India built tourism infrastructure worth Rs 7,000 crore in last 8 years: Minister G.K. Reddy

In the last eight-and-a-half years, India built extensive tourism infrastructure worth nearly Rs 7,000 crore to improve the experiences of tourists, Union Tourism Minister G.K. Reddy said on Wednesday. He was speaking at the inaugural session of the Tourism Working Group (TWG) meeting, organised as part of India’s G20 presidency at the Tent City in Dhordo in Kutch of Gujarat.

The minister said India is also nurturing and developing young ambassadors through YUVA Tourism Clubs in schools and colleges across the country and listed several initiatives taken to boost the industry, including short-term hospitality courses.

Addressing the delegates of G20, he said the country is focused on ensuring the safety and well-being of the tourists travelling to India and is formulating the Uniform Tourist Police scheme to ensure a safe and secure environment for tourists.

Reddy said the National Digital Tourism Mission is being formulated to ensure the digitisation of the tourism sector. He noted that India has built large-scale digital public infrastructure—Aadhar for identity and UPI for real-time payments.

Union Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Minister Parshottam Rupala said India is a significant economic multiplier and is becoming increasingly important as the country strives for rapid economic growth and employment creation.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel recalled how Prime Minister Narendra Modi converted the 2001 earthquake of Kutch into an opportunity. Modi was made the chief minister of Gujarat, replacing Keshubhai Patel a few months after the earthquake.

The CM said Gujarat has given emphasis to green tourism and cited the example of Smriti Van, a memorial dedicated to 2001 earthquake victims.

Showering praises on the PM, Patel said Modi saw the immense possibility of tourism in the region, and the Rann Utsav that began during his tenure as chief minister is now attracting visitors in droves.

On Thursday, the delegates will visit Dholavira Harappan site, which has been declared as the World Heritage Site by UNESCO. On Friday, they will be taken on a tour to Smriti Van in Bhuj.

More than 100 delegations, representatives of countries invited by India and representatives of organisations like the UNEP are taking part in the meeting.