The India Impact At WTTC 2004

Rabindra Seth - New Delhi

It was India's day at the fourth global summit organised by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) which brought together some 700 of the planet's most influential leaders which included chief executives of hotel chains, airlines, travel agencies, car rentals, media barons and investors,

in Doha, capital of Qatar, in the first week of May. Resurgent India was the theme of a presentation made by N K Singh, member - Planning Commission, to a special breakfast session chaired by Jean-Claude Baumgarten, president WTTC. Co-panelists with Singh were Yogesh Chandra, secretary general (WTTC) India Initiative, hotelier and MP, Lalit Suri, who recently took over as president of WTTC's India Initiative, Amitabh Kant, joint secretary, department of tourism, Raymond Bickson, the new managing director, Taj group, Ashwini Kakkar, CEO and MD of Thomas Cook and Radha Bhatia, chief of Amadeus.

Pointing out that India's economic growth is the fastest among major countries, Singh said that with an estimated growth of nine per cent this country hoped to become the third largest economy in the coming decades, a jump from the present 12th position. The GDP growth of 10.4 per cent in the quarter ended December last was the highest among all economies of the world. And, according to Goldman Sach's projections India's GDP will exceed Italy's in 2020, France's in the same year and Germany's in 2025.

What is of special significance for tourism is that the services sector of which it is a major part, has grown considerably from 40.6 per cent in 1990-91 to 51.0 per cent in 2003-04. It was to this India awakening and a world of opportunity that the Planning Commission member invited foreign investors. There are myriad openings for investment in hotels, travel-related services and even aviation, particularly airports. He said tenders have already gone out for privatisation of major international airports, peak periods open skies policy is in place, and private carriers have been permitted to fly overseas and the massive 7,000 km Golden Quadrilateral linking Delhi-Mumbai-Chennai-Kolkata is scheduled for completion next year. India would need between 100,000 and 200,000 additional hotel rooms in the coming years and one hundred per cent foreign investment is welcome in the accommodation sector.

Later speaking as a panelist in the plenary session on Flow of Money (investments) Singh summed up the positive factors that make India the preferred place to bring money into. It is the world's largest democracy with political stability; safe place to do business; has a large reservoir of skilled/semi-skilled manpower and where economic reforms are changing the character of business. More importantly, it has liberal and transparent investment policies - policies that are backed by a degree of national consensus carrying an element of continuity. Sharing a thought with the audience he wondered if there could be a special fund created to protect international investors.

The India presentation included a section on the Incredible India campaign which has won two PATA gold awards at last month's annual meet of the association in Jeju, south Korea for best marketing and best print campaign. The current size of the Indian market was given as 320 million domestic movements; 4.8 million outbound and 3 million inbound. The Incredible India campaign has enhanced the country's earning by US$ 600 million (foreign exchange growth of 23 per cent) and an increase of 15 per cent in arrivals. Indian tourism was certainly shining in Doha.