Preparations are on for the presentation of the Union Budget for 2010-11. The tourism industry which bore much of the brunt of the recent global financial downturn and other impediments has high expectations.
While the Union Government has granted infrastructure status to the tourism sector making it eligible for more sops, industry status still evades it. Tourism is a labour-intensive industry and generated three crore jobs in India in 2008, that is, one in every 15.6 job positions in the country were in the tourism industry. The sector contributes six per cent to the GDP. These figures are clear indicators that tourism deserves industry status which would entitle tourism to secure several advantages in project funding, exemption from local taxes for the first few years, subsidised power tariffs, etc. However, the decision and implementation was left to the states and only a few have granted industry status to tourism.
In last year’s budget, perhaps the only direct announcement to support India’s lucrative tourism industry was the five year tax holiday for the setting up of three and four-star hotels in the Delhi NCR region. The announcement of 2009 as ‘Visit India’ led the Government to go ahead with avid global marketing campaigns. While these should be carried forward, the Government must turn its attention to destinations like Goa, Rajasthan and Kerala - global tourist hot spots for several years - which are in trouble with foreign tourist arrivals falling as never before. Granting industry status to tourism is vital at this stage. Industry associations at all levels have to push this matter with the Government so that the Union Budget 2010-11 gives this rewarding industry the attention it deserves.

Ravisankar K.V.
Editor