Tourism minister urges collective action to clock 20 million FTAs

Over the three years, India has moved up to the 39th position in 2024 from 54th position on the World Economic Forum's TTDI

Amid a sustained domestic travel boom, Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Wednesday stressed the importance of remaining focused on getting more foreign tourists to India, which can be done by developing new arenas of experiential tourism and working on the human capital available in the country.

 

Shekhawat, who was speaking at the two-day national conclave organised by the Federation of Associations of Indian Tourism and Hospitality (FAITH) in New Delhi, added that India’s goal should be to achieve 20 million foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in the country.

 

“There is an urgent need to think about taking FTAs to the 20 million milestone and that is not just the work of the government. Members of the hospitality sector, too, are working towards achieving this goal,” Shekhawat said.

   

“We have also developed an action plan to align different line ministries over the next one year and take a whole-of-the-government approach to ensure we are among the top 10 positions in the World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI). Work on this is going on in a mission mode to ensure we are able to succeed on this front in the coming five years,” he added.

 

Over the three years, India moved up to the 39th position in 2024 from 54th position on the World Economic Forum’s TTDI.

 

“Only infrastructure growth cannot help us achieve this goal. There is a need to work on creating new experience offerings, increase branded room inventory, amp up basic amenities, and develop the industry’s human resource,” he further said.

 

India saw nearly 10 million FTAs in 2024. According to the Ministry of Tourism, FTAs stood at 2.6 million in the January-March quarter this year, marginally lower than 2.9 million in the same period last year.