Maharashtra is one of India’s richest cultural regions, and its Buddhist heritage forms a particularly significant part of this legacy. The state has the highest number of ancient Buddhist rock-cut caves in India, reflecting a vibrant monastic and artistic tradition that flourished from the 3rd century BCE to the 7th century CE. Iconic sites such as Ajanta, Ellora, Karla, Bhaja, Kanheri and Junnar illustrate the development of chaityas, viharas, stupas and murals, and highlight Maharashtra’s historical role along major trade routes linking the coast with the Deccan. These cave complexes attract international visitors, especially from East and Southeast Asia, as well as large numbers of domestic tourists and academic groups. Despite their importance, issues like overcrowding, limited connectivity and conservation challenges persist. With improved infrastructure, heritage interpretation and sustainable tourism planning, Maharashtra has the potential to become a leading global centre for Buddhist tourism and cultural appreciation.

The rapid rise of short-form video platforms such as Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts has transformed the landscape of digital brand communication. This study explores how short-form video content contributes to the development of brand awareness among young consumers. A quantitative approach was adopted using a structured questionnaire administered to 150 respondents aged 18–30. The findings indicate that short-form videos are strongly associated with brand awareness, brand recall, and brand recognition. Creativity, frequency of exposure, and authenticity emerged as significant elements that enhance the effectiveness of short-form video marketing. The study establishes that short-form video content is a strategic communication tool capable of strengthening brand presence in a competitive digital environment.

Maval Tahsil, located in the Pune district of Maharashtra, is a region rich in historical and cultural heritage, with numerous forts such as Lohagad, Visapur, Tikona, and Tung that stand as symbols of the Maratha era. The growing interest in historical tourism has significantly influenced the socio-economic landscape of rural areas within Maval. This study examines how heritage-based tourism contributes to rural development through employment generation, infrastructure improvement, and the promotion of local arts and culture. It also explores challenges such as environmental degradation, commercialization, and inadequate tourism management. The findings highlight that sustainable historical tourism can serve as a powerful tool for inclusive rural growth if supported by proper planning, community participation, and government initiatives. Thus, preserving historical sites while enhancing tourism infrastructure can ensure balanced development and long-term benefits for the rural population of Maval Tahsil.

The global tourism sector is undergoing a profound paradigm shift driven by systemic crises, accelerated digitalization, and intensifying socio-ecological pressures. Traditional linear development models—such as Butler’s Tourism Area Life Cycle—prove insufficient in addressing contemporary challenges related to equity, governance failures, environmental degradation, and technological disruptions. This paper proposes the Integrated Framework for Resilient and Responsible Tourism Development (R2D), synthesizing critical theory, smart technology adoption, and adaptive socio-ecological governance. Drawing upon foundational and critical tourism theories, the paper identifies structural limitations in current sustainability approaches, especially the insufficient integration of community empowerment, digital accountability, and regenerative principles. The role of digital transformation, including AI, IoT, XR/Metaverse applications, and smart heritage systems, is examined as a driver of resilience and operational transparency. An empirical illustration from Maharashtra, India, highlights the tensions between rapid economic aspirations, ecological fragility, and marginalized community impacts in the Western Ghats. Building on these insights, the R2D framework mandates equity-centric governance, technology-enabled monitoring, and regenerative development principles. Methodologically, the paper advocates for Sequential Mixed Methods Research and advanced modeling (e.g., SEM, TAM3) to validate complex socio-technical relationships. The study contributes a holistic and actionable framework to guide policymakers, researchers, and practitioners toward accountable, inclusive, and technologically empowered tourism futures.

Professional attitude plays a significant role on professional growth and development of a teacher. Professional attitude is one’s inclinations, feelings, ideas, opinions, beliefs, habits, motives, likes or dislikes, prejudices or bias, preconceived notions, fears, threats and other behavioural tendencies associated with a particular profession. It is the degree of positive or negative behavioural reaction of an individual towards the profession. The success of a professional is based on his attitude towards the profession. It is one of the significant factors for making professionally effectiveness, professionally committed, teaching or professionally competent and job satisfaction of a teacher.

Tourism holds significant potential to drive economic growth, job creation, cultural exchange, and urban development in rapidly urbanizing Indian cities. This paper examines the current state of tourism development in PCMC (Pimpri-Chinchwad) and Pune city, identifies key challenges hindering its growth, and highlights emerging opportunities, especially under recent policy plans by district authorities. Through reviewing scholarly research, municipal reports and recent tourism-development initiatives, outline of a roadmap for sustainable and inclusive tourism that leverages both heritage and adventure assets, while addressing infrastructural, social, and institutional constraints. This study examines the current status of tourism and hospitality in PCMC and Pune, highlights challenges such as environmental sustainability and infrastructure gaps, and identifies opportunities for growth, including the promotion of offbeat destinations by fostering sustainable practices and leveraging technology.