Lok Sabha Question No. 5076 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-04-03
Subject: Promotion of Tourism in Tamil Nadu
Ministry: TOURISM
Asked by: Dayanidhi Maran

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF TOURISM

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5076 ANSWERED ON 03.04.2023

## PROMOTION OF TOURISM IN TAMIL NADU

## 5076. SHRI DAYANIDHI MARAN:

Will the Minister of TOURISM be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  has  any  report  or  audit  of  the  disruptions faced by tourism industry in Tamil Nadu due to COVID-19 pandemic and the steps taken in the budget to resolve these issues;
- (b) whether the Government has any report or analysis on the closure of businesses linked to tourism in Tamil Nadu and if so, the steps being taken for its revival; and
- (c) whether the Ministry has taken action to promote tourism in Tamil Nadu during the last two years and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF TOURISM                                       (SHRI G. KISHAN REDDY)

(a)  &  (b):    To  assess  the  extent  of  losses  to  the  sector,  the  Ministry  of Tourism engaged National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) to conduct study on 'India and the Corona virus Pandemic: Economic Losses for Hous eholds Engaged in Tourism and Policies for Recovery'. The key findings are placed at Annexure-I.

The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India has not conducted any formal study to assess the State/UT wise impact of Covid-19 pandemic on tourism industry.

The details of various relief measures announced by the Government for redeveloping  post-COVID  Industry  including  tourism  sector  of  the  country including Tamil Nadu are placed in Annexure-II.

The  tourism  sector  has  bounced  back  with  6.19  million  Foreign  Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) to India in 2022 as compared to 2.74 million in 2020 and 1.52 million in 2021.  The hotel industry occupancy rate in November 2022 stood at  around  68-70  per  cent,  completely  recovering  the  average  pre-pandemic level of 2019-20.

(c): The Ministry of Tourism has revamped its Swadesh Darshan scheme as Swadesh  Darshan  2.0 with the objective to develop sustainable and responsible destinations following a tourist and destination centric approach. Till  now,  48  destinations  across  27  States/UTs  have  been  identified  for development under Swadesh Darshan 2.0 scheme, including Mamallapuram and the Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu.

The  Ministry  of  Tourism  has  provided  financial  assistance  to  the  State Government of Tamil Nadu for organizing fairs/ festivals and tourism related events. The details of the financial assistance released during the last two years under the scheme are given below:

(Rs. in lakh)

| Year    | Name of the Fair/Festival                      |   Amount Sanctioned |   Amount Released |
|---------|------------------------------------------------|---------------------|-------------------|
| 2019-20 | (i) Indian Dance Festival (ii) Kumari Festival |                  50 |                50 |
| 2021-22 | Indian Dance Festival at Mamallapuram          |                  25 |                25 |

Besides the above, the Ministry of Tourism has extended financial assistance to Ministry of Railways for joint development of tourist amenities & facilities at 22 identified railway stations under the Scheme of 'Assistance to Central Agencies for Tourism I nfrastructure Development'. Under this scheme  2  railway  stations  viz.  Rameshwaram  and  Madurai  have  been identified in the state of Tamil Nadu. Amounts of Rs.4.48 crore and Rs.4.70 crore  were  sanctioned  for  development  of  tourist  amenities  &  facilities  at Madurai  and  Rameshwaram  Railway  Stations,  respectively, on  50:50  cost sharing basis with the Ministry of Railways. Out of this sanctioned amount, Rs.3.56 crore and Rs.3.76 crore have already been disbursed for development of tourist amenities at Madurai and Rameshwaram  Railway  Stations, respectively to Ministry of Railways.

Ministry  of  Tourism  promotes  the  tourist  destinations  of  India,  including those  in  Tamil  Nadu,  in  a  holistic  manner.  The  promotions  are  undertaken through  various  initiatives  under  its  Schemes  of  'Domestic  Promotion  and Publicity  including  Hospitality'  (DPPH)  and  'Overseas  Promotion  Publicity' (OPP).  As  a  part  of its ongoing  activities, it regularly releases  print, electronic,  online  and  outdoor  media  campaigns  in  international  market, under the 'Incredible India' brand-line, to promote various tourism destinations and products of India. Promotions of tourism destinations and products  are  also  undertaken  through  the  official  website  of  the  Ministry through social media.

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## ANNEXURE-I

STATEMENT  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  &  (b)  OF  LOK  SABHA  UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5076 ANSWERED ON 03.04.2023 REGARDING PROMOTION OF TOURISM IN TAMIL NADU

The key findings of the study 'India and the Coronavirus Pandemic: Economic Losses for Households Engaged in Tourism and Policies for Recovery' are as follows:

- (i) Due to overall economic slowdown during 2020-21, tourism economy or Tourism Direct Gross Value Added (TDGVA) saw a fall of 42.8 percent in Quarter 1 (Q1); 15.5 percent in Q2 and fall of 1.1 percent in Q3.
- (ii) Due to significant drop in tourist arrivals and hence tourism expenditure, during the pandemic, it is estimated that TDGVA plummeted by as much as 93.3 percent in Q1 of 2020-21 over its level in the same quarter of previous year. It picked up slightly to post a fall of 79.5 percent in Q2 and that of 64.3 percent in Q3.
- (iii) A significant number of direct jobs were lost in the tourism sector once the lockdown was implemented. 14.5 million direct jobs during Q1, 5.2 million during Q2 and 1.8 million direct jobs during Q3 are expected to have lost as compared to estimated 34.8 million direct jobs in tourism sector in the pre-pandemic period of 2019-20.

