Including hotels, convention centres in infra sub-sector hailed

Tourism Minister K. Chiranjeevi Tuesday welcomed the move to include hotels and convention centres with a project cost of more than Rs.2 billion and Rs.3 billion, respectively, in the list of infrastructure sub-sectors.

The inclusion of hotels and convention centres in the master list of infrastructure sub-sector is equivalent to granting infrastructure status to the hospitality industry.

This will have an immediate multiplier effect on the overall economic development and help generate employment in the country, a tourism ministry release said here.

The inclusion of convention centres will aid in setting up niche products in tourism having year-round business and overcome the bane of seasonality, it said.

The release quoted the minister as saying he met Finance Minister P. Chidambaram in this connection.