COLOURS: A Cognition-Enabled Information System for Personalized Touristic Experiences in India

Context & Background

Tourism is of paramount importance to India's economy. However, tourists often struggle to find reliable, localized, and context-specific information about attractions. There is a lack of smart systems that can aggregate local 'hyperlocal' knowledge (e.g. food options, transport tips, safety hours) and present it dynamically based on user preferences.

Problems to be Addressed

Fusing unstructured social media feeds with spatial databases is complex. Existing maps only provide generic coordinates, lacking local context and personalized itinerary suggestion tools.

Aims and Objectives

1. Develop a spatial data management framework for POI and event data.
2. Design context-aware search and indexing algorithms.
3. Deploy a web-based tourism portal and mobile app (COLOURS).

Methodology

COLOURS collects hyperlocal information from local crowdsourcing and historical archives to construct a spatial knowledge base. Deep search indexing retrieves personalized POI recommendations based on user profiles (budget, safety context, cultural interests). Field testing is planned in major historical cities.

Expected Outcomes

The COLOURS mobile application, spatial indexing APIs, a database of hyperlocal tourist hotspots in India, and publications in database venues.