In the pandemic year 2020, the tourism sector accounted for 39 million jobs, constituting 8 per cent of the country’s total workforce.
India is geographically diverse and offers a variety of cultures that come with its own experiences, making it one of the leading countries in terms of international tourism expenditure.
As per IBEF’s report on Growth of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Travel and tourism are two of the largest industries in India, with a total contribution of about US$ 178 billion to the country’s GDP.
With this, the travel market in India is projected to reach US $125 Billion by Financial Year 2027. International Tourist arrival is expected to reach 30.5 million by 2028.
The travel and tourism sector in India, which registered remarkable growth post the Covid-19 pandemic, is expected to add 58.2 million jobs by 2033 throughout the country, a new report said on Monday.
Talent demand in this sector registered a spike of 44 per cent in August last year, according to the global technology and digital talent solutions provider NBL Services.
Serving as a vital source of foreign exchange, the travel and tourism sector contributed Rs 15.9 trillion ($191.25 billion) to the country’s economy in 2022 and was estimated at Rs 16.5 trillion in 2023.
From a location perspective, the top five states attracting domestic tourists so far include Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra.
According to the report, the top cities driving the increase in hiring include Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune, and Kochi.
Jaipur, Ahmedabad, and Chandigarh are among the tier two cities. In the coming nine years, new jobs are also expected across emerging cities in Gujarat, Lakshadweep, and West Bengal, according to the report.
As per the Startup India data, the travel and tourism industry has close to 1500 startups that comprise of companies providing platforms that enable planning and booking of travel services or assist travel service providers with technology solutions.
Among the job roles that will continue to be in demand experiencing (year-on-year) surges include sales (18 per cent), business development (17 per cent), chefs (15 per cent), travel consultants (15 per cent), tour operators (15 per cent), wildlife experts (12 per cent), transportation providers (15 per cent), and more, the report mentioned.
This includes companies offering services that enable users to discover and book travel-related services such as transportation, accommodation, facility management, tours, ticketing and activities through online portals.