National Tourism Day: History and Significance amidst Covid-19
National Tourism Day 2022: India is a diverse country with a rich cultural and mythological heritage. From Kashmir to Kanyakumari, the country has great places to visit and delicious cuisine. Every tourist destination has its own history or mythology, which makes them even more special. In India, tourism is one of the largest income-gross industries and plays an important role in the economy of the country.
National Tourism Day: History
In 1958, the government realized the importance of oncoming tourist traffic to India and created a separate Department of Tourism. The objective of creating the department was to preserve our national heritage and take care of tourist places to preserve their beauty while making them tourism friendly.
India also attracts a lot of foreign tourists every year. People from all over the world come to ‘Incredible India’ for months and live in search of its natural beauty. To keep the culture alive and promote tourism, we celebrate National Tourism Day on 25 January. Every year, a different theme is given to this day. The day is significant as it creates awareness about the importance of tourism and its economic aspects.
The tourism industry has been hit hard over the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. States heavily dependent on tourism like Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Uttarakhand and North Eastern states suffered heavy losses. In 2021, the theme of National Tourism Day was ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ to encourage Indians to travel to India and explore its beauty. The celebrations were conducted virtually through seminars amid the COVID-19 restrictions.
This year, the day will be celebrated in Andhra Pradesh with the theme ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’. The Government of India launched the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ campaign to mark the 75th Independence Day of India. There are many historical places in India that tell the story of sacrifice, bloodshed, patriotism and freedom. This year, we all hope that the pandemic ends and we can safely travel to these wonderful places to relive history.
