The Postgraduate Dept of Commerce of V.V.M.’s Shree Damodar College of Commerce & Economics organized a study tour to Kerala from November 21st to 26th 2016. 48 students and 4 faculty members participated in the tour.
The first activity was a visit to Alleppy for a backwaters cruise.Alleppy is one of the most attractive tourist destinations in Kerala. The tour guide explained various activities held during the season and special festive occasions such as boat race competition & film shooting. Initially houseboats were considered as a convenient means of transportation having thatched roof cover over wooden hulls and now the houseboats in Kerala are used for leisure trips. The modernized boats have large bedrooms, toilets, a kitchen and an open balcony. The state government plays an important role in promoting back water cruise activity over the river bank by way of funding and subsidies for boat structure building. Kerala Canon tourism also offers conference facility to their customer as per their requirement.
The next day began with a visit to the Tatatea gardens, Mattupetty dam, Kundala dam and Eco point which are the most famous tourism destinations in Munnar. Various fun & adventure activities such as horse riding, boat riding, shooting etc were carried out. Later, the tour group visited the Tata Tea factory and Tata Museum. The students got an opportunity to observe the processing of tea leaves and were explained about the history of tea evolution in world, first tea plant in India, importance of tea in our daily life, benefits of green tea, right procedure of preparing tea, its production process etc.
The tour group observed the Chinese Fishing Nets in Cochin which is a unique method of fishing at the coastal belt. The group also visited St. Francis Church which was built in 1503 and is the oldest European church in Indiaand has great historical significance.
The visit to the School of Management at Cochin University of Science & Technology was a very fruitful experience. The Director, Mrs. Molly Koshiintroduced the management school, various courses/ programme such as MBA-IB (International Business program, Managerial Skill Development) etc. teaching-learning pedagogies and academic activities such as seminar, case studies workshop, Skype online session by industry experts, student progression profile &placement service such as placement brochures to recruiters, best practices such as “Varivartan” women empowerment club & research activities and so on. The next visit was toLullu International Mall in Cochin. TheStore layouts, Merchandise Planning & Assortment, Pricing strategies & Promotional tools were areas where students could relate the theoretical knowledge.
On the 1st day, the group travelled to Ernakulum for a full day excursion at Wonderla. The students enjoyed water slides, Dry rides, Games, Rain dance etc. Wonderla Holidays owns and operates the popular Wonderla Amusement Park in Kochi, which was originally called Veegaland until it was re-branded in April 2011. This park is situated on the top of a hill at Pallikkara, 12 kilometers from the city of Kochi. Wonder la is one of the only 2 amusement parks in India to implement OHSAS 18001:2007 safety standards. It has water treatment plants to recycle process and filter all types of water. The park has a water quality control laboratory to monitor quality levels of water used for different purposes.It has planted more than 2000 trees in order to develop natural shade in the park. The park also has an extensive rainwater harvesting system that collects even roof rain water for drinking purposes. The rain water is collected in various tanks depending on the quality and intended usage, and has a combined capacity to collect over 20 million liters. Wonder la also uses solar energy extensively to heat water in pools and kitchens. Wonder la has manufactured India’s largest and tallest Ferris wheel- The Sky Wheel in its park.
The tour concluded with thearrivalat the Margao railway station at 11:30 a.m. on 26th November. The tour was an enriching and memorable experience for students and teachers alike.
