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Author MRSS India

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Chandramouli GuinHead - Government PracticeMRSS India

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Title

Date April 2016

The information and opinions contained in this document have been compiled orarrived at from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or warrantyexpressed is made to their accuracy, completeness or correctness. This document is for information purpose only. The information contained in this document ispublished for the assistance of the recipient but is not to be relied upon asauthoritative or taken in substitution for the exercise of judgment by any recipient. This document is not intended to be a substitute for professional, technical or legal advice. All opinions expressed in this document are subject to change without notice.

Neither MRSS India and FICCI, nor other legal entities in the group to which they belong, accept any liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential losshowever arising from any use of this document or its contents or otherwise arising inconnection herewith. Many of the conclusions and inferences are specificinferences made by MRSS India in their expert capacity specifically in tourism sector and does not have any correlation with financing related outlook that as a researchorganization may have.

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India Inbound Tapping the Power Packed Growth Engine

ContactAddress

For FurtherInformation

FICCIHeadquartersRahul ChakravartyDirector, FICCI

Federation House 1, Tansen MargNew Delhi - 110001

Tel : +91-11-23311720-Direct/23738760-70 (Ext.342)

Fax : +91-11-23765333Email : [email protected]

[email protected]@ficci.com

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Executive Summary

1. Introduction

2. Present dynamics of Inbound Tourism Industry in India

3. Trends and Preferences

4. State initiative to promote in bound tourism

.........................................................................................9

..........................................................................................27

1.1. India’s performance in last few years ..................................................28

1.2. Benefits of inbound tourism in India...................................................29

1.3. FTA’s and their country of origin .........................................................31

1.4. Recent initiatives by the Government of India .......................................31

................................35

2.1. Seasonality observed in foreign tourist arrivals.....................................36

2.2. Most visited States ..........................................................................36

2.3. Factors influencing Inbound Tourism Industry in India ...........................37

.............................................................................39

3.1. India vs. competitors - what is unique in India's offering ........................40

3.2. Voice of the inbound traveller - how do they perceive India as a destination42

3.2.1. Profile of the Inbound Tourist ..................................................42

3.2.2. Reasons for visiting India ........................................................43

3.2.3. Source of Information.............................................................44

3.2.4. Satisfaction with regard to various factors..................................44

3.2.5. Willingness to return to India...................................................45

...............................................47

4.1. Rajasthan ......................................................................................48

4.1.1. Historical Trends of inbound tourists to the State.........................48

4.1.2. Themes of Tourism Promotion by the State ..................................49

4.1.3. Strength & Opportunity of Rajasthan as an Inbound destination .....50

4.1.4. The way forward to promote inbound tourism – ...........................51

Tourism Unit Policy 2015

4.2. Gujarat..........................................................................................52

Table of Contents


4.2.2 The State Of Gujarat and the Tourism Hubs ..................................53

4.2.3. Themes ................................................................................54

4.2.4. Strength & Opportunity of Gujarat as an Inbound ........................54

Tourist destination

4.2.5. Policy adopted by Gujarat Government to promote .......................55

In Bound Tourism

4.3. West Bengal ...................................................................................57


4.3.2. Salient features of Tourism resources in the State.........................58

4.3.3. Strength & Opportunity of West Bengal as an Inbound ..................59

Tourist destination

4.4. Maharashtra...................................................................................59



4.4.3. Salient features of the State Tourism Policy .................................61

4.4.4. Strength & Opportunity of Maharashtra as an Inbound ..................62

Tourist destination

4.4.5. Key focus areas......................................................................62

4.5. Madhya Pradesh..............................................................................63



4.5.3. Strength & Opportunity of Madhya Pradesh as an Inbound ............64

Tourist destination

4.6. Chattisgarh ....................................................................................64



Table of Contents

4.6.3. Strength & Opportunity of Chattisgarh as an Inbound ...................65

Tourist destination

4.6.4. Key features – Chattisgarh Tourism Policy ...................................66

4.7. Goa ..........................................................................................66



4.7.3. Efforts of Goa Tourism to attract inbound tourists ........................67

4.7.4. Strength & Opportunity of Goa as an Inbound..............................68

Tourist destination

4.8. Uttar Pradesh .................................................................................68



4.8.3. Efforts of UP Tourism to attract inbound tourists..........................69

4.8.4. Strength & Opportunity of Uttar Pradesh as an Inbound ................70

Tourist destination

4.8.5. Key features – Uttar Pradesh Governments’ Tourism .....................70

Initiatives to boost Inbound Tourism

4.9. Odisha ..........................................................................................71



4.9.3. Efforts of Odisha Tourism to attract inbound tourists ....................72

4.9.4. Strength & Opportunity of Odisha as an Inbound Tourist ...............72

destination

4.10. North Eastern States........................................................................73

4.10.1. Historical Trends of inbound tourists to the region.......................73

4.10.2. The resources available in North east ........................................73

4.10.3. Strength & Opportunity of North East as an Inbound ...................74

Tourist destination

....................755. FICCI - MRSS Fourteen Point Roadmap for sustainable growth of

bound tourism in Indiain

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Executive Summary

Background

Historical Trends in Inbound Tourism

India is well positioned to take the advantage of the enthusiasm of tourism

where it possesses some of the greatest wealth like archaeological, historical,

religious, natural resource India has been a big draw to attract tourists from

across the globe. Visitors have kept on visiting this mystic land in search of

destinations, experiences, with immense potential of tourism .The past, present

and future has always motivated tourists to keep flocking in to it. This

knowledge report is an attempt to map and present India's performance as a

major tourist destination in the world over the last few years, how it is

performing at present and what it needs to focus upon to become the Inbound

super power of the world.

An analysis of the historical trends of inbound tourist, the world vis- a- vis

India, indicates that India has grown at a phenomenally higher growth rate

than the world. Key observations indicate

• In certain years, contrary to the trend of world inbound tourism going

through a slump, India recorded double digit growth

• For certain periods, foreign tourist arrivals in India grew at a massive

rate, while world tourist arrivals grew at a meagre rate for the same

period under consideration.

• Seasonality trends are observed in foreign tourist flow with October to

March being the peak periods and April to September being the lean

months. It is a matter of great surprise that foreign tourist flow has been

steadily increasing across all the months of the year for from 2012 – 15.

India Inbound Tapping the Power Packed Growth Engine10

Tourism as a contributor to the Indian economy

The major contributors to Inbound Tourism in India

India vs. the World – Where are we in terms of competition?

As per WTTC – India Benchmarking Report 2015 Travel and Tourism has

generated a total impact of an estimated USD 125 billion of India's GDP in 2014-

15. The total impact of Travel and Tourism in India's economy is larger than its

automotive manufacturing (contribution of approx. 2.8%), mining (slightly

larger), education and chemical manufacturing sectors. Travel and Tourism

industry in India is estimated to sustain a total of 36.7 million direct, indirect

and induced jobs in India in 2014 - 15 and the sector in India directly employs

more people than that of banking, automotive manufacturing, chemicals

manufacturing, education, financial services and mining sectors. It is estimated

that in the year 2014 - 15, Travel and Tourism has generated either directly or

indirectly, 8.7% of the total employment that has been generated in India.

It can be observed from the chart above that as far as regions are concerned;

North America and Central Europe have a lion's share as far as inbound tourists

to India are concerned. Major contributions are also coming from South, South

East and East Asia. It is evident from the available information that 60% of the

foreign tourists visit the top 4 States, viz. Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar

Pradesh and Delhi compared to the other states, which indicates the fact that

there is immense potential to market destinations/ themes to the foreign

visitors.

India has a lot of tourism resources to offer to the tourists of the world. What

makes a destination popular? Why do tourists keep on flocking one destination

compared to that of the other? An effort has been made to map the respective

strengths of different nations in terms of their offerings. The dark shaded areas

are the ones representing strength of a particular vis-a- vis major draws of

inbound tourism:-


Major Draws France Turkey USA UK China Indonesia South Korea Malaysia Singapore Thailand India

for Inbound

Tourism

Cuisine

Varied Climate

Natural Beauty/

Landscape

Beaches

Tourist Spots/

Destinations

Monuments &

Museums

Holiday & Leisure

History & Culture

Adventure Tourism

Meeting Family

& Friends

Work

Shopping

It is obvious from the aforesaid depiction that India is perceived to be having

strong credentials in most of areas, which pull an inbound tourist to a

destination of preference.

As understood from different research reports there are a host of factors that

influence inbound tourism industry in India:-

• Hassle free immigration procedures – Over the years considerable

relaxation has been observed with regard to immigration facility in India

barring a few countries which are considered sensitive. With the

Electronic Visa (eTV) initiative, Govt. of India has embarked on the path

of promoting tourism by doling out red carpet to the tourist from

different nations.

Factors influencing Inbound Tourism Industry & India's response towards it


• Concrete and secure information sources – This being an e – age, the

virtual world plays an important role in deciding the destination,

researching the same, understanding the finer nuances and taking a

decision. Authentication from the Govt. side on the social media posts,

rating/ ranking published would make a destination/ accommodation

unit/ facilities more authentic to the inbound tourists. A regulatory

framework is a must generating and dissemination of information, which

forms the very basic marketing document to attract tourists.

• Available physical and vir tual infrastructural amenity –

Accommodation availability in real time status from both private as well

as government sources, accessibility to road / railway / air transport in

real time status along with tariff would be helpful in creating

transparent image of the country. Till now, no regulator exists in the

field and the aforesaid amenities lack a Govt. attestation/ affirmation

i.g. in UK, National railways.

• Helpful, friendly, hospitable hosts/ travel agents/ hotels/guides/

locales –It is within our culture to welcome tourists as God right from

the age of vedas. With the passage of time the feeling has denuded a bit.

This was followed by a vigorous campaign by Government of India with

celebrities reminding the locales and the service providers about the

basic ethos of our culture. No wonder things have improved

considerably. In view of certain unfortunate events that took place in

India over past few years, Ministry of Tourism has taken concrete steps

ensure traveller safety.

• Safety and Security/ Law and Order – We live in an era of terror.

Repeated attacks on establishments of commercial and tourist interest

in addition to the attack on women in general have been instrumental in

painting the negative picture of India.

• Product offerings at competitive rates/ deals and discounts –To be on

the drivers' seat, India needs to develop a discount mechanism for

competitive products vis a vis major competitors and promote the same

more aggressively.


• Global economy trends linked to personal income/ exchange rates:

The world economy is experiencing a bit of turbulence with the tension

on the geo political scenario, falling crude prices, refugee crises, war in

Syria/ Ukraine. With Europe being on the negative zone for long,

personal disposable income has fallen considerably which might impact

the inbound tourism into the country.

• Cutting travel expenditures by organization – Business travel has

suffered over the last few years owing to strong emergence of the ICT

infrastructure around the world. The virtual world has emerged so

strongly that in most cases it has replaced the need of face to face

meetings.


Voice of the inbound traveller

MRSS India conducted a survey of 400 tourists at major entry/ exit points. Majority of the respondents were males aged between 26 – 60 years having North America and Europe as their region of Origin and were either travelling alone or with colleagues to this part of the world. Majority thought India to be an area of offering great historical significance and an area which provides superior value for money compared to the competition. The area of improvements include “ease of

access”, and India’s image as a “tourist friendly nation”

As expected, majority of the foreign tourists rely on the India Tourism Offices and

refer to the Social Media before making a visit to the country & most of them were

satisfied with available infrastructural amenities, which turned out to be in line

with their expectation and 90% of the foreign tourist expressed the desire to return to India on the next available opportunity.

