Introduction of Tourism Sector in India

INTRODUCTION OF TOURISM SECTOR IN INDIA Tourism in India is the largest service industry, with a contribution of 6.23% to the national GDP and 8.78% of the total employment in India. India witnesses’ more than 5.5 million annual foreign tourist arrivals and 740 million domestic tourism visits. The tourism industry in India generated about 100 billion US$ in 2008 and that is expected to increase to US$275.5 billion by 2018 at a 9.4% annual growth rate. In the year 2010, 17.9 million foreign tourists visited India. Majority of foreign tourists come from USA and UK. Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan are the top 5 states to receive inbound tourists. Domestic tourism in the same year was massive at 740 million. Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra received the big share of these visitors. Ministry of Tourism is the nodal agency to formulate national policies and programs’ for the development and promotion of tourism. In the process, the Ministry consults and collaborates with other stakeholders in the sector including various Central Ministries/agencies, the State Governments/ union Territories and the representatives of the private sector. Concerted efforts are being made to promote new forms of tourism such as rural, cruise, medical and eco-tourism. The Ministry of Tourism is the nodal agency for the development and promotion of tourism in India and maintains the Incredible India campaign. According to World Travel and Tourism Council, India will be a tourism hotspot from 2009–2018, having the highest 10-year growth potential. The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2007ranked tourism in India 6th in terms of price competitiveness and 39th in terms of safety and security. Despite short- and medium-term setbacks, such as shortage of hotel rooms, tourism revenues are expected to surge by 42% from 2007 to 2017. India's 5,000 years of history, its length, breadth and the variety of geographic features make its tourism basket large and varied. It presents heritage and cultural tourism along with medical, business and sports tourism. India has a growing medical tourism sector. The growth in the tourism industry is due to the rise in the arrival of more and more foreign tourists and the increase in the number of domestic tourists. Tourists from Africa, Australia, Lain America, Europe, Southeast Page | 1

Asia, etc are visiting India and are growing by the thousands every year. Indian Tourism offers a potpourri of different cultures, traditions, festivals, and places of interest. There are a lot of options for the tourists. India is a country with rich cultural and traditional diversity. This aspect is even reflected in its tourism. The different parts of the country offer wide variety of interesting places to visit. While the international tourism is experiencing a decelerated growth, the Indian counterpart is not affected. The factors for the growth of the Tourism sector of Indian economy 1. Increase in the general income level of the populace. 2. Aggressive advertisement campaigns at tourist destinations. 3. Rapid growth of the Indian economy.

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IMPORTANT TOURIST DESTINATIONS OF INDIA  North India:  New Delhi: The capital city of India and has a rich cultural past.  Agra: The city of the Taj Mahal and one of the greatest tourist attractions in India.  Simla: A splendid hill station in the Himalayas.  Dehradun: The capital of Uttaranchal and famous for its fantastic scenery.

 East India:  Kolkata: The cultural capital of India, the city of Tagore, and Satyajit Ray.  Guwahati: Important base for tourism in the region.  Shillong: The capital of Meghalaya, and famous for its breathtaking lush green landscapes.  Patna: One of the oldest cities in India and famous for its historical relics.  Jamshedpur: An important industrial township, home of the Tata industries.

 Central India:  Allahabad: The city of the Prayag and the Kumbha Mela.  Varanasi: The holiest city for the Hindus, famous for its temples and ghats.  Bhopal: The capital of Madhya Pradesh and important center of tourism. Page | 3

 West India:  Mumbai: The commercial capital of India and the city that never sleeps.  Panjim: The main city in the state of Goa which is famous for its golden beaches and pristine waters.  Udaipur: The city of palaces famous for its Lake Palace in the middle of Lake Pichola.

 South India:  Chennai: The Automobile capital of India.  Bangalore: The Silicon Valley of India, famous for its software companies and a has a beautiful weather.  Trivandum: The city of the famous Kovalam Beach.  Cochin : A coastal city famous for its historical relevance.

