What impact pandemic has had on tourism in Tamil Nadu? What is the approximate loss for the industry?
We were in lockdown situation for seven to eight months in last years. Tourism & hospitality sector were last to open up. There were lots of hesitancy among the travelers. International flights also opened up very late. When things started reviving between November to February, second wave came. We are again closed. We have been seeing a very bad phase till now. Tourism contributes 8-9% in GDP of Tamil Nadu and 40-45 lakh people livelihood is depended on the tourism sector here. So, the people and the GDP both are majorly affected.
What are the measures you are planning to revive it?
The government has appointed committee where the Director, Tourism is the Chairman. It consists of all the stakeholders of the tourism sector and the target is to basically revive after the Covid-19 while considering the safety aspects of the tourists and everyone involved. We had a meeting and discussed various issues both on recovery front and how to open up gradually. Various action points have also been taken into consideration in which 100% vaccination of all the stakeholders is the priority especially, the tour operators, guides, cab drivers hotel staffs. After this we can say that Tamil Nadu is a safe destination for the travel. That’s the image we want to portray to the general tourist.
Tamil Nadu has a good mix of heritage cities as well as exotic beaches & hill stations. Which are the lesser-known places that you want to bring on world map?
As of now Tamil Nadu is known for its heritage & temple tourism especially the UNESCO sites and all the glorious temple we have. These are the major attractions. However, we also have many pristine beaches, hill stations, wonderful national parks, sanctuaries which are not very well known to the people outside the state. We are planning to introduce many segments of tourism like eco-tourism, wellness tourism, beach tourism and create packages based on these segments. We have 1600 km long coast line. We want to tap the beach & adventure sports arena where we want to introduce lot of water sport along the coast line. We have various plans to attract younger crowd who don’t only come here to visit religious sites but also relax and feel the nature.
Recently, few beaches in other states have been awarded the title of blue flag beach. Any plans on that front for the beaches of Tamil Nadu?
Yes, of course. We want all our beaches to be of world class. We are looking into their current condition and working towards developing the infrastructure to upgrade. There are many beaches in Tamil Nadu which are not only well maintained but pristine as well. They can be easily converted into world class beaches. We are planning and will definitely do it.