Recent initiatives taken by the Central Government to boost inbound tourism are as follows:-

• Formation of Inter - Ministerial Committee on Tourism Sector - This has

been constituted under the chairmanship of the principal secretary of the

Prime Minister. The major initiative of the Committee is to facilitate

resolution of Inter – Ministerial issues involved in development of tourism

in the country as well as issues raised by industry associations in the

tourism sector.

• Introduction of E – Tourist Visa – The Government of India has introduced

the facility of e-TV for the citizens of 113 countries at 16 airports.

Government of India has also revised the e-TV fee in four slabs of 0, US$25,

US$48 and US$60 from November 3, 2015.

Recent initiatives by the Government of India to boost inbound tourism


• Launch of Multilingual Tourist Infoline - The Ministry of Tourism has

launched the 24x7 Toll Free Multi-Lingual Tourist Info Line in 12

International Languages including Hindi & English on 8.2.2016. This will

provide support service in terms of providing information relating to Travel

& Tourism in India and assist the callers with advice on action to be taken

during times of distress.

• Emphasis on Cuisine promotion - For promotion of Indian Cuisine, which is an integral component of the Indian Tourism product, support is extended

to Indian Food Festivals by sponsoring the visit of Indian Chefs for the food

festivals. During the current financial year, such support has been extended

for organizing food festivals in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, Osaka,

Ecuador (Bogota), Ramallah (Palestine), Veracruz (Mexico), Beirut

(Lebanon), Cairo (Egypt), Venice & Rome (Italy) and Hague (The

Netherlands). The aim is to lure the foreign tourists through different rich

and virile cuisines that India as a destination has to offer.

• Central Financial Assistance - Ministry of Tourism (MoT) operates various schemes through which Central Financial Assistance (CFA) is provided to States/UTs for overall development and promotion of tourism. This is renewed and reviewed from time to time.

• Emphasis on Publicity and Promotion - The Ministry of Tourism,

Government of India, promotes India as a holistic destination in the

international markets. Participation in International tourist festivals like

PATA, ITB Berlin are just a few steps taken in this direction.

• Some Schemes which even the foreign tourists can avail benefit of

o Swadesh Darshan - Swadesh Darshan was launched for development of theme based tourist circuits in a way that caters to both mass and niche tourism in a holistic manner for domestic tourists, however, the inbound tourists can also avail benefit off. Thirteen Circuits namely North-East India Circuit, Buddhist Circuit, Himalayan Circuit, Coastal Circuit, Krishna Circuit, Desert Circuit, Tribal Circuit, Eco Circuit, Wildlife

Circuit, Rural Circuit, Spiritual Circuit, Ramayana Circuit and Heritage

Circuit have been identified for development under this Scheme.

o National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual

Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) - This new Scheme has been launched

for the development and beautification of pilgrimage sites to tap the


growth of domestic tourists driven by religious sentiments and to

augment tourism infrastructure at places of pilgrimage to facilitate

pilgrims/tourists. Cities namely Amritsar, Kedarnath, Ajmer, Mathura,

Varanasi, Gaya, Puri, Dwarka, Amaravati, Kanchipuram, Vellankanni,

Kamakhya and Patna have been identif ied for infrastructure

development under the scheme.

• To ensure the safety and security of Inbound Tourists – specifically single women tourists the following steps have been taken by Ministry of Tourism, Government of India

o Launched the ‘Incredible India’ mobile application to assist international and domestic tourists to access information about

Ministry of Tourism recognized tourism service providers and receive

quality and reliable services from them

o All the Chief Ministers of the State Governments and Administrators of

Union Territory Administrations have been asked to take immediate

effective steps for ensuring a conducive and friendly environment for all tourists.

o Ministry of Tourism has advised all the State Governments/Union Territory Administrations to deploy Tourist Police in the States/Union Territories.

o Issue of Welcome Card to all international tourists arriving at 9 e-

tourist visa designated international airports in the country.

o The State Governments/Union Territory Administrations of Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have deployed Tourist Police, in one form or the other.

o Adoption of code of conduct for Safe and Honourable Tourism, which contains a set of guidelines to encourage tourism activities to be

undertaken with respect to basic rights in particular women and

children.

o Issue of Guidelines on Safety & Security of Tourist including Tips for

Travellers to States and UTs. which covers the aspects like Precautions

to be taken during pre-travel arrangements, Travel information on calamities/situations by the State Government,


Steps taken by different State Governments to promote inbound tourism

Rajasthan

Gujarat

The State has mooted the Tourism Unit Policy 2015, salient features of which are as stated below:-

o Allotment of Government land for tourism units

o No conversion charges for conversion of land for Tourism Units

o Relaxed FAR

o Regularsation of existing Tourism units

o Fiscal benefits and incentives has been chalked out

o Special Incentives for skill development

o Time period for Annual licenses for tourism units extended

o Constitution of Tourism Advisory Committee

o Formation of Nodal Department

The State has declared Tourism as an industry by the way of declaring its Tourism

Policy in September 2015, salient features of which are as stated below:-

o Augmentation of Tourist Infrastructure

o Adopting a Tourist Centric Approach

o Emphasis on Skill Development and Employment Generation

o Emphasis on Innovation

o Promotion of “Make in India” and “Digital India”

o Thrust on Environment friendliness, Sanitation and Hygiene

o Participation in GOI Schemes

o Active collaboration with the Central Government

o Multi - pronged approach for ease of doing business

o Earmarking a proactive role of the State Government to promote inbound tourism

The State has declared its Tourism Policy, salient features of which are as stated

below:-

o Boosting Employment Opportunity

Maharashtra


o Setting up of Special Tourism District

o Establishment of Growth Corridors

o State level High Powered Committee

o Setting up of Transaction Advisory Cell

o Emphasis upon Skill Development

The State has decided to emphasize on the following modes of tourism in coming

times

• Sustainable Tourism

• Rural and Agri Tourism

• Caravan Tourism

• MICE Tourism

• Film and Media Tourism

• Religious Tourism

• Heritage Tourism

• Beach Tourism

• Fort Circuits

• Coastal/ Yatch Tourism

• Culinary Tourism

• Nature Tourism

• Education Tourism

• Tiger Eco Tourism

Apart from this there would be an emphasis on Tourist Police and Smart Ticketing System.

The State has emphasized to focus on the following themes to augment inbound

tourism

• Wildlife Tourism



• Nature Tourism

• Leisure Tourism

• Culture & Cuisines

Madhya Pradesh


Chhattisgarh

Goa

Uttar Pradesh

The key features of Chhattisgarh Tourism Policy have been highlighted in the points

below:-

• Cultural Tourism



• Nature Tourism

The State of Goa has placed larger emphasis on the safety and security of tourists and on containing growth of the unorganized tour operators and travel service providers. Some steps taken in this regard has been indicated below:-

o Deployment of Tourist Police

o Deployment of India Reserve Battalion (IRB) personnel on the beaches for the

safety and security of tourists.

o Permissions are being issued to erect shacks on the beaches to cater needs of

international tourists

o Lifeguards have been deployed on all the beaches to ensure safety and

security of the bathers.

Uttar Pradesh Governments’ Tourism Initiatives to boost Inbound Tourism have been highlighted in the points below:-

o Promotion and branding of Agra – Varanasi - Lucknow Heritage Arc

o Special attention to promoting eco tourism for foreign tourists

o Heritage walk in certain areas

o Revival of long lost Awadhi cuisine

o Annual fest like Taj Mahotsav

o Launch of E books on Uttar Pradesh

o Agra – Lucknow Expressway to be operational by Oct 2016

o Beautification plan for Varanasi Ghats

o International Airport at Kushinagar

o Promoting pro - poor Tourism

o Taj International Airport

o Participation in fairs, exhibitions and travel marts


o Promotion of paying guests and bed and breakfast schemes

o Deployment of Tourist police

o Investment in Lion Safari, Etawah and Dudhwa National Park

o Hazratganj to become a 4G Spot

The salient features of the State Tourism policy features on the following interventions in order to make Odisha a one stop destination for inbound tourism:-

o Thrust on inviting new investment

o Preparation of Land bank for tourism

o Thrust on Human Resource Development and Capacity Building

o Emphasis on Safety and Security

o Earmarking capital investment and incentives (both financial and non financial)

o Stamp duty exemption and reimbursements

o Participation in overseas events

The emphasis of North East India to promote inbound tourism would require focus

on the following

o Emphasis on Safety and Security

o Promotion of the exquisite sites/ destinations/ cultures

o Skill development of locals

o Thrust on inviting new investment

o Dolling out incentives – financial and non financial

Odisha

North Eastern India


FICCI - MRSS Fourteen Point Roadmap for sustainable growth of inbound tourism in India

Formation of India Tourism Board

Promote concept of Sustainable Tourism

Strengthen the India Tourism offices overseas

Create a central tourism repository

Create a market intelligence system to track competition

It is imperative to form Tourism Board as the regulatory authority of tourism in the country. This shall have focus on developing, maintaining and strengthening the backward (Intra India with focus on the internal stakeholders) and the forward (India to inbound market) linkages to make India a prominent inbound destination of the world.

It is suggested that the concept of sustainable tourism be adopted and practised.

This will involve all stakeholders right from the community to active participants in

the value chain and enable them to proactively serve and interact with the inbound

tourists so that they feel more at home in India. This will enable them to return to India on a regular basis.

It is understood from the feedback of the foreign tourists that they rely heavily on

the India Tourism offices as well as social media. This being the order of the day, it

is hereby advised that policy be drafted to strengthen the India tourism offices

A central repository with links to the different states, destinations and product offerings may be looked into, in order to rule out ambiguity. This may be hosted in the Ministry of Tourism site itself, while the modalities may be outsourced.

There needs to be an intelligence system to track the product offerings by the

competition states and pass on this information to the states so that they can

amend/ modify/ value add their offerings in order to stay competitive amongst

foreign touristsThis needs to be done on a priority basis. i.e. Lets’ say Thailand is offering Nature Tourism, States of India offering nature tourism may decide to set up a competitive profiling of Thailand, information may be gathered in form of interactions, mystery shopping, a proper analysis of the same needs to be undertaken and passed on the States so that they could develop a strategy either alone or in collaboration with one another.


Maintain co-ordination and align with the centrally Sponsored scheme

Create a national emergency response system for the tourists

Create experiences, not just tourist spots

Build great roads and access points

Sell Niche tourism separately

The Swachch Bharat Abhiyan and the Make in India and Skill India initiatives needs

to be well aligned with the State policies. Some States like Gujarat, Maharashtra

and Madhya Pradesh has already incorporated in the State Tourism policies.

To provide a safe and secure environment it is recommended that a national emergency no. may be created and dissemination of the same needs to be done

through the social and traditional media channels.

A visitor should go back enriched in knowledge and with a sense of a great experience. To make this happen steps can be taken to make the tour replete with tour guides, activities for the children, culinary tours, interactivity for the tourist with the culture of the place etc. New tourist destinations may be identified and further developed for offering innovative tourism products or experiences.

Create better infrastructure and the last mile connectivity. Good roads and

approach points to a certain tourist destination will boost the traffic flow. Tour

packages, easy bus connections and safe car hire services with knowledgeable

personnel combines with great highways would mean an unmatched tourist

experience. Private sector investments may be encouraged for boosting infrastructure development. Seamless travel may be facilitated across integrated circuits. Improvements in highway infrastructure such as petrol pumps, clean drinking water kiosks and sanitation facilities, road signage etc. are a must.