 Ooty: A fabulous hill station in the Nilgiris famous for its verdure valleys.

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TYPES OF TOURS OFFERED BY TOURISM SECTOR IN INDIA 1. Medical Tourism: Indian tourism is aiming to promote its allopathic treatment as a tourist attraction. Medical tourism tends to provide worldclass treatment at low price and is gaining worldwide acceptance. Doctors and other medical experts are organizing health camps and other general awareness programs. The vast array of health care services includes ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy, meditation, spas and many more.

2. Spiritual Tourism: India has a rich heritage of cultures and religions. Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Jainism have lived here for centuries. There is so much mental pressure and disturbance all over the world that people are looking forward to find solace. India is being represented as a destination for spiritual tourism. Spiritual tourism includes all the religions, religious places associated with them, and emotional attachment and beliefs attached to these centers. Thus, through religious tourism there is a sincere effort to bring better understanding among various communities, nations and thus foster global unity.

3. Rural Tourism: Real India is rural India. Almost 74% of the population is in rural areas. For the development of rural India, government is promoting rural tourism. Rural tourism showcases the rural life in India, the art, culture and heritage, the nature and wild life and various other aspects of rural India. The rural India has a great potential to attract foreign tourists. The rural tourism helps in improving lives of rural people and maintaining the quality of environment.

4. Adventurous Tourism: India is an incredible destination for adventures. The snow capped Himalayas, erratic streams, safaris, etc all add to its natural glory. Water sports, elephant safari, mountaineering, skiing, gliding, trekking, river rafting, etc are breath-taking opportunities for adventurous people. Ladakh, the Garwal hills, the Himachal hills, Darjeeling, Goa, Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, are some of the places that offer adventure tourism.

5. MICE Tourism: MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) is associated with business travelers. It caters to various forms of business meetings, international conferences and conventions, events and Page | 5

exhibitions. India is gaining pace to become an ideal MICE destination due to the flourishing business here. The MICE industry converts the annual business meetings and conferences into a glamorous and enjoyable event for the delegates and attendants. To develop business tourism in India, some renowned MICE centers are already established. The Ashok (New Delhi), Hyderabad International Convention Centre (Hyderabad), Le Meridien (Cochin), Delhi International Expo Centre (Noida) are some of them.

6. Eco Tourism: People are visiting India to unravel the secrets of nature. Eco tourism (also known as nature tourism) relates to nature and its attractiveness so that the visitors experience it in its pristine settings. Eco tourism attracts domestic as well as international tourists towards the magnificent ancient cities, hill stations, remote villages, desert areas and wildlife centuries and parks in India. It is the fastest growing sector of Indian tourism comprising 40 to 60 per cent of all international tourism. The travel segment includes various travel agencies and tour operators who organize the tours and trips for domestic as well as international visitors. There are various associations that control the activities of travel agents and tour operators. These include: 1.Travel Agents Association of India 2.Pacific Asia Travel Association 3.Travel Agents Federation of India 4.Indian Association of Tour Operators

MINISTRY OF TOURISM The Ministry of Tourism, a branch of the Government of India, is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules, regulations and laws relating to the development and promotion of tourism in India. As of January 2011, head of the ministry is the Cabinet Minister Subodh Kant Sahay. India stole the limelight at the World Tourism Mart 2011 in London by winning two global awards - World's Leading Destination and World's Leading Tourist Board, Incredible India. The Ministry of Tourism is the nodal agency for the development and promotion of Tourism in India. The Ministry of Tourism is headed by the Minister for Tourism & Page | 6

culture. The administrative head of the Ministry of Tourism is the Secretary (Tourism). The Secretary also acts as the Director General (DG) Tourism. The office of the Director General of Tourism {now merged with the office of Secretary (Tourism)} provides executive directions for the implementation of various policies and programmes. The Directorate General of Tourism has a network of 20 offices within the country and 13 offices abroad. The overseas offices are primarily responsible for tourism promotion and marketing in their respective areas and the field offices in India are responsible for providing information service to tourists and monitoring the progress of field projects.

