Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco has joined President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in his state visit to India to pursue talks on establishing direct flights between Manila and New Delhi.

According to the Department of Tourism (DoT), Frasco will meet with executives of India’s aviation sector, including flag carrier Air India, and India’s largest budget airline, IndiGo, as well as hotel, resort, and travel company officials.

In June this year, the Indian Embassy said Air India will roll out its non-stop flights between Manila and New Delhi starting 1 October, boosting visitor arrivals from the coveted Indian market.

Fights will be scheduled on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays on Air India’s Airbus A321neo aircraft. The Philippines earlier introduced visa-free entry for Indian tourists for up to 14 days.

More meetings set

Apart from India’s aviation sector, Frasco is set to meet with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, a non-government business group that is the oldest and largest in India, to zero in on strategies to boost the number of Indian visitors to the Philippines and explore ways to encourage Filipinos to travel to India, among other things.

Moreover, the tourism secretary will also have a meeting with the National Film Development Corporation Limited, a film producer based in India, for potential areas of collaboration.

President Marcos, at departure rites at Villamor Air Base on Monday, said there is a lot of potential for cooperation with India that will mutually benefit both countries’ people.

“We intend to explore these by charting a plan of cooperation across a broad spectrum of shared interests — from defense to trade, investment, health, pharmaceuticals, connectivity, agriculture, tourism, and many other areas,” the President said.