Sharjah: After a successful campaign in Europe, the UAE emirate Sharjah will launch a pan-India road show from September 15 until September 22 to woo Indian tourists. The 2014 road show in India is being hosted by the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority in cooperation with Air Arabia airline and Sharjah's hotel and tourism industry. The promotional campaign will see Sharjah promote itself in Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore. Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, director general of the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority, said India was one of the most crucial and promising tourism markets for Sharjah.

The United Arab Emirates attracts thousands of tourists and visitors from India every year. "This is an ideal time to visit Sharjah which is known the world over for its celebration of culture, family, tourism festivals as well as art and culture events," said Al Midfa. Sharjah received more than 1,23,010 visitors from India last year, registering a whopping 41 per cent growth over the previous year. These numbers are expected to grow steeply in the months and years ahead. Sharjah also offers tremendous opportunities for Indian students, professionals and investors, Al Midfa said.

The fact that Air Arabia now has a vast daily flight network in place covering the length and breadth of India is also in part due to the large Indian community residing in the UAE. The budget airline now flies to 13 cities in India: Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Goa, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Coimbatore, Kochi, Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram and Nagpur. The Sharjah road show will begin with Mumbai (September 15), followed by New Delhi (September 16), Hyderabad (September 18), Chennai (September 19) and Bangalore (September 22).