The Ministry of Tourism has taken various steps  to increase the number of in-bound tourists  in the country which inter-alia include the following:

 i)      The nomenclature of existing e-Tourist Visa has been changed to e-Visa with three sub categories i.e. e-Tourist Visa, E-Business Visa and e-Medical Visa for citizens of 161   countries.

ii)      Development and promotion of ‘Niche Tourism’ products.

iii)     Generating sufficient manpower to meet the requirements of the tourism and hospitality industry.

iv)     Launch of 24x7 toll free Multi-Lingual Tourist Helpline.

v)      Providing Central Financial Assistance (CFA) to State Governments/Union Territory Administrations for various tourism projects including fairs, festivals and tourism related events as per the relevant scheme guidelines.

vi)     Ministry of Tourism is offering free Pre- loaded SIM Cards for tourists on e-Visa at the ITDC counter at IGI Airport.

In addition, the Ministry of Tourism has also taken the following steps for the development of Tourism:-

i)       Launching theme based tourist circuits under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme for integrated development of tourism infrastructure and facilities.

ii)      Launching the National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) to beautify and improve the amenities and infrastructure at pilgrimage centres of all faiths.

iii)     Promoting India as a holistic tourism destination including the various tourism sites and products of every State/Union Territory of the country in the domestic and international markets.

Foreign Tourists Arrivals (FTAs) in India during the year 2015 were 80,27,133 with a growth rate of 4.5% over the year 2014 and during the year 2016 were 88,89,784 with a growth rate of 10.7% over the year 2015.

This information was given by Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State for Tourism and Culture (Independent Charge) in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.

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Sanjay Kumar/jk/Parl. No. 2/29-03-2017