Customized travel experiences, luxury spa sessions, rare animal sanctuaries,

religious pilgrimage tours are what the foreign travellers believe in. UP tourism

should focus on how it has something on offer for everyone in every category with

all budgets. There is enough opportunity in India to promote medical, wellness and

spiritual tourism in the state. MICE destinations should be encouraged as tourism

for the purpose of Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions are no longer limited to big cities.


Safety and Security

Cross promotion and selling

Launching new initiatives

Skill up gradation

India has recently taken a beating in this area with the various untoward cases

happening in the country about safety and security. With rise in number of women

travellers both in terms of domestic as well as foreign tourists, ensuring their

safety has emerged as a major concern. While steps have already been initiated in

this direction, there is a need for ensuring effective implementation of the policies and actions drafted to ensuring safety and security of tourists. India’s image needs to be projected as a safe and secure tourist destination for all tourists.

Cross selling of tourism hotspots of nearby states can help enhance larger inflow of

tourists. Package deals should be worked out and engaged for the benefit of the

tourists as well as the state. Discounts and offers on group travel is an area which

would encourage tourists to bring their family along while on business travel as

well. Participation in international events should be encouraged and customised

tour packages with competitive pricing may be developed keeping in mind the wide

array of visitors along with their budget and travel requirements.

New initiatives should be launched more frequently and the tourists need to be

informed well. Adding newer destinations in the tourist map should be a regular

feature in the plan of action. While multiple tourism circuits based on diverse

themes exist across the country, low level of stay durations by both domestic and

international tourists indicates the need for more entertainment and leisure

activities.

The hospitality industry should be well groomed and also be able to deliver their best while providing service to the visitors. Investing in training schools will help the young generation focus on the job and acquire adequate skills to make the experience worthwhile. Appropriate knowledge about the destination and its history is a must for the guides that take the tourists around. Procedural

knowledge on visa/ passports for foreign tourists is also a job in hand. Training and

skill development programmes must be introduced for not only meeting the

anticipated manpower shortfall but also develop an adequately skilled workforce,

across the state. Local community involvement may be encouraged for better

harmony and sustainable growth of the tourism industry.


List of Abbreviations

ASI Archaeological Survey of India

CAGR Cumulative Annual Growth Rate

COT Commissionerate of Tourism

DTPC District Tourism Promotion Committee

FTA Foreign Tourist Arrival

GOI Government of India

GSDP Gross State Domestic Product

ICT Information & Communication Technology

IT Information Technology

MOC Ministry of Commerce

MOEF Ministry of Environment & Forests

MOT Ministry of Tourism

MOUD Ministry of Urban Development

SLEC State Level Empowered Committee

USD US Dollars

WBTDCL West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation Limited

WTTC World Tourism and Trade


.Introduction 1

.Introduction 1

India, a country full of resources in every conceivable sphere of life has been attracting

tourists from across the world. Across the ages, inbound tourist has swarmed the land and

fallen in love with its' terrain, cuisine, heritage, culture, art, crafts, architecture, history,

diversity, which has made them return to this mystic land. An enthralling past, a vibrant

present and a promising future has always kept tourists flocking in to this mystic land and

will keep flocking as well. This depiction is a synopsis of India's performance as a major

tourist destination in the world over the last few years, how it is competing against similar

destinations/ product offerings and what it needs to focus upon to make it the “first

choice” amongst foreign visitors.

The historical trends of inbound tourist, the world vis a vis India, indicates that

the latter has grown at a phenomenally higher growth rate (@ 7.5% CAGR

compared to 4% CAGR for 1998 – 2015 period). The following has been indicated in

the chart below:-

1.1. India's performance in last few years

Introduction

Source: World Tourism Organization


While the aforesaid chart re-inforces India's position as a preferred destination

but it also emphasizes the fact that it is also a distant dream for the country to

become a tourism superpower of the world. The contribution of India in the total

tourist arrivals across the world continues to be meagre as indicated in the chart

below.

2.36 2.48 2.65 2.54 2.38 2.733.46 3.92 4.45 5.08 5.28 5.17 5.78 6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68 8.02611.0

633.8

683.3

683.4

703.2

691.0762.0

798.0846.0

894.0

917.0

883.0948.0

994.01039.0

1087.01133.0

1184.0

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

200.0

400.0

600.0

800.0

1000.0

1200.0

199819992000 20012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014 2015

India World

What is interesting to note here is the fact that India more or less followed the

trend that existed in the world tourist arrivals, the following encouraging

observations were made with respect to the foreign tourist arrivals in India.

• In the year 2003, when the world tourist arrivals saw a slump, India recorded a

double digit growth (-1.7% vis a vis 14.7% respectively)

• From 2003 – 2007, foreign tourist arrivals in India grew at an average of

16.5%, while for the same period world tourist arrivals grew at a meagre rate

of 5%.

It goes without saying that foreign tourist arrivals have been able to garner

considerable resources for the country and has started contributing significantly

to the economy. The year wise contribution in terms of foreign exchange earnings

have been depicted in the figures below:-

1.2. Benefits of inbound tourism in India


Source: Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India

0.39 0.39 0.39 0.37 0.340.39

0.45 0.49 0.53 0.57 0.58 0.59 0.61 0.63 0.63 0.64 0.68 0.68

0

0.5

1

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Year

2.36 2.482.65 2.54 2.38

2.73

3.46 3.92 4.455.08 5.28 5.17

5.78 6.31 6.58 6.977.68 8.02

29483009

34603198

31034463

61707493

8634

1072911832

11136

14193

1656417737

18445

2023619676

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

1000

6000

11000

16000

21000

1998 19992000 2001200220032004200520062007200820092010 2011 2012 20132014 2015

FTA (Million Nos.) Foreign Exchange Earnings (USD Mn)


It is interesting to note over here that increase in tourist flow at a CAGR of 7.5% has

contributed to a growth of foreign exchange earnings at a CAGR of 11.8% for the period

1998 – 2015. This is dependent on many factors like exchange rate, socio – political

scenario, however, there is no point denying the fact that FTA's contribute lions share to

the GDP of India. Answering a question in Rajya Sabha, Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Hon'ble

Minister of State for Tourism$ the contribution of Tourism to the State GDP during 2009-

10, 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13 were 6.77%, 6.76%, 6.76% and 6.88%, respectively. As

per WTTC – India Benchmarking Report 2015 Travel and Tourism has generated a total

impact of USD 125 billion of India's GDP in 2014. The total impact of Travel and Tourism in

India's economy is larger than its automotive manufacturing (contribution of approx.

2.8%), mining (slightly larger), education and chemical manufacturing sectors.

Travel and Tourism sustained a total of 36.7 million direct, indirect and induced jobs in

India in 2014 and the sector in India directly employs more people than banking,

automotive manufacturing, chemicals manufacturing, education, financial services and

mining sectors. In the year 2014, Travel and Tourism has generated either directly or

indirectly, 8.7% of the total employment. As per WTTC estimates, the employment impact

of 1Mn USD spending on different sectors of the economy in India has been depicted in the

chart below.

This apart, there is no point denying the fact the social impact inbound tourism has

contributed. States otherwise languishing on many aspects have used tourism as a tool to

uplift morale, showcase their art and culture, create a friendly environment for foreign

tourists and have immensely benefitted from the same.

Employment potential of 1 Mn USD spending by different sectors in India

Source: WTTC, India Benchmarking Report, 2015

Indian economy

Travel & Tourism

Agriculture

Financial Services

Education

Auto manufacturing

Communications

Chemicals

599

407

813

329

1054

315

381

231

1.3. FTA's and their country of origin

An analysis of foreign tourist arrivals by the country of origin for the period 2012

– 14 indicates the following trend.

It can be observed from the chart above that North America and Central Europe

continue to rule the roost as far as visitors to India is concerned. Major

contributions are also coming from South, South East and East Asia.

Further analysis indicates that USA, France, Germany, Canada, UK, Russian

Federation, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Mainland China, Japan and Australia

keep on sending across tourists to India more frequently than others. These

markets are quite consistent as far as sending visitors to India are concerned.

Emerging markets (with low visitor base but with higher growth rates) for India

can be found amongst Mexico, Ireland, Portugal, Kazakhstan, Egypt, Kenya, Entire

West Asia with exception of Turkey and Israel, Most SAARC countries, most South

East Asian countries with exception of Singapore and Indonesia.

The recent initiatives undertaken by Government of India to boost foreign tourist

arrival has been depicted in the ensuing paragraphs:-

Formation of Inter Ministerial Committee on Tourism Sector: This has been

constituted under the chairmanship of the principal secretary of the Prime

Minister. The terms of reference of the Committee are to facilitate resolution of

1.4. Recent initiatives by the Government of India


Visitors to India from around the world

Source: Bureau of Immigration, Govt of India

19.70 19.24 18.07

28.17 26.64 24.23

17.81 17.44 22.07

8.22 9.04 8.93

8.14 7.85 7.12

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2012 2013 2014

Not classified elsewhere

Australasia

East Asia

South East Asia

South Asia

West Asia

Africa

Eastern Europe

Western Europe

Central & South America

North America

Inter – Ministerial issues involved in development of tourism in the country as well

as issues raised by industry associations in the tourism sector. The members of the

committee are as follows:-

• Secretary, Ministry of Tourism as the Convener

• Member secretary, NITI Aayog

• Chairman, Railway Board

• Secretaries from :-

o Ministry of Home

o Ministry of External Affairs

o Ministry of Road Transport & Highways

o Ministry of Civil Aviation

o Ministry of Rural Development

o Ministry of Environment & Forests

o Ministry of Urban Development

o Ministry of Labour & Employment

o Ministry of Culture

o Department of Revenue

o Department of Expenditure

o Department of school education & literacy

Multilingual Tourist Infoline: The Ministry of Tourism has launched the 24x7 Toll

Free Multi-Lingual Tourist Info Line in 12 International Languages including Hindi

& English on 8.2.2016. The multi-lingual helpdesk in the designated languages

provide support service in terms of providing information relating to Travel &

Tourism in India and assist the callers with advice on action to be taken during

times of distress while travelling in India and if need be alert the concerned

authorities. The languages handled by the contact centers include ten

International languages besides English and Hindi, namely, Arabic, French,

German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish.

E – Tourist Visa (e-TV): The Government of India has introduced the facility of e-

TV for the citizens of 113 countries at 16 airports. Introduction of e-TV is a Path

breaking measure by the Government in easing entry formalities in the country.

Government of India has also revised the e-TV fee in four slabs of 0, US$25, US$48

and US$60 from November 3, 2015. Earlier e-TV application fee was US$60 and

bank charge as US$2 which was uniform for all the countries. The revision of Visa

fee has been done on the principle of reciprocity. Bank charges have also been

reduced from US$2 to 2.5 % of the e-TV fee. During 2015, a total of 4,45,300 e-TV

holders visited India indicating the success of the new online process.


Publicity and Promotion: The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, promotes India as a holistic destination in the international markets. As part of its promotional activities, the MoT releases campaigns in the international markets under the Incredible India brand-line to showcase various tourism destinations and products including its cultural heritage.