The Ministry of Tourism also controls a public sector undertaking, the India Tourism Development Corporation Ltd, and the following autonomous institutions:  Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM)  National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT)  National Institute of Water Sports (NIWS)  Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering (IISM)

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INCREDIBLE INDIA Incredible India is the name of an international marketing campaign by the Government of India to promote tourism in India in 2002 to a global audience Incredible India title was officially branded and promoted by Amitabh Kant, the then Joint Secretary under the Union Ministry of Tourism, in the year 2002.

Marketing camping Tourism is a major industry in India and the Ministry of Tourism launched a campaign to promote Incredible India as a tourist destination in 2002. The phrase "Incredible India" was adopted as a slogan by the ministry. Before 2002, the Indian government regularly formulated policies and prepared pamphlets and brochures for the promotion of tourism, however, it did not support tourism in a concerted fashion. However, in 2002, the tourism ministry made a conscious effort to bring in more professionalism in its attempts to promote tourism. It formulated an integrated communication strategy with the aim of promoting India as a destination of choice for the discerning traveler. The tourism ministry engaged the services of advertising and marketing firm Ogilvy & Mather (India) (O&M) to create a new campaign to increase tourist inflows into the country. The campaign projected India as an attractive tourist destination by showcasing different aspects of Indian culture and history like yoga, spirituality, etc. The campaign was conducted globally and received appreciation from tourism industry observers and travelers alike. However, the campaign also came in for criticism from some quarters. Some observers felt that it had failed to cover several aspects of India which would have been attractive to the average tourist. In 2009, minister of tourism, Kumari Selja unveiled plans to extend the Incredible India campaign to the domestic tourism sector as well. USD 12 million out of a total budget of USD 200 million was allocated in 2009 for the purpose of promoting domestic tourism. In 2009, the Ministry of Tourism launched a campaign targeted at the local population to educate them regarding good behavior and etiquette when Page | 9

dealing with foreign tourists. Indian actor Aamir Khan was comissioned to endorse the campaign which was titled 'Atiti Devo Bhava', sanskrit for 'Guests are like God'. Atithi Devo Bhava aimed at creating awareness about the effects of tourism and sensitizing the local population about preservation of India's heritage, culture, cleanliness and hospitality. It also attempted to re-instil a sense of responsibility towards tourists and reenforce the confidence of foreign tourists towards India as a preferred holiday destination. The concept was designed to complement the ‘Incredible India’ Campaign.

Impact on Indian Tourism According to spending data released by Visa Asia Pacific4 in March 2006, India has emerged as the fastest-growing market in the Asia-Pacific in terms of international tourist spending. The data revealed that international tourists spent US$ 372 million in India in the fourth quarter (October– December) of 2005, 25% more than in the fourth quarter of 2004. China, which came second in the region, was successful in making international tourists fork out US$ 784 million in Q4 2005, a growth of 23% over its Q4 2004 figures. The tourist spending figures for India would have pleased the Indian tourism ministry, which had been targeting the high-end market through its long-running 'Incredible India' communication campaign.

Appreciation and Criticism Travel industry analysts and tour operators were appreciative of the high standards of the 'Incredible India' campaign. "The promo campaign is making a powerful visual impact and creating a perception of India being a magical place to visit," said Anne Morgaon Scully, President, McCabeBremer Travel, Virginia, USA. Average travelers too appeared to find the campaign interesting and informative, going by favourable comments on blogs on travel websites Although the 'Incredible India' campaign was generally well received, industry observers differed in their opinions on the positioning of India in the campaign. G.S.Murari, Director, Fidelis Advertising and Marketing Pvt. Ltd. stated he was uncomfortable with the tagline 'Incredible India' and was of the opinion that since India was not a uni-dimensional country like Singapore or the Page | 10

Maldives, using a word like 'incredible' to describe India as a whole was not appropriate. In 2011, Arjun Sharma, Managing Director, Le Passage to India, stated that the campaign has lived its life and it had to be reinvented.

