The Prayas ePathshala

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26 January 2023 – The Hindu

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Working Hand in Hand to Showcase India

Context:

  • The eight-day Jagannath Yatra train package is being unveiled by the Ministries of Railways and Tourism on January 25, National Tourism Day. Before reaching the Vishnupad temple in Gaya, the route departs from Delhi and passes through Kashi, Baidyanath Dham, Jagannath Puri, Bhubaneshwar, and Konark.

Actions taken thus far:

  • All of this is related to using Bharat Gaurav Trains to highlight India’s rich cultural heritage and historical background (or theme-based tourist circuit trains). The aforementioned incident is just one of many where a ministry other than the ministry of tourism within the Indian government took the initiative to advertise India’s rich heritage by utilising a “whole of government” method.
  • Today, the Ministry of Tourism successfully coordinates its initiatives with more than 20 other federal ministries to advance and promote tourism around the country. The Ministries of Tourism and Home Affairs organised the National Conference on Tourist Police in October 2022 with the aim of partnering with the police and teaching them on how to accommodate the demands of both domestic and foreign tourists.
  • In an effort to cultivate future Indian tourism ambassadors, the Ministry of Tourism has begun forming “Yuva Tourism” clubs in conjunction with the Ministry of Education. In another instance, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways is attempting to promote India as a desirable cruise tourism destination by utilising cutting-edge infrastructure.
  • In India, the middle class is currently investing a larger portion of their discretionary income in new experiences like cruises. In partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs, tourism officials have been dispatched to 20 Indian embassies in countries that host some of the largest numbers of foreign travellers to India. Additionally, it is their obligation to encourage the incorporation of national sensibilities and contributions into tourism-related products.
  • The Ministry of Roadways and the Ministry of Petroleum are taking similar steps to ensure that highways and petrol stations have sanitary infrastructure. The Ministry of Tourism also contributes funds for a number of commercial airline routes, assuring their viability along with the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Status of the Indian tourism industry:

  • India is placed sixth by the World Travel and Tourism Council in terms of the total amount of travel and tourism’s impact on GDP in 2021. India ranked 54th in 2021 on the Travel & Tourism Development Index of the World Economic Forum.
  • India had 40 sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List as of January 1, 2023: 32 cultural, 7 natural, and 1 mixed. The two most recent ones are Dholavira and Ramappa Temple.
  • In FY20, the tourist sector added 39 million jobs overall, making up 8% of all jobs in the country. By 2029, 53 million jobs will be supported by it.

 Recent projects in the tourism sector:

  • Integrated Design of Tourist Routes Based on Particular Themes: Project Dekho under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme National PRASHAD Plan for Apna Desh Mission for Green Tourism: Drive for Heritage Enhancement and Spiritual Renewal During Pilgrimage
  • The Buddhist Conclave approved the heritage project “Apni Dharohar, Apni Pehchaan”.
  • Construction of Well-Known Tourist Attractions in Amazing India 2.0 Policy of the Union Ministry of Tourism and Other Tourism
  • However, simply expressing an interest in working together is insufficient; official institutions and mechanisms must be put in place. The new draught National Tourism Policy 2022 was developed in order to accomplish this. The plan was created in response to a situational analysis that considered the impact of COVID-19 and projections for the travel and tourism sector with an emphasis on India at 100.
  • One of the ideas is for the development of a formal institutional framework that might cooperate with business to carry out concurrent, coordinated actions at the national, state, and local levels of government.
  • India will be able to host the G-20 presidency, where 20 nations, 11 special invitee nations, and nearly one lakh delegates will participate in 200 sessions spread across more than 50 locations, thanks to this “whole of government” policy. Everyone who visits India for the G-20 summit will return as a brand ambassador and spread the word about the nation’s rich historical, spiritual, and environmental heritage.

 A search for information:

  • Moving on with this, the Ministry of Tourism’s declaration of “Visit India Year 2023” aims to increase India’s share of the global tourism market by promoting a variety of travel-related goods and locations.
  • According to data, domestic travel is back to its pre-pandemic levels, and in some cases has even increased. This will be demonstrated by the record 1.84 crore domestic tourists who would travel to Jammu and Kashmir in 2022. Pre-pandemic levels of foreign traveller arrivals are anticipated, in a similar vein.
  • Traveling to India is more than just a tourist attraction. It is a means of self-discovery. India has long been a popular destination for those looking for spiritual enlightenment and self-discovery. Other well-known foreign travellers who visited India over the years and wrote memoirs, travelogues, poetry, and books on their experiences include Megasthenes, Hiuen-Tsang, Marco Polo, and Fa-Hien.

Conclusion:

  • India is a well-liked vacation spot for people trying to get in touch with their inner selves. The fact that India is the birthplace of four major world religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism—allows it to claim to be the spiritual hub of the globe. This is the main focus of the Visit India Year 2023.

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