Moreover, a series of promotional activities are being undertaken in tourist generating markets overseas through the India Tourism Offices abroad with the objective of showcasing India's tourism potential and promoting tourism to the country. These promotional activities include participation in travel fairs and exhibitions; organising road shows, Know India seminars & workshops; organizing and supporting Indian food and cultural festivals; publication of brochures, offering joint advertising and brochure support, and inviting media personalities, tour operators and opinion makers to visit the country under the Hospitality programme of the Ministry.

The Ministry of Tourism provides financial assistance to Stakeholders and Tourism Departments of States/Union Territories for undertaking promotional activities under the Marketing Development Assistance (MDA) Scheme.

Central Financial Assistance (CFA): Ministry of Tourism (MoT) operates various schemes through which Central Financial Assistance (CFA) is provided to States/UTs for overall development and promotion of tourism.

MoT has also launched following two schemes for development of tourism in thematic manner:

Swadesh Darshan: Swadesh Darshan was launched for development of theme based tourist circuits in a way that caters to both mass and niche tourism in a holistic manner. Thirteen Circuits namely North-East India Circuit, Buddhist Circuit, Himalayan Circuit, Coastal Circuit, Krishna Circuit, Desert Circuit, Tribal Circuit, Eco Circuit, Wildlife Circuit, Rural Circuit, Spiritual Circuit, Ramayana Circuit and Heritage Circuit have been identified for development under this Scheme. Though not meant specifically for the foreign tourists, this scheme has enough to offer the foreign visitors as it specifically offers some products pertaining to their area of interest.

National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASAD): This new Scheme has been launched for the development and beautification of pilgrimage sites to tap the growth of domestic tourists driven by religious sentiments and to augment tourism infrastructure at places of pilgrimage to facilitate pilgrims/tourists. Cities namely Amritsar, Kedarnath, Ajmer, Mathura, Varanasi, Gaya, Puri, Dwaraka, Amaravati, Kanchipuram, Vellankanni, Kamakhya and Patna have been identified for infrastructure development under the scheme. Though not completely related, this can also be an area of interest for the visitors to India.


Cuisine promotion: For promotion of Indian Cuisine, which is an integral

component of the Indian Tourism product, support is extended to Indian Food

Festivals by sponsoring the visit of Indian Chefs for the food festivals. During the

current financial year, such support has been extended for organizing food

festivals in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, Osaka, Ecuador (Bogota), Ramallah

(Palestine), Veracruz (Mexico), Beirut (Lebanon), Cairo (Egypt), Venice & Rome

(Italy) and Hague (The Netherlands).

Steps to ensure safety and security of Inbound Tourists – specifically single

women tourists – The steps taken by the Government of India for securing safety

and security of tourists is as mentioned below$:-

• Adoption of code of conduct for Safe and Hon'ble Tourism, which contains a

set of guidelines to encourage tourism activities to be undertaken with

respect to basic rights like dignity, safety and freedom from exploitation of

both tourists and local residents, in particular women and children.

• All the Chief Ministers of the State Governments and Administrators of Union

Territory Administrations have been asked to take immediate effective steps

for ensuring a conducive and friendly environment for all tourists.

• Ministry of Tourism has advised all the State Governments/Union Territory

Administrations to deploy Tourist Police in the States/Union Territories. The

State Governments/Union Territory Administrations of Andhra Pradesh, Delhi,

Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra,

Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have deployed

Tourist Police, in one form or the other.

• Issue of Guidelines on Safety & Security of Tourist including Tips for Travellers

to States and UTs. which covers the aspects like Precautions to be taken during

pre-travel arrangements, Travel information on calamities/situations by the

State Government, Identifying, locating tourists in times of emergency,

Government communication and inter agency coordination, Regulations of

service providers (Transport Services, Accommodation Sector), Regulating

leisure and recreational services including adventure sports, Address

insolvencies and dispute settlement, Enforcement.

• Issue of Welcome Card to all international tourists arriving at 9 e-tourist visa

designated international airports in the country.

• Launched the 'Incredible India' mobile application to assist international and

domestic tourists to access information about Ministry of Tourism recognized

tourism service providers and receive quality and reliable services from them


Present dynamics of Inbound Tourism Industry in India

2

The present dynamics of the inbound tourism in India has been depicted in the ensuing

paragraphs.

Like any other industry, foreign tourist flow also exhibits a distinctive pattern with

October to March being the peak months and April to September being the lean

months. However, it is heartening to see that the foreign tourist flow has been

steadily increasing across all the months of the yearfor the time period depicted in

the chart below.

2.1. Seasonality observed in foreign tourist arrivals


2.2. Most visited States

An analysis of the top 10 states by Foreign tourist visits (FTV's) indicates the

following trends. Around 60% of the visits are concentrated in top 4 States, some


Present dynamics of Inbound Tourism Industry in India 2

Seasonality of Foreign Tourist arrivals

0

100000

200000

300000

400000

500000

600000

700000

800000

900000

1000000

January

Feb

uarr

y

March

April yMa

JuneJuly

Ag

t

uus

Septem

ber

ter

Ocob

Novem

ber

Decem

ebr

2012 2013 2014

of which have entry points e.g. Maharashtra and Delhi. In other States,

destination / theme based tourism has been the major contributor to the foreign

tourist visits.

2.3. Factors influencing Inbound Tourism Industry in India

The factors impacting inbound tourism depends on the following factors more

vividly than anything else

• Hassle free immigration procedures – Over theyears considerable relaxation

has been observed with regard to immigration facility. With the eTV initiative,

Govt. of India has embarked on the path of promoting tourism by doling out

red carpet to the tourist from different nations.

• Concreteand secure information sources – This being an e – age, the virtual

world plays an important role in deciding the destination, researching the

same, understanding the good, bad and the ugly and taking a decision about

the visit based on reviews and feedback. Authentication from the Govt. side on

the social media posts, rating/ ranking published would make a destination/

accommodation unit/ facilities more authentic to the inbound tourists.

• Safety and Security/ Law and Order – We live in an era of terror. Repeated

attacks on establishments of commercial and tourist interest in addition to

the attack on women in general has been instrumental in painting the

negative picture of India. Various steps have been taken off late by

Government of India to ensure safety of single female travellers as discussed in

Point 1.3.


Percentage of FTV's in different States, 2014

Source: Tourism Statistics, Ministry of Tourism, Govt of India

Maharashtra, 19.5

Others, 11.1

Maharashtra, 19.5

Haryana, 2.4

Karnataka, 2.5

Bihar, 3.7

Kerala, 4.1

West Bengal, 6.1

Rajasthan, 6.8

Delhi, 10.3

Uttar Pradesh, 12.9

• Helpful, friendly, hospitable hosts/ travel agents/ hotels/guides/ locales –

It is within our culture to welcome tourists as God since time immemorial. With

the passage of time the feeling has denuded a bit. This was followed by a

vigorous campaign by Government of India with celebrities reminding the

locales and the service providers about the basic ethos of our culture. No

wonder things have improved considerably. In view of certain unfortunate

vents that took place in India over past few years, Ministry of Tourism has

taken concrete steps ensure traveller safety as discussed above.

• A v a i l a b l e p h y s i c a l a n d v i r t u a l i n f r a s t r u c t u r a l a m e n i t y –

Accommodationavailability in real time status from both private as well as

government sources, accessibility to road / railway / air transport in real time

status along withtariff would be helpful in creating transparent image of the

country. Till now, no regulator exists in the field and the aforesaid amenities

lack a Govt. attestation/ affirmation.

• Product offerings at competitive rates/ deals and discounts – India till

recent times had a cost advantage in comparison with the South East Asian

counterparts. Off late, this has gained a bit of a momentum, thanks to the

strong dollar rates. However, India needs to develop expert skillset at a

competitive cost to offer products/ services at a competitive rate and pull

more tourists from the competitors, especially the South East Asian and South

Asian countries. To be on the drivers' seat, India needs to develop a discount

mechanism for competitive products and promote the same more aggressively.

• Global economy trends linked to personal income/ exchange rates: The

world economy is experiencing a bit of turbulence with the tension on the geo

political scenario, falling crude prices, refugee crises, war in Syria/ Ukraine.

With Europe being on the negative zone for long, personal disposable income

has fallen considerably which might impact the inbound tourism into the

country. On the other hand, lower ATF costs may result in lower airfare which

may also impact inbound tourist flow positively

• Cutting travel expenditures by organization – Business travel has suffered

over the last few years owing to strong emergence of the ICT infrastructure

around the world. The virtual world has emerged so strongly that in most cases

it has replaced the need of face to face meetings. This has not only impacted

the transport services but the accommodation units as well.

It has been observed that foreign tourists spend more time in a location compared

to the domestic ones and they also on an average cover three destinations in one

go.


Trends and Preferences 3

Trends and Preferences 3

This chapter highlights the trends and preferences from a foreign tourist perspective. It

will highlight what India has to offer as a destination and what do the foreign tourist

perceive about the same.

As per the study commissioned by Ministry of Tourism, Government of India titled

“Competitiveness of Tourism Sector in India with selected Other countries of the

World” a benchmarking of India as a destination has been done vis a vis 6 similar

and 4 developed nations (depicted below) in terms of foreign tourist arrivals. The

major parameters against which each of these countries were assessed were :-

• Tourism policy

• Investment

• Marketing initiatives

The study prepared a laundry list of major attractions which draws tourists from

around the world before delving deeply on head to head comparison with a few

developed nations

India has a lot of tourism resources to offer vis a vis world. What are the resources

that pulls the tourists towards a specific destination and what does India have to

offer compared to the so called developed tourist nation of the world? An effort

has been made to map the respective strengths of different nations (as per

feedback received from the inbound tourists). The shaded areas are the ones

representing strength of a particular country.

3.1. India vs. competitors - what is unique in India's offering


Major Draws France Turkey USA UK China Indonesia South Korea Malaysia Singapore Thailand India

for Inbound

Tourism

Cuisine

Varied Climate

Natural Beauty/

Landscape

Beaches

Tourist Spots/

Destinations

Monuments &

Museums

Holiday & Leisure

History & Culture

Adventure Tourism

Meeting Family

& Friends

Work

Shopping

The findings indicate that as far as the major tourism draws/ resources are concerned,

India is placed favourably against the major tourist destinations of the world.

It is discernible from the comparatives above that India inspite of having considerable

advantages, lacks behind the immediate competition as well as the developed countries of

the world. The key issues observed were as follows:-

• Absence of a central regulatory authority or a tourism board in the likes of

Singapore Tourism Board, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Tourism Regulatory

Authority of France. The authority to regulate the stakeholders of the tourism

sector to follow international standards. A small but significant step has been

taken in this direction, with the formation of inter-ministerial committee on

Tourism as described in Chapter 1

• Extensive campaign of India as a destination. The Incredible India campaign has

made a mark during its' haydays and has been well respected across the world. It

has shown the power of advertising and promotion. Although Incredible India

campaign has lost its' sheen somewhat in recent times for various reasons, what is

encouraging is the fact that both Central as well as State Government has realised

the power of digital as well as conventional modes of advertising and are investing

heavily on the same. After the new Government took over at the Centre, the

websites have been revamped to make it more user friendly, content heavy,

Source: “Competitiveness of Tourism Sector in India with Selected Countries of theWorld”, 2010–Ministry of Tourism


aesthetically appealing. Many State Governments have followed suit and have

started investing in promoting their State in the effective way through digital and

conventional forums

• Cleanliness and Hygiene issues still is a cause of concern, even after launch of the

“Swachch Bharat Abhiyan”. However, with the measures taken by the Centre to

impose Cess and Penalties, this is likely to gather more steam in near future

• Safety and Security owing to threat from possible terror groups, local issues have

created a big dent in the image of India in recent times and the Government is

prepared to take stern steps to mitigate the same. This has been discussed above

in Chapter 1.

