Lok Sabha Question No. 74 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-04
Subject: Promotion of Tourism in Kerala
Ministry: TOURISM
Asked by: N.K. PREMACHANDRAN, RAMACHANDRAN MULLAPPALLY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TOURISM

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.74 ANSWERED ON 04.02.2019

## PROMOTION OF TOURISM IN KERALA

74. SHRI N.K. PREMACHANDRAN: SHRI MULLAPPALLY RAMACHANDRAN:

Will the Minister of TOURISM be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  has  received  any  proposals  for  the development and promotion of tourism in the State of Kerala and  if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with  the  status  of  such proposals;
- (b) whether the Government has sanctioned any projects for the Malabar region of the State and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) the  details  of  growth  of  tourism  sector  in  the  country  during the last four years along with the funds sanctioned for various tourism projects, State-wise including Kerala;
- (d) whether the Government has taken note of the advisory/alert issued by some countries to their citizens regarding their visit to India especially Kerala and if so, the details thereof and the reasons  therefor  along  with  the  reaction  of  the  Government thereto; and
- (e) whether the Government has initiated action to make a tourist friendly  climate  in  Kerala  and  if  so,  the  details  thereof  along with  the  initiatives  taken  by  the  Government  to  promote tourism in Kerala?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR TOURISM (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) (SHRI K.J. ALPHONS)

(a) and (b): The  Ministry  of  Tourism  under  the  schemes  of Swadesh  Darshan  and  PRASHAD  (Pilgrimage  Rejuvenation  and Spiritual,  Heritage  Augmentation  Drive)  provides  Central  Financial Assistance to the State Governments/Union Territory (UT)

Administrations  for  development  of  tourism  infrastructure  in  the country.

Submission of project proposals by the State Governments/UT Administrations under the above schemes is a continuous process. The projects for development are identified in consultation with the State Governments/UT Administrations and are sanctioned subject to  availability  of  funds,  submission  of  suitable  detailed  projects reports, adherence to relevant scheme guidelines and utilization of funds released earlier. Based on the above criteria, the Ministry has sanctioned  following  projects  in  Kerala  including  the  project  for Malabar region: -

(Rs. in crore)

|   S. No. | Scheme/ Year of Sanction   | Name of the project                                                                                                                                                                         |   Amount Sanctioned |
|----------|----------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------|
|        1 | Swadesh Darshan (2015-16)  | Development of Pathanamthitta- Gavi- Vagamon- Thekkady under Eco Tourism Circuit in Idduki and Pathanamthitta Districts                                                                     |               76.55 |
|        2 | Swadesh Darshan (2016-17)  | Development of Sabarimala - Erumeli- Pampa-Sannidhanam under Spiritual Circuit in District Pathanamthitta                                                                                   |               99.99 |
|        3 | Swadesh Darshan (2016-17)  | Development of Sree Padmanabhaswamy- Arnamula- Sabrimala under Spiritual Circuit                                                                                                            |               92.22 |
|        4 | Swadesh Darshan (2018-19)  | Development of Malanad Malabar Cruise Tourism Project under Rural Circuit                                                                                                                   |               80.37 |
|        5 | Swadesh Darshan (2018-19)  | Development of Sivagiri Sree Narayana Guru Ashram- Arruvipuram- Kunnumpara Sree Subrahmania- Chembazhanthi Sree Narayana Gurukulam under Spiritual Circuit                                  |               69.47 |
|        6 | Swadesh Darshan (2018-19)  | Development of Kasaragod, Wayanad, Kannur, Kozhikode, Palakkad, Mallapuram, Thrichur, Ernakulam, Idukki, Kottayam, Allaphuza, Pathananamithitta, Kollam, Trivandrum under Spiritual Circuit |               85.23 |

| 7.    | PRASHAD (2016-17) Development at Guruvayur Temple   |   46.14 |
|-------|-----------------------------------------------------|---------|
| Total | Total                                               |  549.97 |

All the above projects are at various stages of implementation.

- (c): The numbers of Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) and Domestic Tourist  Visits  (DTVs)  in  the  country  during  the  last  four  years  and the  current  year  along  with  the  respective  growth  rates  are  as below:

| Year    |   FTAs (in million) | Annual growth in FTAs (%)   | DTVs (in million)   | Annual growth in DTVs (%)   |
|---------|---------------------|-----------------------------|---------------------|-----------------------------|
| 2014    |                7.68 | 10.2                        | 1282.8              | 12.3                        |
| 2015    |                8.03 | 4.5*                        | 1431.97             | 11.6                        |
| 2016    |                8.8  | 9.7*                        | 1615.39             | 12.8                        |
| 2017    |               10.04 | 14.0*                       | 1652.49             | 2.3                         |
| 2018(P) |               10.06 | 5.2*                        | --                  | --                          |

## * The growth has been calculated in terms of absolute total P: Provisional

The  State-wise  details  of  funds  sanctioned  under  Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD Schemes in the country including Kerala are given at the Annexure.

- (d): The Ministry of Tourism is aware of advisory/alerts issued by foreign countries to their citizens regarding their visits to India. To address  this  issue,  Overseas  offices  of  the  Ministry  carries  out regular  interaction/  engagements  with  overseas  tour  operators, travel agents, opinion makers, media and consumer, to keep them updated about the ground situation in the country with an objective of reassuring them regarding travel to India.
- (e): For creating conducive environment for tourists, the Ministry has  implemented  facilities  of  E-Visa,  WiFi  connectivity  at  tourist destinations,  Web  based  public  delivery  system,  24X7  helpline service, Safety and Security, Cleanliness at the tourist destinations in the country including Kerala.

