Finance minister Arun Jaitley's proposal in the budget to extend the visa on arrival facility to 150 countries from 43 at present in a phased manner is set to increase the tourist inflow and benefit the local industry manifold, experts said.
Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in 2014 reported a growth of 7.1% to 74.62 lakh compared with FTAs of 69.68 lakh in 2013, which was, in turn, a growth of 5.9% in 2012.
Peter Kerkar, director, Cox & Kings, said, "The extension of electronic travel authorisation (e-visas) to 150 more countries is a positive step for tourism as this sector contributes 7% of India's GDP and helped create more than 40 million jobs last year.''
Hari Nair, founder & CEO, HolidayIQ.com, a travel portal, said, "Visa on arrival being extended to 150 countries is a huge step for Indian tourism. In addition, tourism is a sector that is a beneficiary of improvements across multiple areas. The focus on areas such as infrastructure, skills development and rural development has the potential to provide a big tailwind for tourism."
02/03/15 Soumonty Kanungo/Praveena Sharma/Daily News & Analysis
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Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in 2014 reported a growth of 7.1% to 74.62 lakh compared with FTAs of 69.68 lakh in 2013, which was, in turn, a growth of 5.9% in 2012.
Peter Kerkar, director, Cox & Kings, said, "The extension of electronic travel authorisation (e-visas) to 150 more countries is a positive step for tourism as this sector contributes 7% of India's GDP and helped create more than 40 million jobs last year.''
Hari Nair, founder & CEO, HolidayIQ.com, a travel portal, said, "Visa on arrival being extended to 150 countries is a huge step for Indian tourism. In addition, tourism is a sector that is a beneficiary of improvements across multiple areas. The focus on areas such as infrastructure, skills development and rural development has the potential to provide a big tailwind for tourism."
02/03/15 Soumonty Kanungo/Praveena Sharma/Daily News & Analysis
