Chitra Unnithan / Ahmedabad Dec 31, 2009, 00:35 IST
Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor’s latest tweet on potential loss of tourism revenues to India due to arbitrary tightening of visa regulations may have ruffled some feathers in the government.
However, Tharoor’s criticism on India’s revised visa rules has the backing of data from researchers in the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs).
As reported by Business Standard on April 10, inbound travel to India peaked at a record 5.5 million arrivals in 2008, and these tourists spent nearly Rs 64,000 crore, so even a 1 per cent decline would amount to $130 million (Rs 640 crore) per annum, according to a study by IIM-Ahmedabad professor Dileep Mavalankar and his co-authors from Brandeis and Oxford universities.
These studies were discussed earlier this year at the second international conference on tourism in global village jointly organised by IIM-Lucknow and IIM-Kozhikode.
The findings of the study and the conference on tourism are being brought out in the book ‘Tourism in global village’. According to SS Vasan of Oxford University, co-author of the study and member of a core group on key health areas set up by Gujarat government, “Malaysia and Thailand have similar and healthy shares of world tourism receipts (1.64 per cent and 1.82 per cent, respectively), which constitute 9.4 per cent and 7.4 per cent of their respective GDPs. Indian states are correctly aspiring to compete at this level. For instance, international tourist arrivals in Malaysia (14 million) and Thailand (11 million) are over two orders of magnitude higher than that in Gujarat (93,000). So, we have ample potential to plan for a sustainable growth in this sector.”
In the backdrop of the David Headley case, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a directive on November 4 that foreign nationals with multiple entry long-term visa must have a mandatory two-month gap between two visits. Tharoor, an MP from Kerala who has objected to the move, has made a number of postings on the social networking site Twitter observing that “26/11 killers had no visas” and asking “whether visa restrictions protect our security” and “R we going 2 allow terrorists 2 make us less welcoming?” (sic).
However, in a latest twist, the government appears to be in no mood to relent on the new visa rules for tourists, arguing that no genuine tourist would like to come to India within two months after staying for 180 days. Industry watchers believe that the move would prevent India from becoming a hub for travel and tourism in South and South-East Asia, leading to severe losses to India’s tourism and airline industries.
The US embassy in New Delhi has posted in its website that “To date, these changes have mostly affected tourist visa holders, but the US Embassy and Consulates in India have also received reports pertaining to other visa types and about inconsistent implementation of the new rules, which have not been widely publicised and are subject to change.” Alarmingly, the embassy also said that business travellers had reported being denied re-entry due to the new regulations.
According to the IIM study, “The minister’s prediction that this move will ‘cost us millions of dollars’ in lost tourism revenues seem to be on sound footing and backed by the IIM study. From well over 14 per cent year-on-year growth rate in tourism during 2003-2006, India’s tourism has already slowed to 12 per cent during 2007, and to 5 per cent during 2008. The World Travel and Tourism Council has predicted 7 per cent contraction of tourism revenues for 2009 and no growth for 2010.”
You are right MGS, but what are we doing about homeland security. This is not the way to go about it. Hire the Israelis to train our security agencies. That would be a better idea
I somehow feel, there are huge number of people (mostly ministers and government officials) who envy Mr.Shashi Tharoor's personality, exposure and sense of humour. At times, one feels that they have some kind of complex and due to all these reasons, possibly, they do not recognise Mr.Tharoor's insight into, so called, twitters. As for Mr.Tharoor, I humbly suggest to keep away from all such unnecessary controversies which are only going to harm you. Please learn to accept and reconcile the fact that you are one person, right or wrong, who is to survive in the midst of so many 'responsible and intellectual individuals'. They are simply out to somehow find faults or even create one and make an issue. Mr.Tharoor, please carry on but a bit carefully...
Bharat Parekh
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Nowhere in this article it is mentioned that the tightening of visa rules will lead to drop in tourism revenues (ignore the blanket statement at the end). The only nos. in this article are those that say that if arrivals fall by x%, revenues fall by y% (i think that is common sense!).
This Visa regime is a reciprocal thing. There is automatic parallel action by other nations on Indian passport holders. As it is Indian passport holder has several hassles to face when he travel overseas on business or social reasons. Secondly, when India is busy signing FTA with other nations on free movement of goods and services such a move by the home ministry is a step in the opposite direction. Thirdly, it affects inward bound tourism. Fourthly, this new visa restriction does absolutely nothing to counter perceived terrorism threats. It is only a paper tiger at the best and will soon get immersed in tons of paper work all around the various Indian embassies and hence useless. The worst thing is, this whole initiative is a half baked concoction by officials in the home ministry, presumably a knee jerk reaction. Dr Tharoor seems to more sense and discipline and commitment than others in the GOI.
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