Context: World tourism day is celebrated on September 27th every year. Travelling to different destinations helps us to relax, detoxify our minds and achieve peace from within. Tourism is a significant income generator for a country’s economy.
About World Tourism Day

• The purpose of World Tourism Day (WTD) is to foster awareness among the international community on the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic value.
• The event seeks to address global challenges outlined in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and highlight the contribution the tourism sector can make in reaching these goals.

United Nations World Tourism Organisation

• The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations Specialised Agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.
• It was established in 1975 with headquarters at Madrid, Spain.
• UNWTO encourages the implementation of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, to maximize tourism’s socio-economic contribution while minimizing its possible negative impacts.

Theme of World Tourism Day 2020

• The theme for this year is ‘Tourism and Rural Development’, as tourism is a leading provider of employment and opportunities in the countless rural communities around the world. .
• Due to Covid-19 pandemic, the industry had been hard hit. Also in many rural places, tourism is one of the few feasible economic sectors.

Significance of World Tourism

• As said by the UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili, tourism empowers rural communities, providing jobs and opportunities, most notably for women and youth all around the world.
• Tourism is one of the major sources of income for the people living in the rural world as it helps them to hold onto their unique cultural heritage and traditions, and at the same time acts as an auxiliary in safeguarding habitat and endangered species.
• World Tourism Day 2020 is an opportunity to recognize the potential of tourism in building a better future for all. It is estimated that 68% of the world population will live in urban areas, while 80% of those currently living in ‘extreme poverty’ live outside of towns and cities by 2050.

Importance of Tourism

• Tourism is the third-largest export sector of the global economy, behind fuels and chemicals, and in 2019 it accounted for 7 percent of global trade.
• It employs one in every 10 people on Earth and provides livelihoods for millions of people.
• This has been a “major shock” for richer developed nations “but for developing countries, it is an emergency, particularly for many small islands developing states and African countries.
• Tourism for some of those countries represents more than 20% of their GDP.
• The USD 320 billion in lost exports from January through May is three times what was lost during the year 2009 at the height of the last global financial crisis.

Various Government Initiatives

• Swadesh Darshan Scheme–Ministry of Tourism (MoT) launched the Swadesh Darshan Scheme (Central Sector Scheme)– for integrated development of theme-based tourist circuits in the country in 2014-15.
• National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Heritage Augmentation Drive’ (PRASHAD) Scheme–The scheme was launched in 2015 with a focus on identifying and developing the pilgrim sites across the country to promote religious tourism.
• Adopt Heritage Project- It was launched in 2017 as a collaborative effort by the Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Culture and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), State/UTs Governments.
• It envisages the development and maintenance of tourist amenities at heritage sites and making them tourist-friendly.
• The project primarily focuses on providing basic amenities that include cleanliness, public conveniences, safe drinking water, ease of access for tourists, signages, illumination, Wi-fi etc.
• ‘Stranded in India’ portal–Ministry of Tourism launched  ‘Stranded in India’ portal  to help foreign tourists stuck in various parts of India.
• A special visa category called ‘Medical Visa and Medical Attendant Visa’ has been created to ease the entry of medical tourists in India.

Draft Natonal Tourism Policy 2015

• It is a  successor of 2002, National Tourism Policy. The 2015 policy development process therefore sought to push the 2002 policy into a new status of focused implementation. 
• It aims to increase India’s share in world tourist arrivals from the present 0.68% to 1% by 2020 and increase to 2% by 2025.
• The Policy is based on the paradigm of “responsible and sustainable” tourism.
• Evolve a framework of government-led, private driven and community centred tourism approach.
• The policy envision National Tourism Advisory Board (NTAB) which would be chaired by the Union Minister with all the tourism ministers of the States / UTs and domain experts as members.
• Focus on developing the core infrastructure with integration approach such as Buddha Circuit, Ramayana Circuit, Himalaya Circuit, Heritage Circuit etc, will be prioritized.
• The policy is based on value addition and strict compliance on ; Swagat (welcome), Soochna (Information), Suvidha (Facilitation), Suraksha (Security), Sahyog (Cooperation), Samrachana (Infrastructure Development) and Safai (Cleanliness).

Road Ahead

• Strengthening the waste collection system and educating common citizens about the importance of responsible disposal of various types of plastics would ensure less waste littered at tourist hotspots and other Indian cities. The government has also asked all the tourist hotspots cities to switch completely to clean fuel.
• Indian tourism has, for a long, just focused on creating more and more tourist destinations in the name of economic upliftment of local communities, rather than striking a balance between the needs of the host, visitor and the environment. It is time to turn the pandemic into an opportunity by redesigning the current business model into a long-term sustainable and resilient tourism industry.