State to lose Rs 400 cr from tourism industry

by GLENN COSTA
Posted on 2008-12-12
PANAJI — The state is set to lose at least Rs 400 crore out of a total of Rs 1,500 crore in direct and indirect revenue it receives from the tourism industry due to loss of business primarily due to the global meltdown and as an after effect of the Mumbai terror strikes.
The tourism sector contributes at least 34 per cent to the state Gross Domestic Product. The total gross loss of income from tourism could be between Rs 1,260 to Rs 1,680 crore. The state has around 30,000 rooms that rent out at an average of Rs 1,500 and go at 70 per cent occupancy generally.
Mr Ralph De Souza of Travel and Tourism Association of Goa says, “The drop which is now around 30 per cent is expected to go up to 40 per cent.” “The drop initially took place due to the global meltdown but the Mumbai terror strikes have aggravated the situation,” he said. The tourist season begins in late September and carries on through early March.
Meanwhile, in a major blow to the already reeling tourism industry the Israeli government has issued an advisory to its citizens to avoid holidaying in Goa during the second part of this month, due to concerns of terror strikes.
The Israeli government has issued this advisory asking its citizens not to tour Goa between Christmas and New Year fearing some terror attack. During the November 26 Mumbai attacks, six Israelis were killed at the Nariman House.
Though the industry insiders say that this will not affect the industry much as their numbers are quite small, they are scared of the skepticism that the advisory would create among other foreign tourists.
The state tourism ministry too feels that the effect could be minimal. “Israelis visiting Goa are few compared to other countries, so the effect of the advisory may not be as severe when it comes to having an impact on tourism,” the Officer on Special Duty to the Tourism Minister, Mr Lyndon Monteiro said. He also argued that the mock security drills conducted in the state would send a strong message that tourists are safe in Goa.
Mr Monteiro however admitted that the state is indeed facing a serious drop in tourist traffic.
Tourism sources feel that the Mumbai tragedy would result in a drop in the ‘Free of Itinerary’ category of travellers that account for 50 per cent of the state’s tourist arrivals. Government figures show that 43 per cent of total foreign tourists are from the United Kingdom, followed by Russia with nine per cent and Germany six percent.
Industry insiders feel that terror indications were conveyed to the state government two years back, but there was no response from the authorities. They accuse the government of doing only cosmetic changes. Mr George Fernandes of the taxi drivers association also laments that the season this time is ‘totally bad’ and blames the tour operators of making things even worse for them. “We are in a bad state,” he says.