On World Tourism Day on Monday, chief minister Ashok Gehlot will unveil a slew of schemes including a financial assistance package for tourism units, which have been severely hit the Covid pandemic. The chief minister will also unveil guidelines for schemes like home stay, experiential and river cruise tourism, and will launch a mobile application developed by of the department of tourism.

Under Mukhyamantri Tourism Udhyog Protsahan Yojana, hotels and restaurants and other tourism units will be offered loans up to Rs 25 lakh with interest subsidy of 9%. The scheme will be part of an already existing Mukhyamantri Laghu Udhyog Protsahan Yojana under which entreprises get loans through banks with interest subsidy of up to 8%. But in case of the new Mukhyamantri Tourism Udhyog Protsahan Yojana, the subsidy could go up to 9%.

The tourism units can get loans from nationalised commercial banks, private sector scheduled commercial banks, scheduled small finance bank, regional rural bank, Rajasthan Financial Corporation and SIDBI. But it is not clear as to whether the loans will be availed for working capital needs or for expansion, diversification, and modernization projects. “We need working capital to restart the operations. In the last one and half years, the tourism units have struggled to generate income due the pandemic. That’s why the loans should not be only for expansion or diversification,” said an entrepreneur.

A source in the tourism department said that the interest subsidy scheme could be for a limited period, maybe for six months. In case of the home stay policy, there is likely to be some relaxation. As per the existing scheme which was introduced in 2012, home owners are required to offer 2-5 rooms. But the new guidelines will allow 1-5 rooms. Even if a person has two-room set accommodation facility and if he or she is willing to offer the second room to a tourist, they can do so as per the new guidelines.The chief minister is like to announce the guidelines and the new financial assistance package at a hybrid event where he will be joined by senior government officials at the chief minister’s residence and others logging in from other locations of the state capital and districts.