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INDIA TOURISM DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION LIMITED India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) came into existence in October 1966 with the objective of developing and expanding tourism infrastructure in the country and thereby promoting India as a tourist destination. Working on the philosophy of public sector, ITDC succeeded in achieving its objectives by promoting the largest hotel chain in India and providing all tourist services, i.e. accommodation, catering, transport, inhouse travel agency, duty free shopping, entertainment, publicity, consultancy, etc., under a single window. It also offers consultancy services from concept to commissioning in the tourism field both for private as well as public sector. In pursuance of the disinvestment policy of the Government, 18 hotels have been disinvested. Keeping in view the changed scenario, the Corporation has suitably been restructured so that it continues to fulfill its original mandate for tourism development in the country. Besides consolidating and expanding its existing business areas, ITDC has made diversification into new avenues/innovative services like full-fledged money changer services and Western Union Money Transfer, Training Consultancy in hospitality sector, event management and consultancy and execution of tourism and engineering projects. ITDC has been a pioneering tourism organization which provides all the tourist services/facilities under one roof. ITDC's present network consists of 8 Ashok Group Hotels, 7 Joint Venture Hotels including one under construction, two Restaurants (including one Airport Restaurant), 13 Transport Units, 1 Tourist Service Station, 37 Duty Free Shops at International as well as Domestic Custom Airports, 1 Tax Free outlet, 1 Sound & Light Show and 4 Catering Outlets. Besides, ITDC is also managing a Hotel at Bharatpur and a Tourist Complex at Kosi and a SEL show at Sabarmati, Ahmedabad owned by the Department of Tourism. The Ashok International Trade Division of ITDC offers world class duty free shopping facilities to international travellers at its 38 outlets, earning crucial foreign exchange for the country and showcasing Indian products to the world. The Ashok Travels and Tours (ATT) handles work relating to Domestic/International ticketing, hotel booking and tour packages, car and Page | 12

coach rentals, money changing services, money transfer services, overseas insurance and organizing exhibitions. The Ashok Reservation and Marketing Services (ARMS) Division of ITDC, which is mainly responsible for marketing of Ashok Group of Hotels, participated in national/international events like ITB Berlin to ensure direct interaction with Foreign Tour Operators to promote various services of ITDC. The Ashok Institute of Hospitality & Tourism Management (AIH&TM) of ITDC has been associated with the pioneering efforts in human resource development for more than three decades. Awarded the ISO-9001-2000 Certification, the institute conducts 18 months Craft/Certificate courses in the field of Culinary Skill Development, besides providing training to management trainees/apprentices and organising Executive Development programmes for the officials of ITDC. Under an MOU signed with the prestigious Kurukshetra University, the AIH&TM started 4-year Bachelor's Degree Course in International Hospitality Business Management from August 2004.

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SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths: •Rich culture heritage and colorful festivals. •Scenic beauty of the country draws tourists from far off places. •Terrain is ideally suited for various adventure activities. •Well known Indian hospitality.

Weaknesses: •Inadequate infrastructure to match the expectation. •Restrictive Airline Policy of the Government of India. •Overcrowding of popular tourist centres. •Inadequate marketing and information channels.

Opportunities: •GOI is giving special attention to certain regions like Northeast India. •Asian Development Bank is preparing a Sub-Regional Plan for development of tourism in India. •Potential for private sector's investment in tourism projects. •Availability of high quality human resource.

Threats: •Strong Competition within states of India and abroad. •Terrorism is a major setback of the region. •Disorganized tourism development. • Environmental factors also impose a threat.

LIST OF COMPANIES IN TOURISM SECTOR OF INDIA There are many companies in the tourism sector that makes planning a tour or an adventure easy for everyone. The tourism sector plays a vital Page | 14

role in helping people regain their happiness. The chief purpose of these firms is to make people relax and enjoy the trip of their choice. Some of the well known firms of the tourism sector are given below.

