Introduction

Tourism is a major phenomenon of the modern society, which has emerged as an economic activity of immense global importance. Perhaps there is hardly any other field of activity where so many people are involved directly or indirectly. Tourism has found a niche for itself as an effective instrument for generating employment, earning revenue and foreign exchange, enhancing environment preserving culture and tradition thereby facilitating overall development. Tourism is one of the world’s largest and fastest growing industries. In 2000, there were 699 million international tourist arrivals throughout the world, an increase of 7.4% over the preceding year and international tourist receipts reached US $ 476 billion, a 4.5% increase from 1999. There has been strong growth in foreign travel to developing countries during recent years and this trend is expected to continue. Economic diversification and technological improvement have created a conducive environment for tourism development in the present age of globalization. India and South East Asia have been gearing up to achieve significant progress in this field owing to a number of encouraging factors. India has vast geographical spread and great historical and cultural heritage, which are excellent condition for growth in this sector. Main aim of Tourism Vision 2025 is to serve as a guiding force which will provide a clear vision and direction for optimising the tourism potential of the state in a sustainable manner. Read More...