Ministry of Tourism launches ‘NIDHI 2.0’ & ‘India Tourism Statistics – At a Glance, 2021’ at the World Tourism Day celebration event
Key Highlights
- MoS for Tourism Shri Shripad Yesso Naik also gracedthe event
- Ministry of Tourism, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and The Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSOI)have signed an MoUto actively promote and support ‘sustainability initiatives’ in the tourism sector
“Tourism for Inclusive Growth” program hosted by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, to commemorate World Tourism Day 2021 at The Ashoka Hotel, New Delhi.
Secretary, Tourism Shri Arvind Singh said that the Tourism Ministry is working tirelessly to revive the tourism sector which suffered greatly due to the Covid pandemic. It is possible to revive the tourism sector quickly by reviving demand especially of domestic tourism, he said. The Secretary said that the Ministry is holding regular talks with states, and tourism industry stakeholders to work out solutions to revive and support tourism.
Shri G. Kishan Reddy, Union Minister of Tourism, Culture, and DoNER, and Shri Shripad Yesso Naik, Minister of State for Tourism, also spoke at the event, which also featured a video greeting from WTO Secretary-General Shri Zurab Pololikashvili.
Shri Birla, speaking at the event, stated that the tourism business in India is reviving at a faster rate post-Covid. He went on to say that dedicated and concerted efforts will ensure that India emerges as the world’s top tourist destination.
Our joint force and concerted efforts will lead our economy to new heights, as we collectively beat Covid-19,” Shri Birla stated. Tourism is one of the economic and job growth engines. As a result, he stressed, specific attention is required for the sector’s continued development.
Shri Birla stated that India’s great tourism potential is attracted by its rich cultural legacy and diversified terrain, which draws visitors from all over the world. In the domains of ecology, spirituality, education, and medical tourism, India has enormous potential.
India’s internal and foreign policies have created a favorable climate for tourist development. Our goal must be to make India the most popular tourist destination on the planet.
The Speaker stated that additional efforts should be made in this area to develop tourist-friendly destinations. Shri Birla underlined the importance of using information technology capabilities to promote tourism both domestically and internationally.
Shri Birla, speaking on the tourist road map, said that bold and long-term initiatives are required to enhance rural tourism. By increasing demand for handicrafts and other rural items, the rural economy will be strengthened.
Similarly, he advised that tourist spots that are yet unknown should be added to India’s tourism map so that more people are aware of them.
Shri Birla released NIDHI 2.0 (National Integrated Database of Hospitality Industry) and launched “India Tourism Statistics: At a Glance, 2021” on this occasion.
Shri Birla hopes that the NIDHI 2.0 data set, which was released today, will represent a watershed moment in this endeavor.
The Ministry of Tourists, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSOI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote and support ‘sustainability efforts in the tourism sector, which was also exchanged at the occasion.
The Union Tourism Minister, Shri G Kishan Reddy while addressing the gathering said,“The tourism sector is one of those few sectors which have suffered a lot due to this pandemic and the early resumption of tourism is very important for the recovery and growth of this sector”. He added, “As on date, India has already administered over 85 crores vaccination doses to its citizens. With the ongoing aggressive vaccination strategy, we are now a step closer to the reopening of the country to tourism in the beginning of the new year. I am grateful to the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for his relentless focus on vaccination”. he added
He lauded the efforts of the ministry and said “The National Integrated Database of Hospitality Industry ( NIDHI) is the ministry’s portal to register accommodation units in the country and as on date 44,024 units have been registered on the portal which was activated on 08.06.2020”.
Shri Reddy said, “The Prime Minister’s vision has been to use Tourism as a tool for employment generation and inclusive development”. The Tourism Sector has the highest job creating potential among the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors, he added. Earlier in the day, the Minister had penned an article in a leading newsdaily that highlighted the significance of the Tourism sector for Employment generation and inclusive growth. The Minister tweeted it through his social media platform.
“Various studies have indicated that a ten lakh rupee investment in tourism can produce as many as 78 jobs,” the Union Minister wrote in his piece.
The Kevadia Model of tourism was featured in the essay. The Minister had written about how the Statue of Unity has put Kevadia on the map around the world, immediately benefiting local populations in a 100-square-kilometer radius and ensuring inclusive, long-term growth in the region.
India has numerous UNESCO World Heritage Sites, many iconic destinations ranging from Somnath in the west to Kaziranga in the east, ten eco-friendly blue flag beaches, vast natural beauty, and wildlife sanctuaries, and innumerable intangible cultural heritage in the form of festivals and performing arts.
Each of these places is one that people from all around the world would gladly visit and explore. As a result, we have the chance to create tourism clusters around these destinations, similar to what was done in Kevadia, to help local populations.
In his remarks, Minister of State for Tourism Shri Shripad Yesso Naik stated that tourism revival is critical to the global economy’s recovery. Because of its effects on the environment, economy, and socio-cultural aspects of global, regional, and local economies, tourism sustainability is important for both developed and developing countries.
Shri Naik continued, “By adopting Responsible Tourism practices, tourism plays an important role in the upliftment and involvement of the local community with the hospitality industry and government departments, resulting in empowerment and development of the people in the area while maintaining environmentally friendly tourism.”
Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of the UNWTO, in his video message, highlighted that tourism can help our societies to recover from the effect of pandemic and it can deliver hope to those who need it most. In many parts of the world, tourism has slowly started and the growth of tourism must benefit every sector from big airlines to small family businesses and from the largest cities to the poor communities. This is what it means when we say we will leave nobody behind. He further added that “moving to the future, inclusive decisions will be key to the growth of our sector”.
Smt Jyoti Mayal of Federation of Association of Indian Tourism & Hospitality; Shri Rakesh Mathur, Founding Member & Honorary President of RTSOI and Shri Atul Bagai, Head UNEP India also expressed their views on how to revive the tourism sector in the post-Covid scenario as well as promote Responsible and Sustainable Tourism that benefits the person at the last mile.
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