Thiruvananthapuram: Expressing his disappointment over denial of clearance by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to Kerala Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran to attend a United Nations meet in China, state Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reconsider the decision.

The CM said that they are concerned and disappointed at the denial of opportunity for promoting state tourism in an international forum.

(Copy of Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan's letter to PM Modi. Photo: CNN-News18)

Surendran wanted the nod to attend the 22nd general assembly session of UNWTO (United Nations' World Toursim Organsiation) to be held from September 11-16. Surendran’s office said the MEA gave no reason for denying the permission.

Surendran was invited by the UNWTO as a full-time member and no other ministers from any other state were in the list. He said the denial by the central government is an insult to the Kerala government and alleged that it might be due to political reasons.

The minister said that he applied in advance but the MEA kept on delaying the process.

The theme for this year's meet is Tourism and Sustainable Goals — Journey to 2030. Surendran said it was a great opportunity for the state to participate in such a meet. Kerala had received awards from UNWTO for their initiatives in "responsible tourism".