• Under the National Skill Development Mission and Skill India programme,

ambitious plan for skilling India has been drafted and it plans to train individuals

as per International standards. This will solve the shortage of skilled manpower in

the sector considerably.

• Tourism Infrastructure has been gearing up recently and some states have made

considerable advances. However, lack of liquidity in the infrastructure and real

estate sector is likely to impact the completion scenario.

• Uncertain economic scenario has made investors cautious about new investments,

though various Centre and State Governments are doling out incentives, fresh

vigour has been observed in the sector.

• Under Start Up India, the youth of the country are being motivated and

incentivized for setting up enterprises of their own. Off late Travel and Tourism has

received a boost with the e-commerce coming in a big way. The Make my trip, Clear

Trip, Trip Advisor and Holiday IQ's of the world has come up in a big way in recent

times and are winning laurels from across the world Social Media is abuzz with

these success stories.


3.2.1. Profile of the Inbound Tourist

Upto 25 26 -40 years

41–60 years

Above 61 years

7.861.8 28.4

2.0

Family 5% Friends15%

Colleagues37%Self 43%

It is discernible from the profiling information above that majority of the respondents were

males aged between 26 – 60 years having Europe as their region of Origin and were either

travelling alone or with colleagues.

3.2.2. Reasons for visiting India


0.0

5.0

10.0

15.0

20.0

25.0

30.0

35.0

40.0

EUROPE

NORTH A

MERICA

SOUTH A

FRIC

A

SOUTH A

MERICA

SOUTH EAST A

SIA

AUSTRALASIA

EAST

ASI

A

MIDDLE EAST

38.2

14.7

10.8

2.0

8.8

17.6

5.9

2.0

77.5

35.344.1

52.9

4.9 5.9

0.010.020.030.040.050.060.070.080.090.0

Has GreatHistorical

Significance

Has scenicbeauty

Are famousin the world

Providesvalue for

money againstcompetition

Are easilyaccessible

Tourist friendlynation

3.2. Voice of the inbound traveller - how do they perceive India as a destination

MRSS India has conducted survey of approx. 400 inbound tourists at major entry/

exit points. The synopsis of the findings is being presented in the ensuing pages:-

Approx. 83% of the respondents are satisfied with the information made available

and 67% are satisfied with the formalities involved.

With regard to majority of parameters, the respondents were either very satisfied

or quite satisfied with the facilities made available to them as depicted in the

chart below.

3.2.4. Satisfaction with regard to various factors


92.2

44.1

15.7

65.7

0.0 1.0

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

80.0

90.0

100.0

India TourismOffices

Ministry ofTourismWebsite

PrintPublications/

Books

Blogs/ Tweets/Facebookpostings

TVProgrammes

Campaigns/Roadshows

23.1

24.5

58.8

34.3

3.9

28.8

52.0

47.1

60.8

20.6

18.6

68.6

76.5

95.1

45.0

53.5

39.2

51.8

53.9

63.7

41.2

52.0

31.4

78.4

80.4

31.4

19.6

3.9

31.9

22.0

2.0

13.9

42.2

7.5

6.9

1.0

7.8

1.0

1.00.0

3.9

1.0

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%Security Concerns

Restricted Movement/ Curbs on free movement

Accessibility to destinations

Knowledgeable guides at reasonable price

Swindlers

Internal transport at reasonable rates

Accommodation

Food

Congestion/ Crowd

Weather

Toilet facilities

Courtesy extended

Communication

ATM and Card Facilities

Satisfied Not Sure Dissatisfied

India is considered a historically resourceful country while it also provides value for money

against competition.

As far as source of information for India is concerned, the following modes viz.

India Tourism Offices and Blogs/ Tweets/ Social Media postings are most sought

after sources.

3.2.3. Source of Information


3.2.5. Willingness to return to India

On the overall level 88% of the respondents have indicated that they would like to v i s i t

India. The break up by source countries are indicated in the Chart below

92.3

66.7

81.8

100.0

88.9

100.0

100.0

50.0

88.2

0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0

EUROPE

NORTH AMERICA

SOUTH AFRICA

SOUTH AMERICA

SOUTH EAST ASIA

AUSTRALASIA

EAST ASIA

MIDDLE EAST

OVERALL

Willingness to return to India

Willingness to return to India

State initiative to promote in bound tourism 4

4.1. Rajasthan

The State of Rajasthan is an epitome as far as inbound tourism in India is

concerned. No one in the 1970’s thought that a dry and arid state can be such a

big tourist attraction that it will motivate Government to run 2 luxury trains

namely “Palace on Wheels” and “Royal Rajasthan on Wheels” covering the major

tourist destinations of the State.

A synopsis of the foreign tourist visits vis a vis Total tourist arrivals has been

indicated in the chart below:\

4.1.1. Historical Trends of inbound tourists to the State


State initiative to promote in bound tourism 4

1.35 1.45 1.44

1.53

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1

1.2

1.4

1.6

1.8

2

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

2011 2012 2013 2014

Foreign Tourist Visit - Rajasthan Foreign Tourist arrival - India

CAGR 6.2%

CAGR 12.2%

It is understandable from the figure above that visits of foreigners to the State is

increasing at a CAGR of 12.2% compared to the Foreign Tourist arrival growth rate

of 6.2% CAGR for the period 2011 – 2014. To understand a little bit more on the

evolutionary trends of tourist flow in the State let us explore the historical trends

of tourist visits in the State from 1971 to 2014, as depicted in the chart below. It is

discernible from the chart below that there has been a gradual phase of growth

followed by rapid growth from the year2004 onwards and the State has sustained

the massive growth it has received during the period.

We can see from the trends above that Rajasthan has been pulling inbound tourists

at a brisk rate and also maintaining it. So how has Rajasthan been able to pull

tourists and sustain the growth rate? What has been so special about their policy

that foreign tourists consider this to be their prized destination? This has been

described in the ensuing paragraphs:-

As far as understanding he needs of inbound tourists and customizing the

packages are concerned, Rajasthan has hit the bull’s eye. Themes of promotion for

tourism hovers round the major destinations of the State, which has been

designed as per customer needs.

Rajasthan focuses on promoting the following themes:-

• 15 Destinations which comprises of major tourist centres of the State

• 16 Forts of historical significance with unparallel natural beauty

• 9 wildlife habitats (starting from Bird Sanctuaries to Tiger Reserves)

4.1.2. Themes of Tourism Promotion by the State


0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

1971

Foreign Tourist Visits in Rajasthan (In '000 Nos.)

Era of Slow Growth -Tillliberalization

Era of Consolidation- Till 2013

Era of High Growth -2014 onwards

1972

1973

1974

1975

1976

1977

1978

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

198

419

8519

8619

8719

8819

8919

9019

9119

9219

9319

9419

9519

9619

9719

9819

9920

0020

0120

0220

0320

04

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

• 36 palaces (majority of which has been converted into heritage property)

• 16 Museums (of Historical importance)

• 18 lakes(of aesthetic beauty)

• 84 religious places of one significance or the other, some even internationally

reputed.

• 57 other destinations that cannot be classified in any of the above

• 25 Fairs and Festivals promoting culture of every nook and cranny of the State

across 12 destinations

Additionally, in order to make the inhospitable state an “all weather destinations”

steps have been taken to provide foreign tourists a clean, healthy, hygienic and

comfortable destination stay. One can notice the new concept of adventure

tourism slowly entering the promotion kitty of the State Government. What is

interesting to note here is that all major destinations are being covered over here.

A small depiction is included herein:-

Hot Air Balloon Rides Pushkar, Jaipur

Cycling Udaipur

Camping Jaisalmer, Pushkar, Jhalawar

Parasailing Jaisalmer, Jodhpur

Watersports Udaipur, Alwar

Desert & Camel Safari Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Pushkar, Jodhpur

Wildlife Alwar, Bharatpur, Bikaner, Kota, Bundi

Zip Line Jaipur, Jodhpur

4.1.3. Strength & Opportunity of Rajasthan as an Inbound destination

Strength

• Legacy of the “Maharanas” – Most sought after by Foreign tourists

• Presence of a large no. of Forts and Palaces

• Have been able to imbibe the tourist serving culture since long and hence is

known as a tourist friendly state

Opportunity

• Tourism sector is growing rapidly in India and Rajasthan continues to be a top

of the mind recall for all foreign tourists

• Tourism continues to be the prime focus area for all ruling parties in the State

and the policies have been progressively aimed at attracting foreign tourists.


Rajasthan has constituted the “Tourism Unit Policy 2015” to bring about further

boost in the Tourism sector. This comprises of the following pointers:-

o Allotment of Government land for tourism units – All Development

Authorities shall be able to identify suitable land for Tourism Units. Land area

for each type of unit has been identified. Allotment of land shall be made on

prevailing DLC rates. Land shall be made available for 30 years.

o Conversion of land for Tourism Units - No conversion charges shall be payable

for land held by tenant for establishment of a tourism unit in urban as well as

in rural areas

o FAR – Relaxed FAR Policies have been earmarked as indicated below:-

At present, standard FAR is 1.33 without betterment levy, and maximum FAR is

2.25 with betterment Levy is permissible. Tourism units covered under this

Policy shall be allowed double FAR i.e. 4.50, out of which 2.25 shall be without

betterment levy. Rate for betterment levy shall be calculated on the basis of

residential reserve price of the area.

o Regularsation of existing Tourism units – There are some heritage properties

and residential land and buildings that are running and operating as hotels or

other tourism units without permission. If land and buildings are being used

as hotels and tourism units without prior permission, the same shall be

regularized under Rule 13 of Rajasthan Municipality (Change in Land Use)

Rules 2010.

o Fiscal benefits and incentives – The earmarked benefits are as indicated

below:-

• All fiscal benefits as provided in Rajasthan Investment Promotion Scheme,

2014 (RIPS- 2014) for the Tourism Sector Enterprises shall be available to

the eligible tourism units.

• The projects approved by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, if

eligible under the provision of the Rajasthan Investment Promotion

Scheme, 2014 (RIPS-2014), shall be allowed to avail the benefits as

provided under RIPS-2014.

o Incentives for skill development - All Tourism Units registered with the

Department of Tourism will be directly eligible to become training partners

under the Employment Linked Skill Training Program (ELSTP) subject to

availability of infrastructure as per the guidelines of Rajasthan Skill and

LivelihoodsDevelopment Corporation (RSLDC).

o Time period for Annual licenses for tourism units – Annual licences

extended to 10 years

4.1.4. The way forward to promote inbound tourism – Tourism Unit Policy

2015


o Constitution of Tourism Advisory Committee - A Tourism Advisory Committee

will be constituted to give suggestions regarding measures that can be taken

up for growth of tourism in the State. The Committee will also include

representatives from tourism & travel trade.

o Nodal Department - Department of Tourism shall be the nodal department for

infrastructural development of tourism units

With these measures firmly in place, it is possible that Rajasthan may trudge along

the path of growth for next 20 years at least.

The State of Gujarat is one of the very well geared up state in terms of

infrastructure, facilities and amenities compared to the other Indian States.

Presence of a large no. of industries and a good connectivity and network of roads

and air to the major hubs in the State provides necessary backbone. The State also

has vast resource as far as tourism is concerned.

