Centre has taken several measures to improve tourism facilities in the North East Region. Speaking at the 2nd Inter-State Regional Conference of the Tourism Ministers of the Eastern and North Eastern States, Union Tourism Minister Subodh Kant Sahai said the special initiatives has been taken by the Tourism Ministry for the North East Region which include grant of Central financial assistance for construction of helipad in Sikkim, promotional campaign of North East region in the print and electronic media, relaxation of norms for recognition of service providers in the North Eastern States and helping the efforts of the state governments in obtaining relaxation of Restricted Area Permit for tourists from the Ministry of Home Affairs.He said tourism sector in India had grown steadily with foreign tourist arrival growing by 8.1 per cent in 2010. He said the foreign exchange earning has also registered a growth of 16.6 per cent over the same period.