For  Promotion  of  Tourism,  the  Ministry  undertakes  several promotional activities in the domestic and international markets for promotion  of  the  varied  tourism  products  and  destinations  of  the country  including  Kerala.  As  part  of  its  marketing/promotional activities, the Ministry produces publicity material and collaterals in English  and  foreign  languages,  annually  releases  print,  electronic and  online  media  campaigns  in  important  and  potential  markets overseas and within the country under the 'Incredible India' brandline. Promotions are also undertaken through the website and Social Media accounts of the Ministry.

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ANNEXURE

STATEMENT IN  REPLY  TO  PART  (c)  OF  LOK  SABHA  UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.74 ANSWERED ON 04.02.2019 REGARDING PROMOTION OF TOURISM IN KERALA.

THE STATE-WISE DETAILS OF FUNDS SANCTIONED UNDER SWADESH  DARSHAN  AND  PRASHAD  SCHEMES  IN  THE  COUNTRY INCLUDING KERALA

(Rs. In crore)

| S.     | State/            | Swadesh Darshan   | Swadesh Darshan   | PRASHAD         | PRASHAD         | TOTAL      |
|--------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-----------------|-----------------|------------|
| No     | UTs               | No. of Projects   | Amt. Sanctioned   | No. of Projects | Amt. Sanctioned | Sanctioned |
| STATES | STATES            | STATES            | STATES            | STATES          | STATES          | STATES     |
| 1.     | Andhra Pradesh    | 03                | 179.88            | 02              | 75.81           | 255.69     |
| 2.     | Arunachal Pradesh | 02                | 146.91            | 0               | 0.00            | 146.91     |
| 3.     | Assam             | 02                | 194.02            | 01              | 33.98           | 228        |
| 4.     | Bihar             | 05                | 301.61            | 02              | 45.81           | 347.42     |
| 5.     | Chhattisgarh      | 01                | 99.21             | 0               | 0.00            | 99.21      |
| 6.     | Goa               | 02                | 199.34            | 0               | 0.00            | 199.34     |
| 7.     | Gujarat           | 03                | 219.61            | 03              | 108.26          | 327.87     |
| 8.     | Haryana           | 01                | 97.35             | 0               | 0.00            | 97.35      |
| 9.     | Himachal Pradesh  | 01                | 99.76             | 0               | 0.00            | 99.76      |
| 10.    | Jammu & Kashmir   | 06                | 569.19            | 01              | 42.02           | 611.21     |
| 11.    | Jharkhand         | 01                | 52.72             | 01              | 39.13           | 91.85      |
| 12.    | Karnataka         | 0                 | 0.00              | 0               | 0.00            | 0.00       |
| 13.    | Kerala            | 06                | 503.83            | 01              | 46.14           | 549.97     |
| 14.    | Madhya Pradesh    | 04                | 366.55            | 01              | 40.67           | 407.22     |
| 15.    | Maharashtra       | 02                | 136.18            | 01              | 37.81           | 173.99     |
| 16.    | Manipur           | 02                | 126.03            | 0               | 0.00            | 126.03     |
| 17.    | Meghalaya         | 02                | 184.10            | 0               | 0.00            | 184.1      |
| 18.    | Mizoram           | 02                | 193.98            | 0               | 0.00            | 193.98     |
| 19.    | Nagaland          | 02                | 197.03            | 0               | 0.00            | 197.03     |
| 20.    | Odisha            | 01                | 76.49             | 01              | 50.00           | 126.49     |

| 21.               | Punjab                    | 01                | 99.95             | 01                | 6.40              | 106.35            |
|-------------------|---------------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|-------------------|
| 22.               | Rajasthan                 | 04                | 348.91            | 01                | 40.44             | 389.35            |
| 23.               | Sikkim                    | 02                | 193.37            | 0                 | 0.00              | 193.37            |
| 24.               | Tamil Nadu                | 01                | 99.92             | 02                | 22.08             | 122.00            |
| 25.               | Telangana                 | 03                | 274.92            | 0                 | 0.00              | 274.92            |
| 26.               | Tripura                   | 02                | 164.59            | 0                 | 0.00              | 164.59            |
| 27.               | Uttar Pradesh             | 08                | 505.38            | 06                | 139.75            | 645.13            |
| 28.               | Uttarakhand               | 02                | 152.86            | 02                | 74.02             | 226.88            |
| 29.               | West Bengal               | 01                | 85.39             | 01                | 30.03             | 115.42            |
| UNION TERRITORIES | UNION TERRITORIES         | UNION TERRITORIES | UNION TERRITORIES | UNION TERRITORIES | UNION TERRITORIES | UNION TERRITORIES |
| 30.               | Andaman & Nicobar Islands | 01                | 42.19             | 0                 | 0.00              | 42.19             |
| 31.               | Chandigarh                | 0                 | 0.00              | 0                 | 0.00              | 0.00              |
| 32.               | Dadar & Nagar Haveli      | 0                 | 0.00              | 0                 | 0.00              | 0.00              |
| 33.               | Daman & Diu               | 0                 | 0.00              | 0                 | 0.00              | 0.00              |
| 34.               | Delhi                     | 0                 | 0.00              | 0                 | 0.00              | 0.00              |
| 35.               | Lakshadwe ep              | 0                 | 0.00              | 0                 | 0.00              | 0.00              |
| 36.               | Puducherry                | 03                | 192.31            | 0                 | 0.00              | 192.31            |
|                   | Wayside Amenities         | 01                | 18.10             | 0                 | 0.00              | 18.10             |
| Total             | Total                     | 77                | 6121.69           | 24                | 832.35            | 6954.04           |

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