A synopsis of the foreign tourist visits in the State vis a vis Total tourist arrivals in

the country has been indicated in the chart below:

4.2. Gujarat



0.17 0.17 0.20

0.24

0.28

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68 8.03

-

0.05

0.10

0.15

0.20

0.25

0.30

0.35

0.40

0.45

0.50

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

CAGR 6.2%

CAGR 13.8%

Foreign Tourist Visit - Gujarat Foreign Tourist arrival - India

It is understandable from the figure above that visits of foreigners to the State is


of 6.2% CAGR for country overall for the period 2011 – 2015. The business summits

like “Vibrant Gujarat” and industry friendly state policies have been instrumental

in providing growth to inbound tourists in last few years. Let us delve deeply on

the State Policies and initiatives to promote inbound tourism in the State.

The State of Gujarat has been divided into 8 tourism hubs, which are as illustrated

below:-

• Ahmedabad MetroHub comprising of the City of Ahmedabad with a large no. of

its’ tourism resources, the historically significant architectural findings of

Lothal and the exquisite Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary, the eco tourism hub.

• Gandhinagar Hub comprising of the majestic Akshardham Temple, DandiKutir

Museum, Indroda Nature park, Mahatma Mandir, Mahudi Jain Temple and The

Adalaj Stepwell

• Jamnagar Hub comprising ofthereligious city ofDwarka, Industrial city of

Jamnagar and the Marine National Park.

• Junagadh Hub comprises ofthe historically important Junagadh, the small

town with remembrances of mahatma Gandhi i.e. Porbandar,the majestic

Somnath Templeand the only abode of Asiatic lion, The Gir National Park.

• North Gujarat (Ahmedabad Rural) This comprises of Vadnagar, Patan, Taranga

Hills, Sidhpur

• Vadodara Hub–This comprises of Vadodara, SardarSarovar Dam, Dabhoi,

Dharbavati, Champaner, Jambughoda

• Surat Hub–The Surat Hub comprises of Surat, Dumas Beach, Dandi Beach,

Saputara Hill Station, NargolandTirthal Beach in addition to Navsari.

• Rajkot Hub–This comprises of Gondal, Virpur, Nilambag Palace, Bhavnagar and

Rajkot.

• Bhuj (Kutch) Hub- This comprises of the idyllic location of Bhuj, Harappan

relics of Dholavira, Great Rann of Kutch, Kutch Great Indian Bustard sanctuary,

Mandvi Kutch, Northwest Kutch

4.2.2. The State Of Gujarat and the Tourism Hubs


Gujarat focuses on the following themes for promoting tourism:-

• Weekend Getaways – 33 destinations covering the entire state

• Beaches – 22 beaches

• Eco – Tourism – 17 camping and Trekking Sites, 30National Parks and Wildlife

Sanctuaries, 3 Waterfalls, 8 Wildlife hotspots, 12 Gardens and parks, 18 Lakes

• Heritage –19 Archaeology Sites, 64 Architectural marvels, 13 spots of

Buddhist importance, 13 Forts, 14 Gravesites, 3 Havelis, 17 palaces, 8 Step

Wells, 2 World Heritage Sites

• Gandhi Circuit – 13 Sites/ Destinations

• Golf Tourism – 7 Destinations

• Museums – 36 Museums

• Religious Sites – 13 Buddhsist Sites, 52 Hindu Sites, 18 Islamic sites, 24 Jain

Sites, 2 Sites connected with Krishna’s legacy, 3 Spots of Parsi importance, 4

Spots of Shiva legacy, 18 Temples of other significance

• Fairs and Festivals – 5 Festivals of cultural importance, 8 Fairs, 3 Adventure

themed festivals

• Cuisine – Gujrati, Kathiawadi, Mewari and Marwari Cuisines rule the roost

Strength

• Has many destination and varied themes to offer

• Inherent/ Innate characteristics of Gujratis to travel

• Industrially advanced, well networked and infrastructurally geared up

• Well marketed across the globe through NRI connect

Opportunity

• In bound Tourism sector is growing rapidly in India and Gujarat has shown

appreciable growth rate in recent time

• Most of the locations are virgin, needs to be well marketed to the target

segments overseas

4.2.3. Themes

3.2.4. Strength and opportunity Analysis of Gujarat as an Inbound Tourist

destination


A multi - pronged approach has been taken by the State of Gujarat to promote

tourism in the state. The State Policy of Tourism declared in September 2015 has

given tourism as an “industry” thereby giving the sector much needed impetus for

growth and bringing relief to the stakeholders. A synopsis of the salient points of

the policy has been provided below:-

A. Augmentation of Tourist Infrastructure – The focus would be on developing

and providing f inancial assistance to infrastructural amenities,

accommodation and other tourism infrastructure. This would also improve air

connectivity through different centres through PPP mode. It would also focus

on broad basing existing tourism infrastructure to curtail seasonality in

tourist arrivals through the following measures:-

• Development of facilities to support MICE in urban centres

• Mega Tourism Projects in high-potential areas

• Cruise Tourism along the long coastline

• Water / Amusement/Theme Parks

• Spiritual Tourism

• Coastal/ Beach Tourism

• Cinematic Tourism

• Khadi, Handloom, Handicraft and Textile Tourism

• Archaeological and Historical Tourism

• Geo-tourism

• Eco and Wildlife Tourism

• Adventure Tourism and Water Sports

• Wellness and Medical Tourism

• Rural Tourism

• Educational Tourism

• Cuisine Tourism

• Industrial Tourism

B. Adopting a Tourist Centric Approach – This is predominantly aimed at

improving tourist safety and security at all tourist destinations and gifting

them an experience of Gujarat as a tourist destination. Key measures

earmarked in the process include the following:-

4.2.5. Policy adopted by Gujarat Government to promote inbound Tourism


• Adopting a multilingual approach towards promotion through publicity

material, collaterals, guide training, etc;

• Improving access for the differently-abled, the infirm and the aged

through provision of ramps, escalators and other forms of assisted access

to various tourist attractions;

• Developing the tourist circuits in a phased manner;

• Promoting experiential tourism by showcasing and promoting various

fairs and festivals living traditions, local customs, cuisines, etc;

• Evolving a system of taking regular feedback from various stakeholders in

general and a cross-section of the tourists in particular; and

• Strengthening of the Grievance-Redressal Mechanism.

C. Skill Development and Employment Generation: Under this policy, the thrust

would be to create specialized skilled manpower for tourism in the State. Key

initiatives earmarked would include:-

• Development of and tie-up with world-class training institutes;

• Training and certification (both short and long term) shall be imparted to

guides, hospitality staff, including home-stay hosts, tour operators,

etc.from time to time;

• Reimbursement of course fee for identified training programmes;

• Financial support by way of monthly stipend to qualified tourist guides

• Generation of gainful employment and facilitation in self-employment for

the local trained people as also for the artisans, craftsmen and others

D. Emphasis on Innovation: This is a step to promote meritocracy and

excellence. The step would provide special financial assistance including

promotion and marketing support and institutionalization of awards for the

same.

E. Promotion of “Make in India” and “Digital India”– The thrust under this

step would be to promote ICT enabled technology in the tourism sector.

F. Thrust on Environment friendliness, Sanitation and Hygiene – This step

would enable concerted activities under Swachh Bharat” and “Swachh

Gujarat” with the sole purpose of wooing the Inbound tourists.


G. Participation in GOI Schemes - Emphasis on active participation in GoI

schemes like Swadesh Darshan, PRASAD, HRIDAY, AMRUT, LRGP and other

schemes as may be declared from time to time.

H. Active collaboration with the Central Government - Tourism development

needs multi-departmental coordination. The State Government will actively

collaborate with MoT, MoUD, MoC, MoEF, ASI and other GoI Ministries /

Organizations

I. Multi - pronged approach for ease of doing business – The following steps

have been devised forthe step :

• Partnership would be further strengthened with Government of India,

other State Governments and the private stakeholders of the tourism

industry;

• Coordination will be ensured amongst all the concerned Departments, for

the smooth and efficient implementation of the Tourism Policy;

• Adoption of a feedback-based approach to further improve visitors’

experience;

• Constitution of State-Level Empowered Committee (SLEC) to help remove

impediments and procedural bottle-necks; and

• Strengthening of Single-Window Clearance Cell in the Commissionerate of

Tourism (CoT)

J. Proactive role of the State Government - Apart from being an effective

facilitator, the State Government shall be leading from the front in matters

like Destination Development, Promotion of Fairs and Festivals, Publicity

Campaigns, IT Initiatives, Market Research, Exhibition and Seminars, Skill

Development.

The State of West Bengal is one of the very rare states which has been blessed by

mother nature with a bounty of tourism resources. The State is an array of

wonderful expositions of mother nature, starting from the majestic Himalayas in

the North, the dense Terai region dissected by swift moving rivers in the middle,

the Gangetic plain in the middle and the Delta region in the South, which is the

abode of the most dense mangrove forest in the region.

4.3. West Bengal





A synopsis of the foreign tourist visits in the State vis a vis Total tourist

arrivals in the country has been indicated in the chart below: It is

understandable from the figure above that visits of foreigners to the State is


of 6.2% CAGR for country overall for the period 2011 – 2014.The State has

attracted more tourists than many of its’ neighbouring states but the growth rate

hasn’t been encouraging in recent times. The State has undergone a political

change in last assembly elections following which many policies were overhauled

under the aegis of the new government. The era of change has clearly not been an

era of growth for the foreign tourists visiting the State. However, off late some

concrete steps have been taken in order to increase the flow of foreign tourists -

excerpts of the same has been described below.

As mentioned above the State has a large no. of tourism resources and State

Department of Tourism showcases the following themes

• The Towering Himalayas – This comprises of Darjeeling, Kurseong, Kalimpong,

Rishop-Rimbik, Lava – Lolegaon, Mirik, Sandakphu, Roy Villa

• Pilgrimage resource - covering sacred sites of Hinduism, Christianity and

Islam. The major spots include Gangasagar, Belur Math, Dakshineshwar,

Kalighat, Tarapith, Nadia, Bolla Kali Temple, Nakhoda Masjid, Furfura Sharif,

Imambara, St. Paul’s Cathedral, St. James Church.

4.3.2. Salient features of Tourism resources in the State


1.21 1.22 1.25 1.38

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68

-

0.20

0.40

0.60

0.80

1.00

1.20

1.40

1.60

1.80

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

2011 2012 2013 2014

Foreign Tourist Visit - West Bengal Foreign Tourist arrival - India

CAGR 6.2%

CAG4.3%

R

• Forest kitty – This comprises of Dooars, Jaldapara, Gorumara, Sundarbans and

North Dinajpur Bird Sanctuary

• Mangrove beauty of Sundarbans

• Historical attractions ofMurshidabad, Birbhum, Bankura, Bishnupur, Malda,

Hooghly, Burdwan, West Midnapore, Cooch Bihar

• Cultural hotspots ofShantiniketan and Kolkata

• Weekend gateways ofDigha, Mandarmani, Shankarpur, Tazpur, Bakkhali,

Purulia and Howrah

• Special attractions likeSutanuti Trails, Colonial Heritage, Ramakrishna –

Vivekananda Trails

To provide thrust to inbound tourism, the Department of Tourism, Government of

West Bengal has propounded the West Bengal Tourism Incentive Scheme in

January 2015. The salient features of the Scheme in relation to inbound tourism

has been provided in the succeeding paragraph.