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STATEMENT  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  &  (b)  OF  LOK  SABHA  UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5076 ANSWERED ON 03.04.2023 REGARDING PROMOTION OF TOURISM IN TAMIL NADU

Following are the various relief measures announced by the Government for redeveloping post-COVID tourism sector of the country including Tamil Nadu:

- (i) The  Government  announced  Atmanirbhar  Bharat  Package  vide  which Rs.3.00 lakh crore collateral free automatic loan was made available for Micro,  Small  and  Medium  Enterprises  (MSMEs).  The  loan  will  have  4year tenure and 12-month moratorium.
- (ii) Under Atmanirbhar Bharat package, Provident Fund contribution of both employer and employee was reduced to 10% each from existing 12% each  for  all  esta blishments  covered  by  Employees'  Provident  Fund Organization (EPFO) for three months.
- (iii) Return  filing  deferred  for  three  months  with  no  penal  interest  for companies up to Rs.5.00 Crore, rest @ 9% penal interest.
- (iv) The  Government  waived  off  PF  contribution  for  three  months  for organizations with less than 100 pax and 90% of their employees earn below Rs.15000.
- (v)     Deferment of Tax Collected at Source (TCS) up to October 2020.
- (vi) The  Central government  also  gave  relief from  various regulatory compliances  under  Income  Tax  Act,  companies  Act  and  Goods  and Service Tax (GST) Act for varying period in the wake of COVID-19 crisis to ensure business continuity and survival.
- (vii) Emergency  Credit  Line  Guarantee  Scheme  (ECLGS)  was  launched  in May, 2020 as part of Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan to support eligible Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and business enterprises in  meeting their operational liabilities and restarting their businesses. Under the scheme, 100% credit guarantee is extended to the lending institutions  for  loans  extended  by  them  under  the  scheme  to  eligible borrowers. The admissible guarantee limit under the scheme has been increased from Rs.4.5 lakh crore to Rs.5 lakh crore, with the additional guarantee  cover  of  Rs.50,000  crore  earmarked  exclusively  for  the Hospitality and related enterprises including Civil Aviation sector.
- (viii)  On  28 th  June 2021, the Government announced a stimulus package to boost diverse sectors of economy affected by COVID-19 pandemic and provide  impetus  for  growth  and  employment  measures.  The  package

comprises  a  total  of  17  measures  in  three  broad  categories,  which included 'Economic relief from Pandemic, with special focus on health

- and  reviving  travel  and  tourism  sectors'  and  'Impetus  for  Growth  and em ployment'.
- (ix) Ministry  of  Tourism  launched  'Loan  Guarantee  Scheme  for  COVID Affected Tourism Service Sector (LGSCATSS)', which aims at extending collateral  free  loan  to  the  distressed  tourism  sector  to  help  them discharge  their  liabilities  and  restart  their  business  affected  due  to Covid-19 pandemic  under  this  scheme,  collateral  free  Loan  upto Rs.10.00  lakh  each  may  be  availed  by  Ministry  of  Tourism  approved Tour operator/Travel Agents/Tourist Transport Operators and upto Rs.1.00 lakh each may be availed by RLGs/IITGs approved by Ministry of Tourism and Tourist Guides approved by State Government/UT Administration. The scheme is already operational through 18 Scheduled Commercial Banks. Validity of the scheme has been extended by one more year i.e. till 31 st  March, 2023 or till the guarantee of Rs. 250.00 crore are issued under the scheme.
- (x) With  a  view  to  prepare  for  a  post-COVID  19  revival,  the  Ministry  has formulated and issued detailed operational guidelines for COVID safety and  hygiene  for  hotels,  restaurants,  B&Bs/Homestays  and  Tourism Service  Providers  on  08.06.2020  to  facilitate  smooth  resumption  of business.
- (xi) An  initiative  called  SAATHI  (System  for  Assessment,  Awareness  & Training  for  Hospitality  Industry)  has  been  developed  for  effective implementation of Guidelines/SOPs issued with reference to COVID-19 and beyond for safe operations of Hotels, restaurants, B&Bs and other units.
- (xii) With  an  aim  to  incentivize  stakeholders  in  the  Tourism  industry,  the Guidelines for the scheme of Market Development Assistance (MDA) for providing financial support to stakeholders for the promotion of Domestic Tourism have been modified to enhance the scope and reach of the scheme, so as to provide maximum benefits to the stakeholders. Additional  promotional  activities  have  been  incorporated  including online  promotions  and  the  extent  of  financial  assistance  permissible has  been  enhanced.  The  Guidelines  of  the  Marketing  Development Assistance  Programme  under  the  Overseas  Promotion  and  Publicity Scheme  has  been  modified  to  enhance  the  scope  and  reach  of  the scheme, so as to provide maximum benefits to the stakeholders in the tourism industry.

(xiii)  For  the  purpose  of  restarting  inbound  tourism  and  attracting  foreign tourists in the country, Government of India extended first 5 lakh visas to the foreign tourists from potential tourism markets, free of cost. The benefit  of  free  of  charge  visa  will  be  available  only  once  per  tourist during the issuance of the first 5 lakh tourist visas. (xiv)  Owing to the situation which arose out of COVID-19 pandemic, Ministry of  Tourism  in  consultation  with  Ministry  of  Health  &  Family  Welfare issues  guidelines/directions  to  the  Tourism  Stakeholders,  Hotels  and Restaurants to facilitate smooth resumption of business. Ministry of Home Affairs restored e-Tourist Visa for foreign nationals of

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- (xv) 166 countries as on date.