Tourism Industry is India has witnessed tremendous
growth in the recent years. Here is a brief profile of travel industry
in India.
Tourism Industry in India
Tourism industry in India is on a great boom at the moment. India has
tremendous potential to become a major global tourist destination and
Indian tourism industry is exploiting this potential to the hilt. Travel
and tourism industry is the second highest foreign exchange earner for
India, and the government has given travel & tourism organizations
export house status.
The buoyancy in the Indian tourism industry can be attributed to
several factors. Firstly, the tremendous growth of Indian economy has
resulted in more disposable income in the hands of middle class, thereby
prompting increasingly large number of people to spend money on
vacations abroad or at home. Secondly, India is a booming IT hub and
more and more people are coming to India on business trips. Thirdly,
aggressive advertising campaign "Incredible India" by Tourism
Ministry has played a major role in changing the image of India from
that of the land of snake charmers to a hot and happening place and has
sparked renewed interest among foreign travelers.
Travel & tourism industry's contribution to Indian industry is
immense. Tourism is one of the main foreign exchange earners and
contributes to the economy indirectly through its linkages with other
sectors like horticulture, agriculture, poultry, handicrafts and
construction. Tourism industry also provides employment to millions of
people in India both directly and indirectly through its linkage with
other sectors of the economy. According to an estimate total direct
employment in the tourism sector is around 20 million.
Travel & tourism industry in India is marked by considerable
government presence. Each state has a tourism corporation, which runs a
chain of hotels/ rest houses and operates package tours, while the
central government runs the India Tourism Development Corporation.
In the year 2002, the Government of India announced a New Tourism
Policy to give boost to the tourism sector. The policy is built around
the 7-S Mantra of Swaagat (welcome), Soochanaa (information), Suvidhaa
(facilitation), Surakshaa (security), Sahyog (cooperation), Sanrachnaa
(infrastructure) and Safaai (cleanliness).
Some of the salient features of the Tourism Policy are:
- The policy proposes the inclusion of tourism in the concurrent
list of the Constitution to enable both the central and state
governments to participate in the development of the sector.
- No approval required for foreign equity of up to 51 per cent in
tourism projects. NRI investment up to 100% allowed.
- Automatic approval for Technology agreements in the hotel
industry, subject to the fulfillment of certain specified
parameters.
- Concession rates on customs duty of 25% for goods that are
required for initial setting up, or for substantial expansion of
hotels.
- 50% of profits derived by hotels, travel agents and tour
operators in foreign exchange are exempt from income tax. The
remaining profits are also exempt if reinvested in a tourism related
project.
Apart from this, government has taken
several other measures for the promotion of tourism. A multi-pronged
approach has been adopted, which includes new mechanism for speedy
implementation of tourism projects, development of integrated tourism
circuits and rural destinations, special capacity building in the
unorganized hospitality sector and new marketing strategy.
The outlook for travel industry in India looks extremely bright. India
as a tourism destination is the toast of the world at the moment. Conde
Nast ranked India amongst the top 10 tourist destinations. JBIC ranked
her as the fifth most attractive investment destination. Besides, India
is probably the only country that offers various categories of tourism.
These include history tourism, adventure tourism, medical tourism
(ayurveda and other forms of Indian medications), eco tourism, cultural
tourism, rural tourism, religious/pilgrimage tourism, spiritual tourism,
and beach tourism etc.
Note: The above information was last updated on 21-07-2007
