The country’s biggest travel show, TTF&OTM, was inaugurated today at Bombay Exhibition Centre, NSE Complex, Goregaon in the presence of a large number of dignitaries and officials from the travel and hospitality industry from all over India and abroad.
India is a coveted outbound market, currently with 12 million Indians travelling overseas annually, and a growth rate of 12-13% per year projected till 2015. This is reflected in the increase in number of countries represented at TTF&OTM Mumbai, from 27 in 2010 to 34 this year. The domestic sector, the backbone of the Indian tourism industry, also has a much larger presence, with participation from 26 states, up from 21 last year.
Travel and Tourism is a key driver of economic growth globally. According to World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) Country Report for India, this industry contributes 8.6% to GDP, which is expected to increase to 9% by 2020. The Travel and Tourism sector currently employs 4.9 crore people, or 1 in every 10 jobs, and this is projected to increase to 5.8 crores or 1 in every 9.6 jobs by 2020.
The importance of the sector and the strong growth is reflected in the healthy 27% increase in the number of participants at TTF&OTM Mumbai as compared to last year. This also is a clear indicator that the Indian tourism industry is on a path of steady growth.
Belgium, Croatia, Hungary, Israel, Philippines, Seychelles, and Uzbekistan are represented for the first time in TTF&OTM Mumbai. Canada, China, Egypt, Thailand, Israel and Nepal have a big presence as Partner Countries, while the Feature Countries are Macau, Turkey, Indonesia, Bhutan, Kenya, Korea and Philippines. The other overseas participants are from Argentina, Chile, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Maldives, Mexico, Russia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and the United Kingdom.
From India, Partner States like Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal, Gujarat and Kerala are participating with large private delegations of 50 plus each. Karnataka, West Bengal and Punjab are the Feature States this time, while Maharashtra is the Host State.
The other states represented include Andhra Pradesh, Andaman, Assam, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Delhi, Goa, Haryana, Jharkhand, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Orissa, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.
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