Government Working on Swachhata Rating Framework to Rate Tourism Businesses

The government is working on the Swachhata Rating Framework to rate all tourism businesses on the basis of sanitation, cleanliness, and hygiene, Tourism Secretary V Vidyavathi said on Friday. The framework will be guided by the Travel for Life principles, which is part of the Sustainable Tourism Policy, that focuses on making an establishment neat and clean in a hygienic way.

Framework for All Small and Big Businesses

The Swachhata Rating Framework is for all small and big businesses, which will maintain sanitation and keep the place and its surroundings clean, and will be rated on the basis of many steps like the garbage disposal system, among others, Vidyavathi told reporters. However, this is work in progress, and the Tourism Ministry is in consultations with various related departments and stakeholders in this regard, she said on the sidelines of a CII Tourism Summit.

Refining the Tourism Policy

Talking about the much-awaited Tourism Policy, the secretary said the government is working on it and wants to refine it to further align it with the changing tourism requirements. We are working on the Tourism Policy, and there is a little bit of re-calibration going on because we want to refine our focus areas further and sharpen our focus on what we need to do with the changing tourism requirement. We want it to be owned by all of us, whether it is the government, or the industry, or the state governments and the travellers. We hope it will be out soon, and our target is by the end of FY24, she added.

Tourism Sector is a Great Employment Generator

She said the tourism sector is a great employment generator across spectrums and highlighted that the core offering in India will continue through three pillars, including culture, pilgrim, and eco-tourism. Meanwhile, talking about the increased momentum in the tourism sector, the secretary said the recovery post-Covid-19 has been quite encouraging, and the country has reached around 80 per cent of the pre-Covid levels in terms of tourism footfalls.

India to be a 365-Day Tourist Destination

We expect to cross the pre-Covid levels by the end of this financial year FY24. The travel and tourism sector has bounced back since the situation normalised, and the G-20 Summit further boosted the industry. Now, it is our duty to take this momentum forward, Vidyavathi said. India, she said, is witnessing a pick up in inbound tourist footfalls. We are very happy to notice that tourists are not limited to a few destinations now, they are travelling across the country and exploring various offerings of the country and offbeat destinations. We want to focus on making India a 365-day tourist destination for all seasons and present the country in its entirety, she noted.

Exploring Opportunities in Africa

Currently, the US, Australia, and the UK are the biggest source markets of India, and now the government is keen on exploring opportunities in Africa, which has become a part of G20, she added.