HBI Staff | Hyderabad 
The contribution of the tourism sector to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) for 2022-23 stood at five per cent, the Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Monday.
The tourism sector’s contribution to India’s GDP saw a spark rise from 1.50 per cent during the Covid pandemic to 5 per cent in FY 2022-2023.
Further, the tourism minister quoted initiatives taken by the Centre to enable the lawful inward movement of foreigners including foreign tourists. According to Shekhawat, the government has implemented the facility of e-Visa for 07 sub-categories i.e., e-Tourist visa, e-Business visa, e-Medical visa, e-Medical Attendant visa, e-Ayush Visa, e-Ayush Attendant Visa, and e-Conference visa for the nationals of 167 countries. Besides, the visa fee has also been substantially reduced.
To improve air connectivity to important tourist destinations, the Ministry of Tourism has collaborated with the Ministry of Civil Aviation under their RCS-UDAN Scheme. As of date, 53 tourism routes have been operationalized.
“Financial assistance has also been provided to the State Governments/UTs for organizing fairs/festivals & tourism related events under Domestic Promotion & Publicity including Hospitality (DPPH) Scheme,” according to the Union Minister of Tourism.
The Ministry of Tourism has revamped its Swadesh Darshan Scheme as Swadesh Darshan 2.0 (SD2.0) with the objective to develop sustainable and responsible destinations following a tourist and destination-centric approach, he added.
Source : PTI
