Every year on 25th January, National Tourism Day is observed to raise public awareness of the importance of the tourism industry. It attempts to promote awareness of both India's natural beauty and the value of tourism to the Indian economy. The School of Commerce celebrated the occasion with a panel discussion involving industry experts under the theme, Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav - Celebration of 75 Years of Independence. The industry experts to join the event were Mr. Anjin Mucharla, Director of Sales - Pride Group of Hotels, Mr. Jagadeesh H, Director of Big Travels, and Mr. Nithin Yadav, Founder and CEO of Smash Over-Cloud Kitchen. Dr. G. Saravana Kumar, Professor and Mentor (BMS - THM), presented a small video on the theme Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav showcasing the tourism developments in the last 75 years of independence. He then showed another video and this one was produced by the Ministry of Tourism. The 20-minute informative video, India 75 Years, addressed a wide range of topics, from India's struggle for independence to the current situation of tourism in all of our states, with its many different cultures and religions.

Post Covid the Challenges Faced by the Industry and Future Prospects was the subject of the panel discussion. In the conversation, Mr. Anjin discussed the hotel industry. He claimed that Covid caused a large loss in the hotel industry that resulted in fatalities, layoffs, salary reductions, and a lack of business. He claimed that the hotel industry"caught business by diversifying into outdoor catering, events, food delivery, etc., and it has been a continual increase on the 45-degree line. When asked about the sector's future, he added that it would see continuous expansion and that there would be no flattening out or decrease in activity for the ensuing 30 years.

Mr. Jagadeesh spoke on how Covid has affected the travel and tourist industry. During the pandemic, he described having no business and closed offices for nearly eight months. He continued by saying that although things eventually got a little better, vaccination remained difficult, and as a result, the industry was only partially operating with much less revenue. Later, as government restrictions were relaxed and vaccinations were given to those under the age of 45, domestic travel rose. He talked about how business was booming and new travel options including caravan tourism. He responded, "Domestic tourism was doing excellent in India and India is a big market for tourism and people have good spending capacity," when asked which of the outbound, inbound, or domestic is doing well in India.

Nithin Yadav discussed the food and beverage sector. He remembered starting his cloud kitchen during his final year at JAIN (Deemed-to-be University). He said that he started this firm with a borrowing of Rs. 2 lahks from his grandmother and that it has grown to be worth Rs. 33 lakhs in just three years. He has increased the size of his kitchen and now takes on international chains. Nithin said post covid there was good business since people ordered more from home due to safety concerns and Government restrictions. He thanked Dr. Saravana Kumar for inviting him and asked students to gain maximum benefit from his experience.

Dr. Rachana Saxena concluded the panel discussion by summarising the important points and a vote of thanks was proposed by Dr. G Saravana Kumar. The National Anthem brought the event to a close.