Hospitality sector needs reforms, infra status to drive growth: HAI

Hotel Association of India on Wednesday called policymakers to prioritise sector-specific reforms to drive growth and resilience in the hospitality sector, while reiterating demand for infrastructure status and allowing of industry benefits to hotels.

Sharing the hospitality industry's expectations in the upcoming Union Budget, Hotel Association of India (HAI) President K B Kachru said the hotel sector should be given due recognition for its significant contribution to GDP, jobs, and foreign exchange earnings.

Kachru, who is also Chairman, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group, urged "policymakers to prioritise sector-specific reforms to drive growth and resilience in the hospitality sector".

"The hotel sector should be given due recognition for its significant contribution to GDP, jobs, and foreign exchange earnings. The key policy interventions are according the infrastructure status and allowing industry benefits to hotels," he said in a statement.

 

This will encourage investments in the sector and unleash the full potential of hotels to generate employment and play the desired role in realising India's vision of an Aatmanirbhar Viksit Bharat, Kachru said.

A harmonised infrastructure status for the hotel industry will facilitate easier financing, longer loan tenures, and lower interest rates, enabling smoother access to capital and reducing project delays caused by financial constraints.

Kachru further said there is "a need to further improve the ease of doing business by reducing both the number and the costs of approvals, NoCs and clearances required to build and operate hotels".

"A single-window clearance mechanism is a provision that requires urgent attention. Reinstating the rewards scheme for forex earnings, higher rates of depreciation for hotels are recommended," he added.