Dharamshala Declaration 2022

In News

• Recently, the ‘Dharamshala Declaration 2022’ was released at a three-day national conference on tourism.

More about the news

• The Centre unveiled an ambitious plan for the tourism sector in the National Conference.
  • Recovery of tourism to the pre-pandemic level by 2024, 
  • $250 billion contribution to the GDP by 2030, and 
  • India will be a world leader in tourism by 2047. 
• The Dharamshala Declaration:
  • It includes a long-term revenue goal of $1 trillion by 2047, when the country turns 100.
• Tourism Clubs:
  • The Union Tourism and Culture Minister called on states to start work on “a war footing” by establishing tourism clubs.
    • The proposal is to work on making Yuva Tourism clubs at district and mandal levels.
    • Private players can also be involved in special cases, besides utilisation of the PM Gati Shakti initiative.
• State-specific plans:
  • Jammu & Kashmir:
    • J&K, saw 1.42 crore tourists, including 11,000 foreigners, this year till August. 
    • The focus now is on promoting destinations beyond Srinagar and Gulmarg (75 off-beat sites have already been selected), 
    • It also plans a renewed push for projecting the Valley as an ideal filming destination.
    • Incentives are announced for films where more than 50 percent shoot is done in the UT.
  • West Bengal:
    • Besides getting medical tourists, the state is also focussing on cultural tourism.
    • With Durga Puja getting a place on UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage, the state is attracting foreign travelers for the puja processions.
  • Tamil Nadu:
    • Tamil Nadu pitched itself as a destination for medical tourism, with the state getting 40 percent of all medical tourists coming to India. 
    • Chennai, Vellore and Coimbatore get the maximum number of such visitors from countries in the Middle East, the UK, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
  • Recovery to the pre-pandemic level:
    • Tourism in most states will recover to the pre-pandemic level by mid-2024, especially once foreign travellers start arriving, the numbers are already up in J&K, Uttarakhand and Goa.
• Foreign tourists:
  • In terms of foreign tourist arrivals, the Gulf countries, the UK, the US and Germany remain the top source markets. “The trend hasn’t changed, even as the numbers have come down.
  • On this front, the Centre announced that several visa reforms will be undertaken, while immigration will also be made more visitor-friendly.

Tourism Sector in India

• Role & importance:
  • The tourism sector contributes significantly to the Indian as well as the world economy.
  • Tourism is an integral pillar of the Make in India programme.
  • In India, the travel and tourism sector is one of the largest employers, employing nearly 12.75% (including both direct and indirect employment) of employment share in 2018-19.
  • Tourism tends to encourage the development of multiple-use infrastructure.
    • For Example, hotels, resorts & restaurants, transport infrastructure (aviation, roads, shipping & railways) and healthcare facilities.
• Opportunities: 
  • India has over 200 beaches, 38 UNESCO World Heritage sites and 668 protected areas that can attract significant tourism activity.
  • India’s ranking in the 2021 Travel and Tourism Competitive Index (TTCI) is 54. 
    • TTCI is published by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
  • By 2028, Tourism & Hospitality is forecasted to earn $50.9 bn as visitor exports compared to $28.9 bn earned in 2018.
  • By 2029, Travel & Tourism will account for nearly 53 million jobs as compared to the 43 million jobs directly in 2018 (8.1% of total employment)
  • By 2030, India is expected to be among the top 5 business travel markets.
  • Further, the domains of medical tourism, eco-tourism, gem & jewellery market, religious tourism and other such niche areas may see a boom.
• Key areas:
  • India’s gems and jewellery and handicrafts: They are quite popular among tourists. 
  • Medical Tourism: India is emerging as the most preferred destination for Medical Tourism. 
  • The availability of world-class medical facilities with top class doctors, personalized nursing care, offering specialized treatments at a cost 1/4th that of developed countries.
  • Landscape: The country landscape possesses a gracious natural beauty, and can cater to almost every type of traveller whether they are seeking adventure, wellness, culture and heritage or cuisines.
  • Labour Force: The availability of a huge labour force both skilled and unskilled can act as a catalyst due to the service-based nature of the tourism industry.

Source: TH