Statistics of Growth
“It ( Tourism) is the largest service industry in the country. Its importance lies in being an instrument for economic development and employment generation, particularly in the remote and backward areas”- Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-08 to 2011-12)
Tourism is a major engine of growth for Indian economy. In the year 2007, it contributed 6.23% to the GDP, 8.78% of total employment in the Country was in the Tourism sector, generating about 53 million jobs, both direct and indirect.
The growth of tourism in India has been significant and consistent in the last five years recording a double digit growth. During 2007, 5.08 million foreign tourists arrived in India marking a growth of 14.2% over the year 2006. This growth rate is more than the world growth figure of tourist arrivals which stood at 6.6% and that of Asia Pacific Region which was 10.4%. In terms of International tourism receipts India has performed exceptionally well by recording an earning of 10.73 billion US $ during 2007 thereby marking a growth of 24.3% as compared to the year 2006. Here again India exceeded the world growth rate which was 15.4% and also that of Asia Pacific which was 8.78%. The rank of India in international arrivals and tourism receipts rose from 51st and 37th respectively in 2003 to 42nd and 20th respectively in 2007.
The period January to October of the current year has recorded a total of 4.32 million foreign tourist arrivals, an increase of 9.4% as compared to the corresponding period last year, whereas foreign exchange earning during the same period saw an increase of 16.9%, touching the figure of 9.70 Billion US $.
Domestic tourism visits in India increased from 309 million in 2003 to 527 million in 2007.
Infrastructure Development
The Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned Rs. 610.51 crore for Infrastructure development in the year 2007-08 and Rs.482.07 crore in the year 2008-09.(Upto Oct.2008)
The Ministry has launched a scheme for development of nationally and internationally important destinations and circuits through Mega Projects. To date 22 mega projects have already been identified and of these 15 projects have been sanctioned for an amount of Rs.320.15 Crore . Of these, Amritsar, Agra, Varanasi, Gangtok, Bhubaneswar, Aurangabad and Hyderabad are also being developed as mega destinations through the joint plans of all the key Ministries of Government of India, which includes connectivity through road, rail and air and upgradation of civic infrastructure.
Sustainable Tourism
The true potential of tourism lies in responsible practices on both the demand and supply sides of the tourism chain, enabling an effective response to climate change. This is closely interlinked with inclusive growth through sustainable community participation. This ‘sustainable’ tourism route has been adopted by the Ministry of Tourism in the innovative Rural Tourism Project, by strengthening skilled rural artisan communities in association with United Nations Development Programme. This innovative Rural Tourism Project positions India’s rural way of life as a unique visitor experience in low-impact settings. In addition, Mega shopping festivals are also being organized in different regions of the country such as Bhubaneswar, Hyderabad, Aurangabad and Noida where artisans and artists from rural tourism sites would be given a platform for exhibition and sale of their handicraft products and for cultural performances. This kind of exposure to the domestic and international tourists would have far reaching benefits for the socioeconomic development of the rural artisans.
136 Rural Tourism sites have been identified till date across the country . An amount of Rs. 50 lakh is provided to these sites as Financial Assistance for Infrastructure Development. Besides Ministry of Tourism has also provided an additional amount of Rs. 20 Lakhs to 91 identified Rural Tourism sites for capacity building of the Village community . Ministry of Tourism has partnered with UNDP for projects in 36 sites where UNDP has provided financial assistance for capacity building.
PATA Travel Mart 2008
India successfully hosted the PATA Travel Mart 2008 in Hyderabad from September 16 to 19, 2008. Approximately 1,089 trade delegates from 56 countries, comprising 374 global buyers from 324 organisations and 715 Asia Pacific seller delegates from 301 organisations participated in the Travel Mart.
Hotel Infrastructure
Due to the efforts of the Ministry of Tourism, the Finance Ministry has announced a 5 year Tax Holiday under Section 80-ID to hotels of 2, 3 and 4 star category and Convention Centres which will be coming up between 1.4.2007 to 31.3.2010 in the districts of Faridabad, Gurgaon, Gautam Budh Nagar (NOIDA) and Ghaziabad. The Ministry of Tourism also successfully persuaded the Finance Ministry to announce in the budget of 2008-09, a five year holiday from income tax to two, three or four star hotels established in specified districts which have UNESCO-declared 'World Heritage Sites'. The hotels should be constructed and start functioning during the period April 1, 2008 to March 31, 2013.
