Abstract
India is famous worldwide as a popular tourist destination with its rich cultural heritage, historical monuments and abundance natural resources. The tourism industry in India has emerged as one of the major economic drivers for growth, contributing substantially to foreign exchange earnings. Tourism is one of the leading global industries contributing 11 percent of global GDP. The world Tourism organization estimates that there will be 1.5 billion tourists in the world in 2020, representing 21 per cent of world population. The World Tourism organization further notes that within the next 5 - 10 years, range of products on offer to tourists seeking the rural experience is to increase significantly. There is a clear trend in growth of rural tourism. India's vast, rural diversity and heritage offer tremendous potential for tourism in rural areas. Rural tourism in India is envisioned to generate employment opportunities, sustainable livelihood for the local community by addressing the issues of poverty reduction and developing a vibrant local economy by revival and regeneration of the old art and crafts and preservation of the rural India culture. This paper is an attempt to have a glance on the rural tourism services in India.
Highlights
India with its glorious historical past, cultural heritage, varied landscapes and natural beauty has attracted tourists from times immemorial from different places to enjoy its natural endowments, cultural, religious and spiritual heritages
There is no doubt that tourism is an important growth industry that can develop into a major foreign exchange earner for India
New tourism products and packages are designed like business tourism, health tourism, Rural Tourism, Eco-Tourism, Cultural Tourism, Pilgrimage Tourism, Adventure Tourism, Sustainable Tourism etc to make “Incredible India” as an attractive tourist destination in the world
Summary
India with its glorious historical past, cultural heritage, varied landscapes and natural beauty has attracted tourists from times immemorial from different places to enjoy its natural endowments, cultural, religious and spiritual heritages. From the snowcapped Himalayan mountain ranges in the north to the docile backwaters of Kerala in the south, from the sandy beaches of Goa in the west to the variegated wild life sanctuaries of the northeast, India holds a colourful and priceless bounty for tourists. Tourism has emerged as one of the major segments of the Indian economy, contributing 6.23 per cent to the national GDP and 8.78 per cent of the total employment in India. There is no doubt that tourism is an important growth industry that can develop into a major foreign exchange earner for India. With the Phenomenal growth of tourism industry worldwide the Government of India has introduced many a policy measures to promote tourism.
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