Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the start of a massive project for the development of the top 50 tourist destinations in India along with state governments. The objective of this initiative is to boost tourism for employment-driven growth The government will adopt strategies which include promotion of homestays and improving connectivity in such tourist places.
Infrastructure is important for tourism. Sitharaman said this is her 8th consecutive Union Budget pitch. The aim of the government is to extend mudra loans for promo gates of homestays and thus enhance more accommodation options for travelers. State governments will also be required to locate land for setting up key infrastructure, making tourist destinations more accessible to the tourists.
Acknowledging the requirement of professionals in tourism, Sitharaman outlined skill development program aimed towards speedy promotion to the sector. Such efforts will be aimed at targeting youths most notably starting hospitality management institutes and so on.
By recruiting skilled workers, Sitharaman said she wanted to see intense on-job training on the livelihood considered necessary in tourism. These steps are aimed at the youth, right from developing hospitality management institutes. States which are best at destination management will be rewarded with performance-linked incentives, thus making Mother Earth cleaner and providing better tourist amenities.
The government will liberalise a consolidated e-visa facility for international tourists and also waiver visa fees on a pilot basis to certain tourist segments. This move further strengthens the government's focus on the promotion of deified heritage sites, especially in areas associated with Gautama Buddha.
Medico-Tourism: Promote medical tourism with public-private partnerships and streamline visa procedures for outstation patients under the Heal in India program. It is a holistic approach that will catapult India into the world desk for medical and spiritual tourism.
The Union Budget will seek to reinvent tourism in India as a driver for growth, employment and the wider travel experience with these initiatives.