NEW DELHI: Tourism in India already contributes to over 10 per cent of the country's GDP and by 2021 would attract over 1700 million tourists, a white paper on the industry claims. While the white paper authored by The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and HVS a consultant specializing in global hospitality has also predicted a double digit growth for India in the sector, it has also urged that the country should create enough tourism related infrastructure to cater to this predicted swell of tourists. “From the current 810 million travelers to 1,747 million in 2021 – is India equipped to cater to such a volume? India will witness an increase of 937 million travelers over the next ten years which is actually more than what the country caters to today. Do we have the infrastructure needed to support these vast numbers?,” the report asks. The report also states that while the present approximate number of rooms available in India was 163,000, India tourism centers would need 350,000 plus rooms to handle the rush of tourists by 2021. The report has also called for increased focus on both investment of capital as well as creating a human resource pool in the country. The WTTC and HVS report has also estimated an investment requirement to the tune of $ 2,482 million spread over the next 10 years in India's tourism sector. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/UkSPE Tags: GDP, Income, India, Travel Section: Business, Latest News, South Asia, Travel