Bed and Breakfast Scheme
In order to supplement the availability of accommodation in the Metros and other tourist destinations, Ministry of Tourism launched the ‘Incredible India Bed & Breakfast Scheme’ which would provide clean and affordable accommodation as well as give tourists the opportunity to stay with Indian families and experience Indian customs, traditions and authentic Indian cuisine.
Policy on Camping Sites
The growth of newer niche tourism products viz. rural tourism, eco-tourism, adventure tourism and camp tourism etc. has seen the emergence of a new segment of tented accommodation which provides an altogether new experience. The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India has introduced a voluntary scheme for project approval and classification of operational Tented Accommodation in the country.
Tourism Manpower Development
During the last four years, 12 Institutes of Hotel Management (IHMs) were sanctioned, out of which 3 were sanctioned in the North-East. Similarly, 6 Food Craft Institutes (FCIs) have been sanctioned during this period including 1 in the North-East. Currently there are 28 IHMs & 6 FCIs in the country. These efforts of the Ministry will further boost tourism and hospitality education and will help in augmenting the availability of trained manpower for the hospitality industry.
With an increase in international and domestic tourism, there is a growing need for English and foreign language speaking guides. To encourage and promote this segment, a new Scheme for college students under the nomenclature ‘Earn while you Learn’ has been launched by the Ministry of Tourism. Under this Scheme, college students are given 21 days training in history & culture, to groom them as tourism volunteers. The basic idea underlying the Programme is to sensitize youth to the importance of tourism.
It has been the endeavour of the Ministry of Tourism to put in place a system of training and professional education with necessary infrastructural support, capable of generating manpower to meet the needs of the tourism and hospitality industry, both quantitatively and qualitatively. For the purpose, the Ministry has a scheme that provides for the setting up and up-gradation of the Institutes of Hotel Management and Food Craft Institutes in the country. The Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management (IITTM) and the National Council for Hotel Management & Catering Technology are also eligible for assistance under the Scheme. The Scheme's scope has been recently enlarged, to also cover the funding of infrastructure-creation in vocational schools, ITIs, government (including Kendriya Vidyalayas / Central School) polytechnic, universities, colleges owned by universities/governments, public sector undertakings for starting hospitality courses. The Scheme's sweep has been extended to meet, in greater measure than hitherto, the Industry’s demand of trained manpower. Presently, against the annual trained manpower demand of the industry of 0.2 Million persons, the supply is only of 12000 persons (after adjusting attrition).
INITIVATIVES
Cruise Tourism
Cruise Tourism is a relatively new but an emerging sector with a high potential for growth. With the approval of the Cruise Tourism Policy, the huge potential of this tourism product has been opened up. Together with the Port Trust Authorities and the State Governments, the Ministry is now focusing on infrastructure development as well as motivating cruise operators to make cruises operational.
Adventure Tourism
Adventure tourism has immense potential for growth. For experiencing the different types of adventure tourism right from rock climbing, river rafting, para gliding, mountaineering and under water diving, the Ministry has sanctioned several projects to different States during last four years. The South Asian Winter Games being organized in Feb. 2009 in Uttarakhand marks the beginning of several such events which will bring India to the International Adventure Tourism platform.
Wellness Tourism
India, as the world knows, is a Wellness destination. The potential of wellness systems, developed through centuries of wisdom of this ancient civilization would be fully tapped. This is being done by positioning India as a centre of Ayurveda, Yoga, Siddha, Naturopathy, etc. together with the spiritual philosophy that has been integral to the Indian way of life. The Ministry of Tourism has highlighted wellness in a big way through publicity and promotional activities. The Ministry is developing Haridwar- Rishikesh as well as Puducherry (formerly known as Pondicherry) as Wellness centres, to give visitors a complete experience which is physically healing, spiritually enriching and mentally rejuvenating.
International Cooperation
International Cooperation through tourism has been a hall mark of the Ministry’s efforts to reach out. At the ASEAN India Tourism Minister’s Conference earlier this year, there was a very positive response to India’s initiative for launching the India ASEAN website, as also to the initiative in organizing a Workshop for travel agents from ASEAN countries, called ‘Beyond Boundaries’.
