Indian (Airlines) flies to Melbourne

Melbourne, Feb 18 (UNI) Tourism and industry mandarins of Victoria in Australia are likely to get a boost following Indian's (Indian Airlines) decision to start regular flights to the state's Capital from November.

Melbourne would be the sole Australian destination for the Indian carrier, the Victorian Industry Minister Theo Theophanous said today.

The largest south Asian domestic airline would fly from five Indian destinations -- New Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Bangalore -- to Melbourne. The flights would come to Melbourne via Singapore.

The decision would, the minister said, bring an employment boost to the second most-populous state of Australia.

The first Indian flight from New Delhi would take-off on November 1 while flights from other cities will begin by January 2008, according to media reports.

The minister said the move is another sign of the state's growing relationship with the expanding Indian market.

Victoria's Tourism Minister Tim Holding pointed out that India's burgeoning middle-class makes an ''increasingly important visitor market'' for Victoria.

''India is the second largest travel market in Asia after China and one of the region's fastest growing markets,'' Mr Holding was quoted by Australian media as saying.

''Indian Airlines will give Victoria an edge in marketing initiatives for next summer's cricket between Australia and India, as well as programmes to develop education and business tourism,'' the minister added.

In the year to last September, Victoria hosted 29,000 visitors from India.

India also sends the largest number of international students to the universities and colleges across Victoria, which played host to the location shooting of Bollywood blockbuster 'Salaam Namaste'.

UNI