Tourist footfall in Odisha up by 38 per cent

The tourist inflow to Odisha in 2017-18 (till January) has increased by around 38 per cent as compared to the corresponding period of 2016-17 .

Tourism Minister Ashok Chandra Panda, said that as many as 86,162 tourists from abroad visited Odisha in 2017-18 (till January) compared to 62,539 arrivals in 2016-17 in the corresponding period last year, registering 37.77 per cent growth over the previous fiscal.

The tourist footfall of 2016-17 was 17.70 per cent more as compared to the corresponding period of 2015-16 where 53,133 foreign tourists had visited the state. The most number of arrivals were from US, England, France, Japan, Germany, Australia, Holland, Canada, Italy, Russia and South Africa.

“To encourage high-end tourism and increase the footfall of tourists from abroad, the government has taken several measures and have been taking part in various internal events on tourism and have already participated in WTM London, ITB Berlin, Cannes Festival in France, ITB Asia in Singapore, in last three years. Besides, it is also organising various road shows outside India,” said the minister.