To strengthen Cooperation between India and China, Ministry of Tourism opened its India Tourism Office in Beijing and is organizing several promotional activities in this key market.
Another international forum in which there is progress is the IBSA dialogue forum between India, Brazil and South Africa. An IBSA Workshop was organized in Kochi on September 21, 2008, which provided an opportunity for Tour Operators from Brazil and South Africa to interact with their Indian counterparts and deliberate on issues related to the promotion of tourism between the three countries. A total of 26 Tour Operators from Brazil and South Africa participated in this workshop. The IBSA Workshop was preceded by a Joint Working Group Meeting on Tourism, in which members agreed to finalization of the tripartite agreement for cooperation in the tourism sector. This Agreement was subsequently signed at the IBSA Summit held in New Delhi on October 15, 2008.
The Hon’ble Minister of Tourism and Culture, chaired the 84th Session of the Executive Council of United Nations World Tourism Organization held in Madrid, Spain on 14-15 October 2008 in her capacity as the Chairperson of the Executive Council. India’s stand on climate change was reiterated in the Executive Council’s resolution which emphasized that there should not be any discrimination against developing countries and the meeting agreed to take consensus based measures to implement the resolution within the framework of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
International Recognition The success of the Incredible India Media Campaigns won India wide spread international recognition in the field of tourism.
• Conde Nast Traveller, UK, in its Readers Travel Awards 2008 has ranked India among the top 2 most favoured countries in the world, consecutively for the 2nd year.
• India received the award for the leading destination at the Asia World Travel Awards 2008-“ Asia and Indian Ocean” Ceremony, in Shanghai, China.
• Bronze Lion Award was won at the. 55th International Advertising Festival held at Cannes, France for the creative on the ‘Taj Mahal’ which was used for Ministry of Tourism’s Incredible India Campaign in the international market.
• PC World adjudged www.incredibleindia.org a winner of the PC World Web Award 2008
• India received the World Travel Award 2008 for leading Responsible Tourism Destination.
“It ( Tourism) is the largest service industry in the country. Its importance lies in being an instrument for economic development and employment generation, particularly in the remote and backward areas”- Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-08 to 2011-12)
Tourism is a major engine of growth for Indian economy. In the year 2007, it contributed 6.23% to the GDP, 8.78% of total employment in the Country was in the Tourism sector, generating about 53 million jobs, both direct and indirect.
The growth of tourism in India has been significant and consistent in the last five years recording a double digit growth. During 2007, 5.08 million foreign tourists arrived in India marking a growth of 14.2% over the year 2006. This growth rate is more than the world growth figure of tourist arrivals which stood at 6.6% and that of Asia Pacific Region which was 10.4%. In terms of International tourism receipts India has performed exceptionally well by recording an earning of 10.73 billion US $ during 2007 thereby marking a growth of 24.3% as compared to the year 2006. Here again India exceeded the world growth rate which was 15.4% and also that of Asia Pacific which was 8.78%. The rank of India in international arrivals and tourism receipts rose from 51st and 37th respectively in 2003 to 42nd and 20th respectively in 2007.
The period January to October of the current year has recorded a total of 4.32 million foreign tourist arrivals, an increase of 9.4% as compared to the corresponding period last year, whereas foreign exchange earning during the same period saw an increase of 16.9%, touching the figure of 9.70 Billion US $.
Domestic tourism visits in India increased from 309 million in 2003 to 527 million in 2007.
Infrastructure Development
The Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned Rs. 610.51 crore for Infrastructure development in the year 2007-08 and Rs.482.07 crore in the year 2008-09.(Upto Oct.2008)
The Ministry has launched a scheme for development of nationally and internationally important destinations and circuits through Mega Projects. To date 22 mega projects have already been identified and of these 15 projects have been sanctioned for an amount of Rs.320.15 Crore . Of these, Amritsar, Agra, Varanasi, Gangtok, Bhubaneswar, Aurangabad and Hyderabad are also being developed as mega destinations through the joint plans of all the key Ministries of Government of India, which includes connectivity through road, rail and air and upgradation of civic infrastructure.
