Safety and Security of tourists is essentially a state subject. However, the Ministry of Tourism has been continuously taking up the matter with all the State Governments and Union Territory (UT) Administrations for setting up of dedicated Tourist Police to strengthen on-ground safety mechanism for tourists. With the efforts of Ministry of Tourism, States/UT’s viz Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim and Uttar Pradesh have deployed tourist police.          

Ministry of Tourism through the Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS) portal receives complaints/grievances/suggestions related to service delivery deficiency, cheating etc. The CPGRAMS portal is available to the citizens 24x7 to lodge their grievances related to tourism. The foreign tourists can also register their complaints/grievances on the portal through Indian registered mobile number. As a part of the Ministry’s continuous endeavors to make travel for tourists safe and secure, the Ministry of Tourism has set up a 24x7 Multi-Lingual Tourist Helpline on the toll free number 1800111363 or on a short code 1363 in 12 Languages including 10 international languages (German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic), Hindi and English for domestic and foreign tourists to provide support service in terms of information relating to travel in India and to offer appropriate guidance to tourists in distress, while travelling within India.

In addition, it is stated that the Government has set up a dedicated non-lapsable corpus fund - Nirbhaya Fund, being administered by Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, which can be utilized for projects specifically designed to improve the safety and security of women.

 Ministry of Tourism has been periodically requesting all State Governments and Union Territories for availing the benefits of the ‘Safe Tourism Destinations for Women’ under Nirbhaya fund which can be utilized for projects specifically designed to improve the safety and security of women tourists.

This information was given by Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.

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Sunil Kumar Tiwari  

tourism4pib[at]gmail[dot]com