Anupam Gakhar
NEW DELHI: Indian travel and tourism is at an important inflection point and the country is deservedly claiming its position on the world tourism stage with its presidency of the G20 providing the perfect platform, according to Indian Hotels Company Ltd Managing Director and CEO Puneet Chhatwal.
In his address to shareholders in the company’s annual report for 2022-23, he said India is on a growth path and the services sector including the travel and tourism business is emerging as a major growth engine for the Indian economy, having successfully put the pandemic behind.
“People are once again flying in great numbers, airports are crowded, hotels are well booked, and travellers want to explore, connect and feel alive through the exhilarating emotion of travel,” he wrote, according to media reports on May 30.
Citing World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) data, he said the sector is expected to create nearly 126 million new jobs globally within the next decade with at least 20 per cent from the Indian sub-continent.