Sustainable Tourism
The true potential of tourism lies in responsible practices on both the demand and supply sides of the tourism chain, enabling an effective response to climate change. This is closely interlinked with inclusive growth through sustainable community participation. This ‘sustainable’ tourism route has been adopted by the Ministry of Tourism in the innovative Rural Tourism Project, by strengthening skilled rural artisan communities in association with United Nations Development Programme. This innovative Rural Tourism Project positions India’s rural way of life as a unique visitor experience in low-impact settings. In addition, Mega shopping festivals are also being organized in different regions of the country such as Bhubaneswar, Hyderabad, Aurangabad and Noida where artisans and artists from rural tourism sites would be given a platform for exhibition and sale of their handicraft products and for cultural performances. This kind of exposure to the domestic and international tourists would have far reaching benefits for the socioeconomic development of the rural artisans.
136 Rural Tourism sites have been identified till date across the country . An amount of Rs. 50 lakh is provided to these sites as Financial Assistance for Infrastructure Development. Besides Ministry of Tourism has also provided an additional amount of Rs. 20 Lakhs to 91 identified Rural Tourism sites for capacity building of the Village community . Ministry of Tourism has partnered with UNDP for projects in 36 sites where UNDP has provided financial assistance for capacity building.
PATA Travel Mart 2008
India successfully hosted the PATA Travel Mart 2008 in Hyderabad from September 16 to 19, 2008. Approximately 1,089 trade delegates from 56 countries, comprising 374 global buyers from 324 organisations and 715 Asia Pacific seller delegates from 301 organisations participated in the Travel Mart.
Hotel Infrastructure
Due to the efforts of the Ministry of Tourism, the Finance Ministry has announced a 5 year Tax Holiday under Section 80-ID to hotels of 2, 3 and 4 star category and Convention Centres which will be coming up between 1.4.2007 to 31.3.2010 in the districts of Faridabad, Gurgaon, Gautam Budh Nagar (NOIDA) and Ghaziabad. The Ministry of Tourism also successfully persuaded the Finance Ministry to announce in the budget of 2008-09, a five year holiday from income tax to two, three or four star hotels established in specified districts which have UNESCO-declared 'World Heritage Sites'. The hotels should be constructed and start functioning during the period April 1, 2008 to March 31, 2013.
Bed and Breakfast Scheme
In order to supplement the availability of accommodation in the Metros and other tourist destinations, Ministry of Tourism launched the ‘Incredible India Bed & Breakfast Scheme’ which would provide clean and affordable accommodation as well as give tourists the opportunity to stay with Indian families and experience Indian customs, traditions and authentic Indian cuisine.
Policy on Camping Sites
The growth of newer niche tourism products viz. rural tourism, eco-tourism, adventure tourism and camp tourism etc. has seen the emergence of a new segment of tented accommodation which provides an altogether new experience. The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India has introduced a voluntary scheme for project approval and classification of operational Tented Accommodation in the country.
Tourism Manpower Development
During the last four years, 12 Institutes of Hotel Management (IHMs) were sanctioned, out of which 3 were sanctioned in the North-East. Similarly, 6 Food Craft Institutes (FCIs) have been sanctioned during this period including 1 in the North-East. Currently there are 28 IHMs & 6 FCIs in the country. These efforts of the Ministry will further boost tourism and hospitality education and will help in augmenting the availability of trained manpower for the hospitality industry.
With an increase in international and domestic tourism, there is a growing need for English and foreign language speaking guides. To encourage and promote this segment, a new Scheme for college students under the nomenclature ‘Earn while you Learn’ has been launched by the Ministry of Tourism. Under this Scheme, college students are given 21 days training in history & culture, to groom them as tourism volunteers. The basic idea underlying the Programme is to sensitize youth to the importance of tourism.
