Domestic tourism gets a boost

The Gateway of India & behind the famous Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai

Many Indians are choosing to travel within the country rather than venture abroad. High costs and the depreciation in the value of the rupee against the US dollar is driving domestic tourism, as weak rupee makes travelling abroad costlier, and India has become a more attractive destination for dollar wielding foreign tourists.

Jagannath Temple in Puri, Orissa 

Foreign tourists find India an attractive option, as they get more purchasing power due to the weak local currency than the other South East Asian countries. After a bad summer, with tourists choosing to stay away as the media flashed the rape cases during the period did not help too. But things are finally looking up for the domestic tourism and hospitality industry with rising demand in winter holidays. Apart from the traditional spots such as Goa and Kerala, tourists are making for Khajuraho and Udaipur as well. 

Bon Jesus Church in Old Goa

Tourists also seem to prefer off-beat and less explored locations like Gwalior, Varanasi, Hubli, Sasov Gir and other South, East and Northern India.

During the year-end holidays, a growth of 30-35% has been recorded in the inbound travel segment. About 76% of the travelers preferring to take their holidays within India as compared to destinations such as Goa, Kerala and out of the mainland India, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Vivekanand Rock Memorial

While Indians are now opting for shorter holidays abroad, the fluctuating currency has contributed to the surge in Indian travelers within India. This year the Christmas and New Year period is showing an increasing demand from domestic travelers. ‘Three hundred additional room-nights have been booked by Indians this year than last year, a growth of 18% said Kapil Chopra, President – Oberoi group of hotels.

Kedarnath temple in Himalayas

In a way, the fall in the rupee dropped foreign travel, but has boosted Indian tourism. It has reduced the number of Indians travelling abroad, and it has added opportunities in domestic markets, an unexpected boost for the industry that is grappling with the economic slowdown. It is also helping all tourism related industry, like hotels, handicrafts, etc. The arrival of foreign in-bound tourists is expected to 

Murdeshwar temple in Karnataka

rise in the next couple of weeks along with local tourists taking advantage of the airlines quoting low and very competitive fares. It has never been so good for local tourist places and business. Apart from this, the year 2014 has many weekends, and that's good news.

Red Fort in Agra

Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh

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Pirate attacks in Indian waters

From time to time we read reports published in the papers about pirate attack on cargo and merchant ships on high seas. The pirates hold the crew and ship for ransom. Many a times, there are Indians too amongst the captured crew employed in foreign vessels. The pirates are ruthless and even torture the crew to hasten their demands for ransom. 

After the initial reports in the papers, nothing more is heard of these incidents. Some crew members are still in their custody at various places. A report says, nearly 200 incidents in the sub-continent have occurred in 2006-2012. Of the attacks and attempted attacks worldwide, the Indian sub-continent has seen 53 attacks in 2006, 30 attacks in 2007, 23 attacks in 2008, 30 attacks in 2009, 28 attacks in 2010, 16 attacks in 2011 and 19 attacks in 2012.

The bureau has reported a total of 199 pirate attacks on vessels in the sub-continent’s waters in 2006-2012. It warned mariners to be extra cautious when transiting from South East Asia and the sub-continent, which covers Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malacca Straits, Singapore Straits and South China Sea;  and Africa and Red Sea (Africa, Gulf of Aden/Red Sea, Somalia, Ivory Coast, Guinea, The Congo and Egypt), South and Central America and the Caribbean waters (Ecuador) and Gulf of Oman.

 

The bureau’s 2012 report stated that 2,386 ships from 97 countries in the merchant shipping business were attacked. The seas and oceans around Africa top the chart with 1,228 cases, and Indian waters come third after South East Asian Waters. The figures are alarming which necessitates action on an international level across the seas to protect ships and keep the shipping lanes pirate free.

As per international law, piracy is a crime on the high seas and it is done for only personal gain, with sometimes loss of property and at the cost of lives. The report stated pirates attacked 43 Indian-flag merchant vessels, placing it 11^th. 

Panama topped with 409 ships. Liberia 268 and Singapore 215. However after strict measures with naval ships patrolling the area, there has been a drop in Somali piracy activity, which earlier used to be constantly in the news; with 297 cases in 2012, after 439 in 2011, and the Gulf of Guinea has replaced the Gulf of Aden as one of the highest risk zones. 

Countries in the region should act and take stern measures to see that no pirates operate in the area. But most of the attacks are on high seas, when the ship is isolated and vulnerable to these attacks of pirates armed with sophisticated weapons, including AK47 rifles, rocket launchers, etc. With goods and cargo ships and oil tankers sailing constantly on high seas and busy shipping lanes across the world, pirate menace is real and should be eradicated by all the effected countries coming together. Either by naval ships patrolling the seas or by armed guards escorting the merchant vessels in these piracy prone regions. 

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After all Manmohan Singh has not done that badly!

With Prime Minister Manmohan Singh having ruled out a possible third term for himself, it would be prudent to gauge his success and failure in the economic front. If economy is the yardstick for any Prime Minister’s success, then Manmohan Singh has done reasonably well. After being targeted for long, the Manmohan Singh government has not done all that badly on the economic front. On the contrary he has faced economic tight walk with conviction and confidence in face of adverse situation worldwide. Since he does not talk much nor he is  in the habit of trumpeting his achievements, this positive was overshadowed by flak the government faced on other fronts like scams and corruption highlighted by the opposition parties throughout his second term and the Aam Admi Party campaign on Lokpal and other issues.

The team led by an economist PM has achieved a substantial body of work to demonstrate its intent. Some statistics stand out. India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew at an annual average of 7.6% during the period, including the two latest years, that have been hit by a crippling slow down. It is an achievement by any standard, particularly at a time when the US and the European Union were reeling in recession. India’s national income is within striking distance of crossing the 2 trillion mark thereby joining the elite group of globe’s richest economies. 

The world has been watching carefully at the top international and Indian companies competing against each other to grab a slice of the huge market that should triple its size in the next decade or even earlier.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in his recent press conference on a Friday, accepted that low employment generation is an aspect of performance, which the government is trying its best to rectify. India’s per capita is nearly Rs 70,000 a year. The figure gives an idea of the standard of living of the people, but that is not the entire truth as some glaring facts get hidden; as the rich Indians may have driven much of the growth in income. As per the government data, even during the comfortable years of growth between 2004-05 to 2009-10 when the growth averaged 8.43%, the economy generated no more than two million jobs for the fifty five million people who were absorbed in the workforce. With the government trying to push new measures, there is reason for hope and a further boost to the economy. Will the government get the next term after the 2014 elections to do more is a question the voters will answer through ballot.

 

Will it be Congress under Rahul Gandhi or BJP under Narendra Modi or will the AAP again spoil the hopes of both the national parties? The momentum provided to the economy must go on if India has to make a mark amongst the major economies in the world and for the betterment of its people. Whoever forms the government must take this into account.

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