Chanchal Mukherjee
New Delhi: Tourism experts are hopeful that the government will provide full support to revamped Incredible India Digital Platform and promote it to boost foreign tourist flow to India.
Expressing his hope on revamped IIDP to increase foreign footfall in India, Honorary Treasurer of The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India, Garish Oberoi told ETV Bharat, “I am not sure that how much it will work after revamping the digital platform but I am hopeful that government will run it in full swing to promote tourism in India and abroad. Earlier, this Incredible India campaign was run but due to some reasons it was slowed down.”
Another tourism expert, Rajiv Mehra told ETV Bharat, “It is good to revamp the Incredible India Digital Platform but the government should keep the main focus on promotional activities in India as well as abroad to attract foreign tourists towards our country.”
Incredible India Digital Platform (IIDP) has been revamped with a new version as a comprehensive resource for travelers and stakeholders interested in exploring the country’s rich cultural heritage, natural beauty, and diverse attractions.
According to the Ministry of tourism, the Development of Tourism is primarily undertaken by the concerned State Governments and Union Territory Administrations. However, the Union Ministry complements these efforts by providing financial assistance to the State governments and UTs under its various infrastructure schemes. The ministry is further encouraging the State governments to include soft components involving the use of technology to enhance visitor experience at major tourist destinations in the project proposals formulated by them for sanctioning under such schemes.
Discussing the issue, tourism expert Subhash Goel told ETV Bharat, “The government should reopen Indian Tourism offices abroad and increase publicity budget to promote foreign tourism in India otherwise it will depend only on digital platforms.”
Expressing his views on the issue, Tourism expert and Immediate Past President of Indian Association of Tour Operators Pronab Sarkar told ETV Bharat, “The government had publicized Incredible India pre-COVID but the post-pandemic publicity of it is negligible. I think the government should promote this campaign at a large scale and hold road shows abroad to attract foreign tourists as much as possible which will not only boost foreign tourism in India but will help to earn foreign exchange to our economy.”
As per the ministry information, the IIDP personalizes visitor experiences by offering real-time weather updates, city exploration, and essential travel services. The portal has also partnered with several OTAs (Online Travel Agents) and Stakeholders for seamless booking of flights, hotels, cabs, and buses and tickets for ASI monuments.
Foreign Tourists in India:
In 2023, India recorded 9.24 million foreign tourist arrivals, a growth of 43.5 per cent compared to 6.44 million in 2022, the ministry earlier said.
Foreign Exchange earnings:
As per ministry’s data published earlier, the Foreign Tourist Arrivals contributed foreign exchange earnings of Rs 2.3 lakh crore (provisional estimates), a growth of around 65 per cent in the same period compared to Rs 1.39 lakh crores in 2022.
Tourists’ data:
FTAs during January to June 2024, were recorded 47,78,374 (provisional), and FEEs during the same period were estimated at Rs 1.27 crore, as per ministry data.
Steps to promote tourism:
Various steps have been taken to promote tourism including adventure and niche tourism, making easy the availability of e-visas, and launching a multilingual helpline for tourists.
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