At the invitation of the Government of India, the fifth session of the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (WTO) will be held in New  Delhi from 3rd October to 14th  October, 1983. Nearly 500 delegates from the 105 member countries of WTO will take part in the session which will be held at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi. The Assembly session will be inaugurated by the President of India, on 3rd October, 1983.

The World Tourism Organization is an inter-governmental body concerned with the development and promotion of tourism all over the world. Besides the membership of the above 105 countries, it has several Associate Members from the travel industry such as airlines, tour operators, hoteliers etc. WTO is located at Madrid, Spain.

WTO is the only organization whose activities cover all sectors of tourism  on a world-wide basis. It provides an international forum where tourism officials and tourism experts discuss problems and exchange ideas in order to organise, administer and manage tourism programmes and thereby develop and promote tourism for the economic, social and cultural awareness of the nations. WTO is the implementing agency of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with regard to tourism projects all over the world.

India has been taking a leading role in the activities of this Organization and in fact is an elected member of WTO's Executive Council. The fifth General Assembly will meet in Delhi as a result of the invitation extended at the last Assembly meeting held in Rom in 1981 by India's Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation.

The General Assembly in New Delhi, among other things, will discuss development and promotion of international as well as domestic tourism, importance of tourism as an economic activity, study of tourism's contribution towards protecting environment and giving due importance to tourism by the  member countries in their developmental activities. The fifth General Assembly in New Delhi will include 21st and 22nd sessions of WTO Executive Council, the meetings of the six Regional Commissions including that of South Asia and also the meeting of the Committee of the Affiliate Members.

Indian Posts & Telegraphs Department is happy to issue a special  stamp on its occasion.

Source : Information Folder issued by Indian Posts & Telegraph Department, Government of India