It has been the endeavour of the Ministry of Tourism to put in place a system of training and professional education with necessary infrastructural support, capable of generating manpower to meet the needs of the tourism and hospitality industry, both quantitatively and qualitatively. For the purpose, the Ministry has a scheme that provides for the setting up and up-gradation of the Institutes of Hotel Management and Food Craft Institutes in the country. The Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management (IITTM) and the National Council for Hotel Management & Catering Technology are also eligible for assistance under the Scheme. The Scheme's scope has been recently enlarged, to also cover the funding of infrastructure-creation in vocational schools, ITIs, government (including Kendriya Vidyalayas / Central School) polytechnic, universities, colleges owned by universities/governments, public sector undertakings for starting hospitality courses. The Scheme's sweep has been extended to meet, in greater measure than hitherto, the Industry’s demand of trained manpower. Presently, against the annual trained manpower demand of the industry of 0.2 Million persons, the supply is only of 12000 persons (after adjusting attrition).
INITIVATIVES
Cruise Tourism
Cruise Tourism is a relatively new but an emerging sector with a high potential for growth. With the approval of the Cruise Tourism Policy, the huge potential of this tourism product has been opened up. Together with the Port Trust Authorities and the State Governments, the Ministry is now focusing on infrastructure development as well as motivating cruise operators to make cruises operational.
Adventure Tourism
Adventure tourism has immense potential for growth. For experiencing the different types of adventure tourism right from rock climbing, river rafting, para gliding, mountaineering and under water diving, the Ministry has sanctioned several projects to different States during last four years. The South Asian Winter Games being organized in Feb. 2009 in Uttarakhand marks the beginning of several such events which will bring India to the International Adventure Tourism platform.
Wellness Tourism
India, as the world knows, is a Wellness destination. The potential of wellness systems, developed through centuries of wisdom of this ancient civilization would be fully tapped. This is being done by positioning India as a centre of Ayurveda, Yoga, Siddha, Naturopathy, etc. together with the spiritual philosophy that has been integral to the Indian way of life. The Ministry of Tourism has highlighted wellness in a big way through publicity and promotional activities. The Ministry is developing Haridwar- Rishikesh as well as Puducherry (formerly known as Pondicherry) as Wellness centres, to give visitors a complete experience which is physically healing, spiritually enriching and mentally rejuvenating.
International Cooperation
International Cooperation through tourism has been a hall mark of the Ministry’s efforts to reach out. At the ASEAN India Tourism Minister’s Conference earlier this year, there was a very positive response to India’s initiative for launching the India ASEAN website, as also to the initiative in organizing a Workshop for travel agents from ASEAN countries, called ‘Beyond Boundaries’.
To strengthen Cooperation between India and China, Ministry of Tourism opened its India Tourism Office in Beijing and is organizing several promotional activities in this key market.
Another international forum in which there is progress is the IBSA dialogue forum between India, Brazil and South Africa. An IBSA Workshop was organized in Kochi on September 21, 2008, which provided an opportunity for Tour Operators from Brazil and South Africa to interact with their Indian counterparts and deliberate on issues related to the promotion of tourism between the three countries. A total of 26 Tour Operators from Brazil and South Africa participated in this workshop. The IBSA Workshop was preceded by a Joint Working Group Meeting on Tourism, in which members agreed to finalization of the tripartite agreement for cooperation in the tourism sector. This Agreement was subsequently signed at the IBSA Summit held in New Delhi on October 15, 2008.
The Hon’ble Minister of Tourism and Culture, chaired the 84th Session of the Executive Council of United Nations World Tourism Organization held in Madrid, Spain on 14-15 October 2008 in her capacity as the Chairperson of the Executive Council. India’s stand on climate change was reiterated in the Executive Council’s resolution which emphasized that there should not be any discrimination against developing countries and the meeting agreed to take consensus based measures to implement the resolution within the framework of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
International Recognition The success of the Incredible India Media Campaigns won India wide spread international recognition in the field of tourism.
• Conde Nast Traveller, UK, in its Readers Travel Awards 2008 has ranked India among the top 2 most favoured countries in the world, consecutively for the 2nd year.
• India received the award for the leading destination at the Asia World Travel Awards 2008-“ Asia and Indian Ocean” Ceremony, in Shanghai, China.
• Bronze Lion Award was won at the. 55th International Advertising Festival held at Cannes, France for the creative on the ‘Taj Mahal’ which was used for Ministry of Tourism’s Incredible India Campaign in the international market.
• PC World adjudged www.incredibleindia.org a winner of the PC World Web Award 2008
• India received the World Travel Award 2008 for leading Responsible Tourism Destination.
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