The decisive mandate in favour of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the national elections was widely welcomed by the travel and tourism industry in the country. Putting to rest all speculations, India has given a massive mandate in favour of the BJP, led by its Prime Ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi.
The travel and tourism industry of India expects major pro-tourism initiatives from the new government, considering the party had spelt its agenda for tourism in the country clearly in its pre-election manifesto. BJP, in its manifesto, identified tourism as a key sector to drive socio-economic progress and earn foreign exchange for the country. This is the first time in the history of the country that tourism has become a talk point in the national manifesto of a political party. The manifesto identifies five Ts to drive future growth of the economy, comprising Talent, Tourism, Trade, Tradition and Technology.
“This is the best thing that could have happened to the travel and tourism industry in India. For the first time, a Prime Ministerial candidate has stressed on the importance of tourism as a component of future growth of the economy,” said Sarabjit Singh, Senior Vice President, Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO). He went on to say, “We have never heard of any earlier Prime Ministerial candidate referring to tourism as an important contributor in the economy. The election of Narendra Modi will ensure that tourism gets its dues. The industry is now gearing up to perform and match up with the speed with which Modi moves and with Gujarat as an example we will also make the necessary efforts and initiatives to match his speed. The responsibility of the private sector will increase greatly as we have been taking things too slowly and it will take a while for all of us to become accustomed to the big change that the country is expected to experience.”
“We are encouraged by the outlook of BJP towards tourism. They had recognised tourism as one of the five pillars of the country’s future growth in their manifesto. Therefore, the industry has great expectations from the new government. We welcome the election verdict and hope the tourism industry in India will get its long-awaited due,” said S M Shervani, President, Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI).
Sharing his views on the national election results, Madhavan Menon, Managing Director, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd., said, “The new government’s pro-tourism stance is indeed welcome and its leaders recognising the powerful role of tourism in employment generation and as a growth driver, augurs well for the sector as a whole. We are hopeful of prioritisation towards key issues like safety and infrastructure, and also swift implementation of the electronic travel authorisation/e-visa. Political stability coupled with focus on economic growth and social development will generate increased leisure and travel business opportunities, vital for the travel and tourism industry. Transport, especially air travel, will see positive impact and we are optimistic that it will open new avenues both within India and overseas.”
Vijay Kesavan, CEO, Musafir.com, believes that a politically-stable government is crucial for the growth of the tourism sector in an economy. “With the formation of a steady government in India, we are sure to witness excellent reforms in tourism, hospitality and aviation sectors. There is need for infrastructure enhancement, improved economy and uniform tax reforms to boost leisure and business travel within and outside the country. It’s good to see that the rupee has gained strength in the last few days and we are hopeful that it will become stronger in the coming months, fuelling outbound travel and domestic aviation growth. This is the right time to enter the Indian travel and tourism industry, and thus, perfect for a growing company like Musafir.com, which plans to invest Rs 100 crore in the next three years,” Kesavan said.
Rajiv Vij, Managing Director and CEO, Carzonrent (I) Pvt. Ltd., said “We are looking forward to a stable and decisive government that addresses the dominant concerns of inflation, rupee depreciation and development. We are hopeful that the government will make some favourable announcements for the organised car rental services sector benefiting the end consumer, as also the service providers who are part of the necessary infrastructure of cities and are a testament to progressive development in all parts of the world.”
Subhash Goyal, President, Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO), said that BJP was the only political party that had incorporated tourism in their Election Manifesto. He added that the people associated with the tourism industry, be they tour operators, travel agents, hoteliers, tourist guides or transport operators, supported the BJP because of their five-point vision document. “The industry is confident that the new government will stop
the discrimination to tour operators and exempt them from Service Tax as exporters are exempted based on their foreign exchange earnings. This would increase international tourist arrivals to India and in turn increase foreign exchange earnings and create millions of jobs in the country. No doubt it will also add crores of rupees in indirect taxes to the government,” Goyal said.
The IATO President is hopeful that the E-Visa authorisation, which was announced by the previous government, will be implemented soon. “Once E-Visas are implemented, tourists from overseas who are presently avoiding coming to India due to visa problems, will be encouraged to travel to India without any inconvenience,” he said.
Goyal added that the biometric enrolment/scanning procedure is essential for security reasons, and the same should be implemented at all immigration counters at all international airports of India so that tourists do not have to visit Visa centres for the “cumbersome” procedure.
Indian travel & tourism industry pins big hopes on new government
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