Strength

• Has the widest array of tourism resources covering Himalayas to the Bay of

Bengal.

• Bengalis are travellers by nature.

• Rich cultural and colonial heritage to showcase.

Opportunity

• Government of India’s focus on “Look East” and focus on Tourism in general.

• International boundary with Bangladesh, with many visiting India for better

medical facilities.

• Good opportunity to highlight “One in All package for In bound

Tourists”.

According to data compiled by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India for

2014, Maharashtra is the second-most preferred destination for international

travellers, first being Tamil Nadu. With Mumbai being the commercial capital of

4.3.3. Strength and Opportunity Analysis of West Bengal as an Inbound

Tourist destination


4.4 Maharashtra


the country and one of the major entry – exit points and the huge state offering

147 varied destinations across 34 districts, the state draws in a lot of foreign

tourists throughout the year.



It is understandable from the figure above that visits of foreigners to the State has

degrownat a CAGR of -3.0% compared to the Foreign Tourist arrival growth rate of

6.2% CAGR for country overall for the period 2011 – 2014.This has many factors

associated with it. As the economic slowdown continues across the world, so is the

impact on the business travel and Mumbai being the commercial capital this is

more evident with lesser no. of inbound visits. More and more organizations are

now relying on electronic mode of communication as indicated above.



• Adventure Tourism – This comprises of varied offerings like River rafting, Hot

Air ballooning, paragliding, Scuba Diving

• Beaches –13 beacheslocated across it’s massive coastline

• Caves –8 cavessome of which are world heritage sites

• Forts –29 forts located in every nook and cranny

• Forest & Wildlife –15 National Parks and Forests preserving exotic wildlife



4.82 5.12 4.16 4.39

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

2011 2012 2013 2014

Foreign Tourist Visit - Maharashtra Foreign Tourist arrival - India

CAGR 6.2%

CAG3.0%

R

• Heritage Sites & Palaces –8 Sites of importance

• Lake & Water Bodies -8 serene locations

• Hot Water Springs – 12 wonders across the State

• Museums – 9 Museums

• Religious & Spiritual – 43destinations covering all religions

• Hill Stations – 15 Hill Stations

The Salient Objectives of State Tourism Policy has been depicted in the ensuing

paragraphs

• Promote private investment in the tourism sector

• Accelerate projects through PPP Mode

• Investor outreach to global investor community in tourism

• Creation of tourism infrastructure development

• Develop innovative practices for marketing and promotions

• Develop tourist destinations and avenues

• Adapt a sustainable approach to tourism development

Noticing the dip in arrival of foreign tourists, the following targets have also been

set up for

• Maharashtra - leading tourist destination in the world by 2025

• Attract investments to the tune of INR 30,000 crore

• Create 1 million additional jobs in tourism sector

• Double the number of tourism projects in 5 years, triple in 10 years

• Double the tourist receipts in 5 years, triple in 10 years

• 1 million skilled and semi-skilled resources in the tourism sector

It is understandable from the depictions above that the State has embarked on an

ambitious plan to attract foreign tourists to the various tourist locations in the

State. The specific measures have been discussed in the ensuing pages.

4.4.3. Salient features of the State Tourism Policy


Strength

• Extensive coastline, rich cultural heritage, architecture, historical edicts and

wildlife rule the roost.

• Commercial Capital of India/ Major entry/ exit point located in the State

• Good infrastructure and network connectivity

Opportunity

• Mumbai will continue to be the major entry/ exit point for the country

• New paradigms are opening up, so are the interests of the travellers

• New Governments’ policy to spend more on marketing campaigns

The key focus areas earmarked in the policy included the thrust on the following

products / forms of tourism:-

• Sustainable Tourism

• Rural and Agri Tourism

• Caravan Tourism

• MICE Tourism

• Film and Media Tourism



• Beach Tourism

• Fort Circuits

• Coastal/ Yatch Tourism

• Culinary Tourism

• Nature Tourism

• Education Tourism

• Tiger Eco Tourism

Apart from this there would be an emphasis on Tourist Police and Smart

Ticketing System.

3.3.6. Strength and Opportunity Analysis of Maharashtra as an Inbound

Tourist destination

4.4.5. Key focus areas


4.5. Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh, rightfully called the heart of “Incredible India” has been a

tourist friendly state from time immemorial. The wildlife, heritage, religious and

scenic destinations make it the most sought after destination for foreign as well as

domestic tourists.




It is understandable from the figure above that visits of foreigners to the State has

degrownat a CAGR of 5.5% compared to the Foreign Tourist arrival growth rate of

6.2% CAGR for country overall for the period 2011 – 2014. This is steadily growing

in line with the national trends.


Department of Tourism showcases the following 6 themes

• Wildlife Tourism – This form of tourism is clearly the mainstay of MP Tourism.

Blessed with 20 Sanctuaries and 9 National Parks this is the major attraction

for the State



3,973 4,172 3,886

7,777

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

-

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

2011 2012 2013 2014

Foreign Tourist Visit - Chattisgarh Foreign Tourist arrival - India

CAGR 6.2%

CAGR 25.1%

• Heritage Tourism – This comprises of 13 Palaces, 9 Forts, 9 Museums, 4

Cenotaphs

• Religious Tourism – Around 17 destinations are promoted

• Nature Tourism – This comprises of 7 Waterfalls, 11 Boat Clubs, 9 Dams and 2

lakes

• Leisure Tourism – Around 11 destinations are promoted

• Culture & Cuisines – In this 9 festivals, 4 types of Adventure tourism, 9 forms

of art and crafts and Cuisines are being promoted.

Strength

• Exotic resources like Wildlife, culture and Heritage, Palaces and Forts

• Exemplary and sustained marketing efforts

Opportunity

• Adventure seekers high amongst in bound tourists

• Political stability and similar ruling parties in State and Centre would enable

swifter implementation/ execution of policies

Chhattisgarh, a relatively new state has entered the tourism map of India with a

big bang. The natural resources and aesthetically appealing destinations make it

the attractive for foreign tourists.



4.5.3. Strength and opportunity of Madhya Pradesh as an Inbound Tourist

destination


4.6. Chattisgarh


India Inbound Tapping the Power Packed Growth Engine

It is understandable from the figure above that visits of foreigners to the State are

not an encouraging one. As per MOT Data, only about a few thousands of foreign

tourists visit the State. It is assumed that majority of them are business visitors

for the upcoming State Capital, Naya Raipur.


Department of Tourism showcases the following 6 themes

• Cultural Tourism – This form of tourism is clearly the mainstay of Chhattisgarh

Tourism.

• Heritage Tourism – This comprises of Palaces, Forts, Museums

• Religious Tourism – Around 10+ destinations are promoted

• Nature Tourism – This comprises of Waterfalls, Dams and Lakes

Strength

• Abundant natural resources

• Unique Tribal Culture

• Numerous Historical and Heritage Sites

• Rich culture of handicrafts and handlooms


4.6.3. Strength and opportunity of Chhattisgarh as an Inbound Tourist

destination

3,973 4,172 3,886

7,777

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

-

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

2011 2012 2013 2014

Foreign Tourist Visit - Chattisgarh Foreign Tourist arrival - India

CAGR6.2%

CAGR 25.1%

65

Opportunity

• Ample potential for development of Niche products – Eco, Ethnic, Tribal/

Village, Adventure, Leisure, Religious, Special Interest

• Strategic geographical location

The key features have been highlighted in the points below:-

• Integrated development of special tourism areas and constructive

collaboration between Government and Private Sector

• Incentives to the private sector viz. 15% investment subsidy for capital costs

on tourism projects subject to a maximum of 20 lakh as one of the important

steps

• Develop infrastructure linkages and human resources

• Strengthen the institutional mechanism

• Focus on the following form of tourism

o Culture, heritage, village tourism

o Adventure tourism

o Pilgrim tourism

o Business cum Entertainment tourism

Goa, the State nestled in the Konkan coast between Karnataka and Maharashtra is

a big draw for the tourists from across the world as well as India. Given the

topography, rich virile culture (Portuguese as well as Konkani), Goa has attracted

tourists from across the world from the time it became a part of the Indian Union.



4.6.4. Key features – Chhattisgarh Tourism Policy


4.7. Goa


As anticipated, the foreign tourist visit to the State is increasing at a rate which is

higher than the total arrivals in the country. The State has not only grown but has

also sustained the visits over the years.



• Beaches – At least 10 major beaches, each one different from the other is

located along the North and South Goa

• Churches – At least 5 churches make this a heritage hotspots

• Waterfalls – 3 Waterfalls make this a an area worth visiting

• Floating Casino – This has been the latest attraction

• Flea markets – At least 3 Flea markets have emerged as the major attraction

• Pubs – large no. of pubs dotting the coastline has been instrumental in

drawing tourists especially foreigners

Though there is an absence of clear cut tourism policy for the State, especially with

regard to attraction of foreign tourists, the State however, has placed larger


4.7.3. Efforts of Goa Tourism to attract inbound tourists

Foreign Tourist Visit - Goa Foreign Tourist arrival - India

0.45 0.45 0.49 0.51

0.54

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68 8.03

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

-

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

CAGR 6.2%

CAGR 5.6%


emphasis on the safety and security of tourists and on containing growth of the

unorganized tour operators and travel service providers. Some steps taken in this

regard have been indicated below:-

• Deployment of Tourist Police

• Deployment of India Reserve Battalion (IRB) personnel on the beaches for the

safety and security of tourists.

• Permissions are being issued to erect shacks on the beaches to cater needs of

both domestic and international tourists

• Lifeguards have been deployed on all the beaches to ensure safety and security

of the bathers.

Strength

• Large no. of tourism resources

• Fun loving and tourist friendly citizens

• Well developed Infrastructure

• Offers diverse products and services

Opportunity

• Sun, Sand and Sea attracts more tourists from across the world

• Ever growing love for the inbound tourists for the diverse kitty Goa

offers.

Uttar Pradesh, the jewel in the crown of north India has immense resources to

offer the inbound tourist. Whichever, inbound tourist comes to India, yearns to

visit the Taj Mahal. The State however, has a vast array of tourism resources to

offer the inbound visitors. A depiction of the same has been included in the

ensuing paragraphs.



4.7.4. Strength and opportunity of Goa as an Inbound Tourist destination


4.8. Uttar Pradesh



slightly lower than the total arrivals in the country. The State has not only grown

but has also sustained the visits over the years.


