CPI leader said. "The people of India deserve accountability, not scapegoating and political vendetta," he added. Reports have quoted an RTI response saying Malhotra was among those invited by the Kerala government to a state-run influencer collaboration programme. Who is Jyoti Malhotra?
NDTV
07-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
'Spy' Jyoti Malhotra Was Kerala Government's Guest In Tourism Campaign
Jyoti Malhotra, the travel vlogger from Haryana's Sirsa arrested on espionage charges, was the Kerala government's guest in a campaign to promote tourism and visited the southern state during its influencer outreach initiative. According to a Mathrubhumi report, a query under the Right to Information (RTI) Act has revealed that the Kerala government funded the trip of 41 influencers chosen to promote the southern state as a global tourist destination. The state government paid for their travel, accommodation and food. It roped in a private agency to help them with shooting videos during their stay. Among these 41 influencers was Jyoti Malhotra. With the revelation prompting opposition parties to target the state government, Kerala Tourism Minister PA Mohammed Riyas said Jyoti Malhotra was invited along with other influencers to promote Kerala. "This was part of a larger influencer campaign aimed at promoting Kerala. Everything was done transparently and in good faith," he said. "This is not a government that facilitates espionage. The media must understand how government systems work. No one could have foreseen this." He said the allegations being made against the state government over inviting her are "pure propaganda" and that the state government "would never knowingly invite a spy". Opposition parties, including the Congress and the BJP, have targeted the Left Front government, questioning why the backgrounds of influencers invited for the campaign were not properly checked before reaching out to them. "RTI reveals Pakistani spy Jyoti Malhotra visited Kerala on Left government invite & was state guest in a sense courtesy Tourism Dept. So Bharat Mata is blocked and Pak Spies are given RED CARPET by Left? Tourism Minister Mohammad Riyas is son in law of Vijayan. He should be sacked.. and investigated," BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said in a post on X. During her stay in Kerala, Jyoti Malhotra visited Kochi, Kannur, Kozhikode, Alappuzha, Munnar, and Thiruvananthapuram. She shot vlogs on Theyyam performances and captured scenic locations. These vlogs were shared on her YouTube channel, Travel with Jo, and other social media platforms. The 33-year-old vlogger had visited the state before the allegations of spying surfaced. She was arrested in May 2025, in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor. Following her arrest, Haryana Police said Pakistani intelligence agencies were grooming her as an asset. A video of the YouTuber shopping in Lahore while being surrounded by men armed with AK-47 rifles indicated the kind of security and access she enjoyed in Pakistan, very unlike just another vlogger. Agencies are now investigating whether her videos may have served as a cover for gathering intelligence. Jyoti Malhotra, police have found, also visited Pakistan shortly before the terror attack in Pahalgam, which left 26 innocents dead.
New Indian Express
27-05-2025
- Climate
- New Indian Express
Heavy rains batter Kerala: Roads and railways disrupted, crops worth crores destroyed
Torrential monsoon rains accompanied by gusty winds continued to lash Kerala on Tuesday, disrupting road and rail traffic, flooding low-lying areas, and damaging crops worth crores of rupees. The incessant downpour over the past four days has battered agricultural land, particularly in the high ranges, and triggered incidents of uprooted trees, house wall collapses, and electrical short circuits across the state. Since the onset of the monsoon last week on May 24, three casualties have been reported, prompting the state government to open a dozen relief camps in affected districts, officials said. In Wayanad, 242.74 hectares of farmland have been destroyed due to rains, flooding and strong winds, while agricultural crops in 101.47 hectares of land have been lost in neighbouring Kozhikode district, authorities said. The falling of uprooted trees on railway tracks has caused great concern in northern districts since last night. Several trains are running four to five hours behind schedule due to blockages caused by fallen trees. An electric line fell upon the track in the Kozhikode-Areekode route following the uprooting of a huge tree, authorities said. It took a few hours for the authorities to clear the track and restore normal train traffic on the route. According to railway sources, many trains, including Thiruvananthapuram-bound Vande Bharat Express and Parasuram Express, reached their destinations late. State Public Works Department Minister PA Mohammed Riyas visited the railway tracks near Kozhikode to assess the damage and said the railways had been alerted to manage trees along the tracks. 'Meetings and review sessions with people's representatives were held as early as April. However, this time the weather has changed drastically, which is part of the challenge,' he said. According to the local meteorological office, heavy rainfall was recorded Tuesday morning in Thrissur, Kozhikode, and Kannur districts, with Vellanikara in Thrissur reporting the highest rainfall at 114.7 mm, followed by 113.4 mm in Kozhikode city and 113.2 mm in Kannur.
Time of India
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Kerala govt sanctions Rs 75 lakh for international mountain biking competition
T'puram: The state govt has sanctioned Rs 75 lakh for organizing the seventh edition of International Mountain Biking Challenge — MTB Kerala 2025 — which aims to put Kerala on the global map of mountain biking competitions. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The date of the competition is yet to be decided. An amateur cycling competition for Indian cyclists will also be held, and the winners will compete at MTB. The move aims at developing the state into an adventure tourism destination. MTB Kerala, promoted by the state tourism department, will be held at Priyadarshini Tea Plantation in Mananthavady, Wayanad. Indian and foreign cycling stars will participate in the championship, a press release stated. The 5-km track where the competition will be held is at an altitude of 3,000 feet. The championship's main attraction is the cross-country competition section, which covers terrains such as mud, rocks, and water. Kerala Adventure Tourism Promotion Society (KATPS) and Wayanad district tourism promotion council (DTPC) are organizing the championship in collaboration with Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and Cycling Federation of India (CFI). "Adventure tourism is drawing much attention globally. Kerala has excellent potential to emerge as a destination for adventure sports," said tourism minister PA Mohammed Riyas. MTB Kerala has also been included in the calendar of Union Cycliste Internationale, the Switzerland-based world governing body for sports cycling.
