India is a land of wonders, The land mass is huge and India is home to almost every kind of environment and climate. We have snow-capped mountains, vast deserts, and lush green jungles. The country has huge potential for tourism, and in fact, India attracts lots of domestic and global tourist annually.
There are various kinds of tourism in India and they are classified as :
Heritage tourism: We are country with some rich history and past. There are lots of monuments and architectures of interest in India. This culture and sights attract tourists in millions. There are still places which need to be developed and promoted as heritage sites in India.
Wild Life Tourism: India is also home to some great population of wildlife. We have many national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. The diverse flora and fauna of such locations have always been a place of interest for the tourists.
Eco-Tourism: Although at a nascent stage, India has immense potential to become an eco-tourism hub. Places of interest in this genre include Rishikesh, Ladakh, and eddakal caves to name a few.
Adventure Tourism: Owing to our great landscape and variety, India is all set to become a hub for adventure tourism. Activities like hiking, skiing, trekking and many others are already catching up youth.
Rural Tourism: This niche of tourism is a hit with western countries. These people want to feel and experience the rural countryside of India. They come and spend some time with people in villages, learning their ways of life. Rural tourism has really caught the fancy of people and is really catching up fast.
Business Tourism: India is a great place to conduct business have some fun along with it. The country is developing as a hub for MICE activities.
Medical Tourism: This is already an established niche in INDIA. We have some of the best doctors and hospital providing medical services at a fraction of Global cost. India sees visitors of medical tourism from all over the world.
Religious Tourism: India since time immemorial has been a hub for religious activities. Recently this niche is also attracting lots of attention globally and people from all over the world are coming to India for this.
Employment Pattern:
“As per the Planning Commission, an investment of Rs.10 lakh creates 78 jobs in the Tourism sector while the same generates just 18 jobs in the Manufacturing and 45 in the Agriculture sector.”
Currently, Travel & Tourism, being employment intensive, provides employment to approximately 31 million (both direct & indirect) people throughout the country and is one of the largest employers in the country, this number is expected to rise to over 40 million by 2019 and over 43 million by 2022.
The skill requirements and skill gaps are presented for the following major segments driving employment in the Tourism Industry:
- Travel and Tour Operators
- Hotels and Restaurants.
Source: Government of India
This sector has huge skill gap in terms of trained manpower of global standards. Considering the fact that this sector can be a big contributor to earning foreign exchange it becomes really important to develop the human resources here.
Tourism sector can actually benefit a lot from NEEM Scheme. This scheme provides for hiring manpower as the apprentice and then training them according to one’s needs. It will also create lots of employment opportunity and support the economy.