Department of Tourism showcases the following themes:

• Heritage Arc – comprising of Agra – Lucknow - Varanasi

• Wildlife Eco - Tourism – This comprises of Dushwa – Pilbhit – Katarniaghat

• Buddhist Circuit comprising of Kapilavastu – Kaushambi – Kushinagar –

Sankisa – Sarnath – Sravasti

• Bundelkhand Circuit comprising of Bithoor – Chitrakoot – Jhansi – Kalinjar –

Mahoba

• Braj Circuit – Agra – Mathura - Vrindavan

• Awadh Circuit – Comprising of Lucknow – Dewa Sharif – Naimisharanya –

Ayodhya – Faizabad

• Vindhya – Varanasi – Varanasi – Chunar - Vindhyachal

The following fairs and festivals have been propounded by Department of Tourism,

Government of Uttar Pradesh


4.8.3. Efforts of UP Tourism to attract inbound tourists


Foreign Tourist Visit - Goa Foreign Tourist arrival - India

0.45 0.45 0.49 0.51

0.54

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68 8.03

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

-

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

CAGR 6.2%

CAGR 5.6%

• Taj Mahotsav, Agra

• Lucknow Mahotsav, Lucknow

• Ganga Water Rally, Allahabad – Varanasi

• Buddha Mahotsav, Kushi Nagar, Sarnath, Sravasti, Kaushambi, Sankisa,

Kapilavastu

• KajariMahotsav, Mirzapur

• Ganga Mahotsav, Varanasi

• Ayurveda Jhansi Mahotsav, Jhansi

• Shopping Festival, Noida

• Taj Balloon Festival, Agra

• UP Bird festival, Chambal

Strength

• Architectural wonders at Agra and Lucknow

• Diverse products, diverse offerings

• Infrastructure gearing up

Opportunity

• Strategic geographical location, proximity to entry and exit points

• Tourist flow growing over the years

The key features have been highlighted in the points below:-

• Promotion and branding of Agra – Varanasi - Lucknow Heritage Arc

• Special attention to promoting eco tourism for foreign tourists

• Heritage walk in certain areas

• Revival of long lost Awadhi cuisine

• Annual fest like Taj Mahotsav

• Launch of E books on Uttar Pradesh

4.8.4. Strength and opportunity of Uttar Pradesh as an Inbound Tourist

destination

4.8.5. Key features – Uttar Pradesh Governments’ Tourism Initiatives to boost

Inbound Tourism


• Agra – Lucknow Expressway to be operational by Oct 2016

• Beautification plan for Varanasi Ghats

• International Airport at Kushinagar

• Promoting pro - poor Tourism

• Taj International Airport

• Participation in fairs, exhibitions and travel marts

• Promotion of paying guests and bed and breakfast schemes

• Deployment of Tourist police

• Investment in Lion Safari, Etawah and Dudhwa National Park

• Hazratganj to become a 4G Spot

Odisha, located in the eastern fringe of India with a vast coastline, has been

attracting tourists predominantly domestic ones from time immemorial. The State

also has attracted tourists from across the world as elucidated in the chart below.



4.9. Odisha



60,722

64,719 66,675

71,426

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

54,000

56,000

58,000

60,000

62,000

64,000

66,000

68,000

70,000

72,000

74,000

2011 2012 2013 2014

Foreign Tourist Visit - Odisha Foreign Tourist arrival - India

CAGR 6.2%

CAGR 5.6%


slightly lower than the total arrivals in the country. The State has not only grown

but has also sustained the foreign tourist visits over the years.



• 14 Beaches

• 8 Lakes

• Waterfalls– Around 15 waterfalls adorn the State

• 4 Hot Water Springs

• 17 Hindu Templesof significance

• 14 spots of Budhdhist interest

• 2 spots of Jain interest

• 2 Spots ofPainting and Etching

• 9 different types of handicrafts

• 2 different types of handlooms – Odissi and Tribal

• 28 forms of performing art

The following fairs and festivals have been propounded by Department of Tourism,

Government of Uttar Pradesh

• 30 religious festivals

• 6 Jagannath temple festivals

• 5 special festivals

• 7 tribal festivals

• 6 fairs &exhibitions

Strength

• Large Coastline

• Exquisite and diverse culture

• Clearly earmarked policies for growth of tourism


4.9.3. Efforts of Odisha Tourism to attract inbound tourists

4.9.4. Strength and opportunity of Odisha as an Inbound Tourist destination


Opportunity

• Govt. of India’s look east policy

• Inbound Tourist flow growing over the years

The 7 Sisters in the North East, has been attracting foreign tourists from time

immemorial but is yet to make a significant mark in the terms of foreign tourist

visits.

A synopsis of the foreign tourist visits in the regionvis a vis Total tourist arrivals in


4.10. North Eastern States

4.10.1. Historical Trends of inbound tourists to the region

As anticipated, the foreign tourist visit to the region is increasing at an awesome

rate compared to the total arrivals in the country. The State has not only grown

but has also sustained the foreign tourist visits over the years.

The resources available in the North East India can be segmented into the

following themes as indicated below:-

4.10.2. The resources available in North east


35,318 39,813

53,122

69,377

6.31 6.58 6.97

7.68

-

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

-

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

2011 2012 2013 2014

Foreign Tourist Visit - North East Foreign Tourist arrival - India

CAGR 6.2%

CAGR 25.2%

• Nature Tourism

• Niche products like Tea Tourism,

• Majestic Garo, Khasi, Jaintia Hills

• Varied and rich culture each different in its own way

Strength

• Varied topography

• Exquisite and diverse culture

• Air connectivity to all state capitals in the region from major business

centres

Opportunity

• Govt. of India’s look east policy

• Inbound Tourist flow growing over the years

• Govt. of India is spending money in collection of intelligence information from

the different states

4.10.3. Strength and opportunity of North East as an Inbound Tourist

destination


FICCI - MRSS Fourteen Point Roadmap for sustainable

growth of inbound tourism in India5


Formation of India Tourism Board

Promote concept of sustainable tourism

Strengthen the India Tourism offices overseas

Create a central tourism repository

Maintain co-ordination and align with the centrally sponsored scheme

It is imperative to set up Tourism Board as the Regulatory Authority of tourism in the

country. This shall have focus on developing, maintaining and strengthening the backward

(Intra India) and the forward (India to inbound market) linkages to make India a

prominent inbound destination of the world

To make the dream of the honourable Prime Minister true, it is recommended that the

concept of sustainable tourism be adopted and practised. This will involve all stakeholders

right from the community to active participants in the value chain and enable them to

proactively serve and interact with the inbound tourists so that they feel more at home in

India. This will enable them to return to India on a regular basis.

It is understood from the feedback of the foreign tourists that they rely heavily on the

India Tourism offices as well as social media. This being the order of the day, it is hereby

advised that policy be drafted to strengthen the India tourism offices

A central repository with links to the different states, destinations and product offerings

may be looked into, in order to rule out ambiguity. This may be hosted in the Ministry of

Tourism site itself, while the modalities may be outsourced.

The Swachch Bharat Abhiyan and the Make in India and Skill India initiatives needs to be

well aligned with the State policies. Some States like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya

Pradesh has already incorporated in the State Tourism policies.

FICCI - MRSS Fourteen Point Roadmap for sustainable

growth of inbound tourism in India5


Create a national emergency response system for the tourists

Create a market intelligence system to track competition

Create experiences, not just tourist spots

Build great roads and access points

Sell Niche tourism separately

To provide a safe and secure environment it is recommended that a national emergency no.

may be created and dissemination of the same needs to be done through the social and

traditional media channels.

There needs to be an intelligence system to track the product offerings by the competition

states and pass on this information to the states so that they can amend/ modify/ value

add their offerings in order to stay competitive amongst foreign tourists. This needs to be

done on a priority basis. i.e. lets’ say Thailand is offering Nature Tourism, States of India

offering nature tourism may decide to set up a competitive profiling of Thailand,

information may be gathered in form of interactions, mystery shopping, a proper analysis

of the same needs to be undertaken and passed on the States so that they could develop a

strategy either alone or in collaboration with one another.

A visitor should go back enriched in knowledge and with a sense of a great experience. To

make this happen steps can be taken to make the tour replete with tour guides, activities

for the children, culinary tours, interactivity for the tourist with the culture of the place

etc. New tourist destinations may be identified and further developed for offering

innovative tourism products or experiences.

Create better infrastructure and the last mile connectivity. Good roads and approach points

to a certain tourist destination will boost the traffic flow. Tour packages, easy bus

connections and safe car hire services with knowledgeable personnel combines with great

highways would mean an unmatched tourist experience. Private sector investments may be

encouraged for boosting infrastructure development. Seamless travel may be facilitated

across integrated circuits. Improvements in highway infrastructure such as petrol pumps,

clean drinking water kiosks and sanitation facilities, road signage’s etc. are a must.

Customized travel experiences, luxury spa sessions, rare animal sanctuaries, religious

pilgrimage tours are what the foreign travellers believe in. UP tourism should focus on how

it has something on offer for everyone in every category with all budgets. There is enough

opportunity in India to promote medical, wellness and spiritual tourism in the state. MICE

destinations should be encouraged as tourism for the purpose of Meetings, Incentives,

Conferences and Exhibitions are no longer limited to big cities.

Safety and Security

Skill up gradation

Cross promotion and selling

Launching new initiatives

India has recently taken a beating in this area with the various untoward cases happening

in the country about safety and security. With rise in number of women travellers both in

terms of domestic as well as foreign tourists, ensuring their safety has emerged as a major

concern. While steps have already been initiated in this direction, there is a need for

ensuring effective implementation of the policies and actions drafted to ensuring safety

and security of tourists. India’s image needs to be projected as a safe and secure tourist

destination for all tourists.

The hospitality industry should be well groomed and also be able to deliver their best while

providing service to the visitors. Investing in training schools will help the young

generation focus on the job and acquire adequate skills to make the experience

worthwhile. Appropriate knowledge about the destination and its history is a must for the

guides that take the tourists around. Procedural knowledge on visa/ passports for foreign

tourists is also a job in hand. Training and skill development programmes must be

introduced for not only meeting the anticipated manpower shortfall but also develop an

adequately skilled workforce, across the state. Local community involvement may be

encouraged for better harmony and sustainable growth of the tourism industry.

Cross selling of tourism hotspots of nearby states can help enhance larger inflow of

tourists. Package deals should be worked out and engaged for the benefit of the tourists as

well as the state. Discounts and offers on group travel is an area which would encourage

tourists to bring their family along while on business travel as well. Participation in

international events should be encouraged and customised tour packages with competitive

pricing may be developed keeping in mind the wide array of visitors along with their

budget and travel requirements.

New initiatives should be launched more frequently and the tourists need to be informed

well. Adding newer destinations in the tourist map should be a regular feature in the plan

of action. While multiple tourism circuits based on diverse themes exist across the country,

low level of stay durations by both domestic and international tourists indicates the need

for more entertainment and leisure activities.


Bibliography

• Rajya Sabha - Question & Answer

• World Travel and Tourism Council – India Benchmarking Report 2015

• Tourism Statistics, Ministry of Tourism Government of India

• State Tourism Department & website

• Tour Operators

• Foreign nationals

• Saikat Mookherjee, Travel Enthusiast and Blogger


Established in 1927, FICCI is the largest and oldest apex business organisation in India. Its

history is closely interwoven with India's struggle for independence, its industrialization,

and its emergence as one of the most rapidly growing global economies.

A non-government, not-for-profit organisation, FICCI is the voice of India's business and

industry. From influencing policy to encouraging debate, engaging with policy makers and

civil society, FICCI articulates the views and concerns of industry. It serves its members

from the Indian private and public corporate sectors and multinational companies,

drawing its strength from diverse regional chambers of commerce and industry across

states, reaching out to over 2,50,000 companies.

FICCI provides a platform for networking and consensus building within and across sectors

and is the first port of call for Indian industry, policy makers and the international

business community.

About FICCI

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reliability, validity and faster turnaround times to its clients. The company has wide range

of offerings such as eye Tracking, Mobile Analytic, Video Analysis, Facial Recognition,

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Audience Measurement, Sensory Sciences, etc. It is India's 1 st and only listed Market

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About MRSS India

Notes

Rahul ChakravartyDirector, FICCIFederation House 1, Tansen Marg,New Delhi 110001Tel: 91-11-23311720-Direct/ 23738760-70 (Ext.342)Fax: 91-11-23765333Email: [email protected]

[email protected]@ficci.com

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