Saloni Bhatia – New Delhi
The second edition of FICCI’s Tourism Investor’s Meet was held in New Delhi recently. The inaugural session saw the release of FICCI – Yes Bank knowledge paper on ‘Investment in Tourism Infrastructure: Unleashing the growth Potential’. Dr Jyotsna Suri, immediate past president FICCI, chairperson, FICCI Tourism Committee and chairperson & MD, Lalit Suri Hospitality Group, stated, “Strategic initiatives have been taken to make the right investment decision by the ministry of tourism (MoT), the states and FICCI over the past four years. We initiated this event last year and have seen increased participation this year. More than 600 meetings have been scheduled between 72 buyers in comparison to the 350 meetings and 52 buyers last year.”
Vinod Zutshi, secretary, MoT, Govt of India, said, “While the tourism sector is undergoing a paradigm shift, it is also important to focus on how to get more tourists. We need to develop core infrastructure in the country, including rail, road, air and waterways. According to a report in 2010 there is a shortage of 192,000 rooms in the country wherein lies an immense scope of investment. A task force has already been created by MoT, Civil Aviation and Railways to improve connectivity to tourist destinations. But more initiatives can only be takes with the help of state governments and private partnerships.”
Talking about the tourism industry’s contribution to India’s GDP Suman Billa, joint secretary, MoT , Govt. of India, added, “The real potential of tourism lies in the non developed areas which have not attracted enough attention. While there is still shortage of rooms in the country, the transfer of hotels from infrastructure segment to the hospitality sector has enabled the segment to grow. However, the threshold for hotels, which is at present Rs 200 crore needs to be brought down to Rs 50 crore to meet the deficit in hotel rooms and allow middle level players to enter the market.”