(a) whether the Government has set a target to achieve one per cent share in global tourism arrivals in the country during the current fina- ncial year;
(b) if so, the details of strategy worked out to achieve the target;
(c) whether the crime against the foreign tourists has affected the targets to achieve; and
(d) if so, the steps proposed to be taken in this regard?
MINISTER OF STATE FOR TOURISM (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) (DR. MAHESH SHARMA)
(a): No Madam, no target is fixed for the current financial year basis. However, the Twelfth five year plan document of the Niti Aayog, (the then Planning Commission) had recommended that India should strive to increase its share to 1 percent in global foreign tourist arrivals by the terminal year of the 12th Five Year plan.
(b): Steps taken by Ministry of Tourism to boost tourism in the country and achieve the target are as follows:
i. Publicity and Promotion:
The Ministry of Tourism promotes India as a holistic destination in the domestic and international markets, including the various tourism destinations and pro- ducts of every State/Union Territory of the country.
As part of the above promotional activities, Ministry of Tourism undertakes centralized international media campaigns (prints, electronics and online) under the Incredible India brand-line in key source markets as well as potential markets across the world.
The Ministry has taken up creation, development and maintenance of Walking Tours product which is an online, interactive web product that will help national and international tourists, plan and take walking tours in all major cities in India. Contents for interactive multimedia walking tours of major Indian cities, monu- ments and tourist destinations for hosting on Incre- dible India website have also been designed, developed and produced.
The Ministry of Tourism has signed an agreement with M/s Worth Your Holidays as part of which an automated holiday planner (Tripigator.com) has been linked to the website of the Ministry of Tourism to facilitate the tourists to make itineraries.
The Ministry of Tourism also provides financial assistance to stakeholders for promotion of tourism in the international and domestic markets under the Marketing Development Assistance Scheme.
ii. Electronic Travel Authorization:
The Tourist Visa on Arrival (TVoA) enabled with the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) Scheme was launched on 27.11.2014 for nationals of 43 countries and was subsequently extended to nationals of Guyana in January, 2015 whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation, sight- seeing, short duration medical treatment, casual business visit, casual visit to meet friends or relatives etc. for a short stay of 30 days. Earlier the TVoA facility was available for nationals of 12 countries only. The TVoA enabled with ETA will enable the prospective visitor to apply for an Indian Visa from his/her home country online without visiting the Indian Mission and also pay the visa fee online. Once approved, the applicant will receive an email authorising him/her to travel to India and he/she can travel with a print out of this authorization. On arrival, the visitor has to present the authorisation to the immig- ration authorities who would then stamp the entry into the country. The entry into India will be allowed within 30 days from the date of approval of ETA and will be valid for 30 days stay in India from the date of arrival in India.
iii. Restriction on gap for re-entry lifted:
The restriction of two-month gap on re-entry of foreign nationals coming to India on Tourist Visa and Tourist Visa on Arrival has been lifted with effect from 4th December, 2012.
iv. Cleanliness and Hygiene:
To tackle the problem of hygiene and cleanliness at tourist destinations, the Ministry of Tourism has taken the initiative of launching the Campaign Clean India with a vision to ensure an acceptable level of cleanliness and hygiene practices at tourist destinations. This campaign is to be sustained through adoption and involvement of private and public sector stakeholders as a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
v. Trained Language Speaking Guides:
Selection and Training of Regional Level Tourist Guides including linguist guides is an ongoing process and the Ministry conducts the training programmes, through the Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management (IITTM), periodically.
(c) and (d): Public Order and Police are State subjects as per the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India. As such, prevention of crime, including crime against tourists is the primary respon- sibility of the State Governments/ Union Territory (UT) Adminis- trations. However, in order to ensure the safety and security of foreign tourists, Ministry of Tourism had advised the State Gove- rnments/UT Administrations to set up Tourist Police at promi- nent tourist spots. As a result, the State Governments of Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh,Delhi, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha have deployed Tourist Police, in one form or the other.
An advisory has been posted on the Ministry of Tourism website www.incredibleindia.org indicating that India remains safe destination for international Tourists including women tourists.