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Published on : Friday, September 18, 2020
The Ministry of Tourism India has informed the Parliament that while no formal study has been carried out to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourism, discussions with stakeholders have indicated that the sector has suffered a colossal loss in revenue.
Tourism Minister Prahlad Patel said that since the sector is largely unorganized, the impact can be judged only in due course.
“No formal study has been instituted for assessment of the impact on the tourism sector and job losses. However, several rounds of discussions and brainstorming sessions with industry stakeholders indicate massive loss of revenue, foreign exchange and jobs. In view of the highly unorganized nature of the sector, the impact in numerical terms can only be ascertained in due course,” Patel said.
Patel said that various agencies and the government have charted a range of stimulus packages for tourism, which includes extended moratorium from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on term loans till August 31 this year.
Mr. Patel said that the government has further announced an ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat package’ of Rs. 3 lakh crore, which is a collateral free automatic loan for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The loan will have four-year term with a 12-month moratorium.
Tags: Tourism Ministry