Forex revenue from tourism touches $27.7 bn: Economic Survey

Helped by the initiatives taken by the government for the sector, the Foreign exchange earnings (FEEs) from tourism reported 20.8 per cent growth to USD 27.7 billion in 2017. The introduction of  e- visa facility under three categories of tourist, medical and business for the citizens of 163 countries was one of the major innovative decisions made by the government, the survey noted.

The launch of global media campaign for 2017-18 on various channels, launch of ‘The Heritage Trail’ to promote the world heritage sites in India, launch of international media campaign on various international TV channels,’Paryatan Parv’ celebrations across the country from October 5 to 25, 2017 with three main components — Dekho Apna Desh, Tourism for All, Tourism and Governance, has also supported the growth, the survey noted.

As per the data of Ministry of Tourism, Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) stood at 10.2 million during 2017, a growth of 15.6 per cent. FEEs from tourism were at USD 27.7 billion, witnessing a growth of 20.8 per cent over 2016. FTAs stood at 8.8 million and FEEs were at USD 22.9 billion in 2016.