India to aim for 1 per cent global tourist arrivals by end of 12th Plan
08 Sep 2012
India aims to attract 1 per cent of the global tourist arrivals by the end of 12th Five Year Plan (2017-2018) from the current 0.58 per cent, union tourism minister Subodh Kant Sahai said.
"We aim to increase the number of global tourist arrivals in the country to one per cent, which will create a lot of employment opportunities," Sahai said, addressing the annual Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India (FH&RAI) conference in Panaji yesterday.
Last year India attracted 6.29 million foreign tourists, netting $16.56 billion in foreign exchange in the process. Western Europe and the US accounted for the bulk of tourist arrivals in the country.
Sahai said he would push for `infra' status for the tourism sector.
The hospitality/tourism sector has been demanding infrastructure status to facilitate loans at lower rates with various tax concessions.
FH&RAI president Kamlesh Barot said infra status would provide the sector with the necessary impetus to grow, which otherwise was heavily taxed both by the centre and state governments.