Tourism Companies in Eastern India 

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Clubside Tours & Travels - This firm is located at Darjeeling, India. They offer river rafting trekking and other adventure tours. As they have an in-depth knowledge about the location, they are accredited as one of the leading tour operators in the region. Eastman Voyages - This firm was founded in the year 1994. Even since then, they have committed themselves accomplish an excellence in customer services. This shipping company provides their clients with flexible travel packages. They have their head office at Kolkata. Sky Sketch India - This is a very well known firm in the Indian tourism sector. They offer packages to the eastern part of India in addition to other places.

Tourism Companies in Western India 

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Aamantran Tours - This tour company offers an exciting tour package for all its customers in an economical way. They present their clients with a flexible package where one can choose a tour or adventure according one’s preference. Dolphin Tours & Travels - This firm is engaged in business of hotel bookings, conducted tours and individual tours. India Travelite – Mumbai -This firm is located in Mumbai. They offer customized travel solutions for one and all. Oasis Excursions India Private Limited. -This firm is located in Mumbai. They offer both soft as well as hard adventures.

Tourism Companies in Central India  

India Travel Tours - This firm offer travel packages at flexible and economic rates. KVT Holidays - This is a private firm that was founded in the year 1985. They are accredited by the department of tourism of the Indian government. They also have an affiliation to the ATOAI as well as other leading international organizations.

Tourism Companies in North India Page | 15

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Abercrombie & Kent India Private Limited -This is a firm that specializes in customizing’ travel for people of all sectors. This company has an experience of almost 4 decades. They have 40 international offices across the globe. This feature of this company makes them quite popular. Blue Bird Travels - This firm offers economical tours to the various parts of India. Caper Travel Company -This is one of India’s leading travel companies. Ever since its start in the year 1999, this company, the firm has strived to uphold its name in the tourism sector. The firm offers packages of all type. They include budget, premier and standard. The company provides their clients with cultural, wildlife, spiritual, adventure and tribal tours. For people who are interested in spiritual tours, the company offers them with a wide array of different packages in that sector. Alongside other basic packages, the firm also presents customers with tours to major destinations like Kerala, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu. Monarch International Travel Services -This firm specializes in outbound as well as inbound tours in India. The company focuses on Culture, Eco tourism and special interest tours like Heritage holidays, Architectural studies, white river rafting etc. They are well known for their within the budget travel packages.

Tourism Companies in South India 

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Akshaya India Tours & Travels - This firm is located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. They offer the customers with the best service. Their tour packages include tours to different locations, visa assistance, hotel bookings and Passport Services. Concept Voyages - This firm was set up in the year 2003 on the month of December. They offer leisure as well as corporate travel packages to companies and Individual travelers both within and outside the country. They offer their customers with Holiday Packages, Luxury Travel, Rejuvenation breaks, Honeymoons and Weddings packages, Pilgrimage and safaris. Kerala Tour Operators - This firm provides customers with tour packages of all kinds. They are available at very affordable prices. Madurai Travels - This is team of professionals who offer tours to various places within the city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu.

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CONCLUSTION Tourism industry in India is growing and it has vast potential for generating employment and earning large amount of foreign exchange besides giving a fillip to the country’s overall economic and social development. But much more remains to be done. Eco-tourism needs to be promoted so that tourism in India helps in preserving and sustaining the diversity of the India's natural and cultural environments. Tourism in India should be developed in such a way that it accommodates and entertains visitors in a way that is minimally intrusive or destructive to the environment and sustains & supports the native cultures in the locations it is operating in. since tourism is a multi-dimensional activity, and basically a service industry, The Central ,State governments, private sector, and voluntary organizations should continues there activity to attain sustainable growth in tourism if India is to become a world player in the tourism industry.

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Bibliography www.theincredibleindia.org www.ibef.org www.slideshare.co.in

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