Vijay Thakur, president of the Indian Association for Tour Operators, said: “There has been a deep impact on the industry. We have registered as many as 20 percent cancellations since the attacks - especially in that western region of the country.”
“Tourism was already facing the consequences of the economic meltdown - again 15-20 percent slowdown. With this (the terror attack), it’s worse,” he added.
Thakur said while the number of bookings has come down, industry associations are trying to reassure those who have already booked and potential clients about their safety.
Another ministry official said: “The economic meltdown had already impacted the tourist influx and in the light of the recent terror attacks there is certainly a fear that there would be a decrease in foreign tourist arrivals.”
He said the picture would be clear next month when the figures would be compiled.
However, there is one positive factor. Many countries that advised their citizens against visiting India in the wake of several bomb blasts and terror attacks earlier this year have not pressed the panic button after Nov 26.
This could be due to repeated requests by Indian Tourism Minister Ambika Soni, underlining that India is a large country and one incident doesn’t make the entire country unsafe for travellers.
The senior ministry official said some countries had even “modified” their travel advisories.
“The tourism secretary and the missions abroad have been stressing this fact. It has paid off. We can take some credit for their modifying their advisories,” the official said, not wishing to be named.
For example, the US embassy Tuesday replaced its earlier advisory of Nov 29 and advised “US citizens travelling to or already in India to maintain a high level of vigilance and to take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness”.
Australia and Britain have also told their citizens to “exercise caution”.
Travellers from the US, Britain, France, Canada, Australia and the Netherlands comprise a majority of overseas visitors to India.
“We hope the year-end celebrations would see a rise in their number,” the official said.
Read More from: Theindian News
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