Unity in Diversity

It is a Celeberation  time for India's tourism sector.There was  a huge surge in business  and leisure travel  arrivals in India during the year 2006, the figures reaching a  record 4.5 million. The tourism industry is the second highest foreign exchange earner in the economy. Tourism industry contributed to 5.9 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product and provided employment to 18 million people. This figure is expected to go up to 24.8 million by 2010. As per reports the tourism industry will contribute close to Rs 8, 50,000 crores to India’s GDP by 2020. India’s tourism industry is poised to grow to about US$ 90 billion--from the current US$ 39 billion--in the coming decade.

 Incredible India – variety in tourism
India is a hotspot for all kinds of tourism such as Medical tourism, Adventure tourism, Heritage tourism, Wellness tourism, Pilgrimage tourism, Golf tourism, Eco-tourism, Wildlife tourism Religious tourism, Leisure tourism Theme tourism. The western world is targeting India for trade, commerce and as a potential market destination. India  should  take advantage of the   curiosity India inspired among people all over the world with its ancient and diversified culture.i
India  is among one of the top ten tourist destinations   and one the top five investment destinations. Some of the biggest expos and conferences of the world have started picking up India to conduct their annual programs.

Employment Generation Potential:
Indian tourism sector has the potential to generate employment many times over what the IT sector can do.Concepts like rural tourism can a big contributor to this pool of generating employment in rural India.

Tourism Promotion Opportunity:

It is understood that  after the Sydney  Olympics, Australia got a big  boost of its Tourism. India is also having a similar opportunity to promote India as a Destination for Tourism therough the proposed  Commonwealth Games coming up in 2010.In the last one and a half years, the ministry conducted intensive campaigns like ‘Incredible India’, and ‘Athithi Devo Bhava’.

Apart from international tourists, there is a huge domestic tourist market in India, including business and leisure travelers. This is estimated at some 300 million tourists or tourist trips a year, which may also include those traveling for social and religious purposes. The industry expects a boom in tourism in the domestic sector in India, and a growth of 10% to 15% over the next few years. A growth in tourism will certainly lead to a boom in hotels and restaurants.

Tourist arrivals and foreign exchange earning

Foreign players in the market
With the tourism sector revealing immense potential, global hospitality majors are exploring plans of entering India. These include Dawnay Day, Whitbread, Jumeirah, Golden Tulip, Istithmar and Mandarin Oriental.

Online bookings
Travel portals are cashing in on the booming demand for hotel rooms. There has been a surge in hotel booking on travel portals in the past 12 months. Online travel industry is a US$ 900-million industry in India, that is, about 15 per cent of the entire travel industry.

Medical tourism
India becoming a major hub for medical tourism, due to huge backlog of patients waiting for treatment  in all developed  countries including USA,UK and other foreign countries .Indian hospitals are well equipped with all modern facilities and trained and experienced medical professionals to treat foreign patients at 40% of the cost of treatment in developed countries.Leading corporate hospitals like Apollo, Fortis and Wockhardt are eyeing alliances with foreign airlines to reach out to prospective markets.
A study by McKinsey and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) says that at its current pace of growth, healthcare tourism alone can rake over US$ 1.7 billion additional revenues by 2012. Medical tourism is now a US$ 299 million industry, as about 100,000 patients come each year. The country needs to exploit the cost advantage it can offer to a health tourist, the study said.