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Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 52 tourism sector projects valued at over INR 1400 crores under the Swadesh Darshan and Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) schemes. The projects, aimed at enhancing tourism infrastructure across the nation, were unveiled by the PM via video conferencing from Srinagar.
The event witnessed the unveiling of nine infrastructure projects worth INR 469 Crore and the launch of 43 projects valued at INR 963 Crore, all under the aegis of the Ministry of Tourism‘s Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD initiatives. These projects, executed in coordination with state governments, union territories, and local authorities, spanned diverse tourism destinations.
Among the highlights were the inauguration of three PRASHAD Scheme projects in Hazratbal (Srinagar), Jogulamba (Telangana), and Amarkantak (Madhya Pradesh), focusing on pilgrim facilitation centers, ghat development, and other amenities. Additionally, 14 projects aimed at developing pilgrimage and heritage sites across several states were launched, with an investment of INR 320.8 Crore.
In a bid to foster inclusive development and community participation, the Prime Minister announced the launch of three new campaigns:
Dekho Apna Desh People’s Choice 2024: A nationwide poll to identify the most preferred tourist attractions across five categories, enabling citizens to engage with the Ministry of Tourism in shaping India’s tourism landscape.
Chalo India Global Diaspora Campaign: Encouraging Indian diaspora members to promote tourism by inviting non-Indian friends to visit India annually, fostering cultural exchange and promoting India as a global tourist destination.
Challenge Based Destination Development (CBDD): A scheme aimed at developing sustainable tourism destinations through competition and strategic alignment with India’s tourism priorities.
Furthermore, the Prime Minister highlighted the importance of supporting local economies by urging tourists to allocate 5-10 per cent of their budget towards purchasing local products. He also reiterated the ‘Wed in India’ campaign “I Do,” inviting couples to choose Jammu and Kashmir as their wedding destination, emphasising the region’s potential as a premier wedding destination.
The “Amar Aalohi” Homestay Scheme, steered by the Tourism Department, Government of Assam, is designed to propel homestay facilities, carve out self-employment avenues, and offer authentic hospitality encounters to travellers. Implemented by the Govt of Assam, Tourism Department through Assam Tourism Development Corporation, the initiative aims to invigorate tourism by harnessing the rich cultural tapestry and warm hospitality of local communities.
Commenting on the initiative, industry stakeholders said the announcement of the new campaigns by the government are a positive development however, strong marketing of Destination India is foreign markets is the need of the hour to promote such initiatives.
Rajiv Mehra, President, Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO), said, “Anything that is done to promote tourism, we wholeheartedly welcome it. However the reality is that we need to do strong marketing in foreign destinations to get more tourists to visit India. It is fallacious to believe that one NRI visiting India would draw in six more tourists from that country and like LLM marketing, this chain will grow. We need to rope in Destination Management Companies and foreign tour operators and get them to market us. Unfortunately, none of this is happening, and this has led us to not even reaching March 2020 levels in terms of foreign tourist arrivals.”
Aashish Gupta, Consultant CEO, FAITH stated, “The simultaneous launch of destination development projects under ‘Swadesh’ and ‘challenge’ mode and the launch of marketing calls to both global and domestic citizens under ‘Chalo India’ and ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ campaigns will be a positive development for tourism in India. The industry looks forward to an integrated global tourism marketing campaign in key source markets aligned to the Chalo India campaign.”
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