Mr Pradeep Shetty,

President, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI)

“The fact that Tourism got attention in the Union Budget is a big welcome. The Hon’ble FM recognized the country’s potential for domestic as well as foreign tourists and the huge opportunities the sector holds for jobs and entrepreneurship. The Hon’ble FM stressed on promoting tourism on mission mode, with the active participation of States, the convergence of Government programmes and public-private partnerships. This is especially good news for regional tourism and hospitality. Developing new airports, heliports, water aerodromes and advanced landing grounds to improve regional connectivity will unlock the vast potential for growth in the Western region of India. An integrated and innovative approach through challenge mode will be a game changer for the destinations in the Western region selected through this route. The Unity Mall initiative too is a great step in the right direction that encourages States to promote regional tourism and sale of their own ODOPs (one district, one product), GI products and other handicraft products. The Credit guarantee scheme for MSMEs with an infusion of Rs.9000 Cr into the corpus is expected to help small and medium-scale hotels and restaurants.”

Vineet Verma,

Director, Brigade Hospitality

“A special mention on Tourism, by the Hon’ble FM, has been a most welcome gesture. An acknowledgment that Tourism is indeed critical to our economic growth, is encouraging and bodes well for the industry. We welcome the measures announced to further promote tourism and to identify 50 projects for last mile connectivity improvement. The addition of 50 airports, heliports and waterdromes should also benefit the sector. Overall, a satisfactory start but more such initiatives are expected in the days ahead.”

Ritesh Agarwal,

Founder & Group CEO, OYO

“The budget presented by Hon’ble Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman offers a roadmap for the holistic development of the nation, as we enter ‘Amrit Kaal’. It sets India up as the Startup Nation for the decade.

Increment in the capital investment by 33% in infrastructure and Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF) will have a multiplier effect. Announcing a capital outlay of INR 2.40 lakh crore for the railway sector, addition of 50 airports, heliports, water aerodromes, and advanced landing grounds will further provide impetus to overall infrastructure, leading to improved connectivity across the country and enhancing domestic travel and tourism.

It is heartening to see the extra emphasis given to tourism this year. The FM has identified tourism as one of the key sectors, with huge potential to generate employment for the youth, and reiterated government’s commitment to promote tourism on ‘mission mode’.

We welcome the move to develop 50 cities across India as a complete package for domestic and international tourism, and developing an app to ensure all the key metrics related to travel and tourism for the said cities are regularly updated. We also laud the move to incentivise states to set up ‘Unity Malls’ in their most popular tourism destination for promotion of GI, ‘Made in India’ products and handicrafts. Integrated development of theme-based tourism circuit under the ‘Swadesh Darshan Scheme’, with special focus on improving infrastructure and amenities in border villages will provide a much-needed boost to rural and agriculture tourism. This will empower the farmers in building and setting up homestays that provide an additional source of income for them while also providing an authentic Indian experience to the travellers. OYO’s homestay projects in Ektanagar and J&K, in collaboration with respective state governments, have already yielded great results and helped boost tourism and overall economy in these villages.

Another commendable move is the sector specific upskilling and development to achieve the objectives of ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ initiative launched by PM Modi last year. This will encourage the youth to take up a career in tourism and hospitality, and further strengthen the growth of the sector.

In recent years, the start-up ecosystem in India has expanded rapidly to emerge as a major driver of economic growth. The finance minister’s proposal to extend the date of incorporation for income tax benefits to start-ups by another year is bound to further that progress and promote new entrepreneurial talent.

The decision to provide the benefit of carry forward of losses on change of shareholding of start-ups from seven years of incorporation to 10 years is another welcome move.”

Paritosh Ladhani,

Joint Managing Director, Sincere Developers, which owns Taj Hotel & Convention Centre Agra

The Union Budget 2023-2024 presented by the finance minister (Nirmala Sitharaman) highlighted that the Indian economy is on a growth trajectory in spite of the global economic challenges. In her Budget speech, the FM emphasized that the country offers “immense attraction” for both domestic and international tourists. With the government announcing that states will be encouraged to set up a “Unity Mall” in the capital city or most popular tourist destination for the promotion of ‘One District, one product’ theme, such initiatives will help to unleash the potential vested in the tourism sector. I also expect that the change in tax regime announced in the Union Budget will result in more disposable income in the hands of middle-class consumers – which I expect ultimately will spur consumption in activities like travel. Regional connectivity will see a boost with the plans to renew 50 additional airports, helipads, water aero drones, and advanced landing grounds.

Nikhil Kapur,

Co-Founder & Director, Atmantan Wellness Centre

“While mostly all segments of hospitality have bounced back in India showing tremendous resilience on part of the hospitality workforce & stakeholders, the following will help: 

Firstly hotel projects have long term gestation. Especially since the preferences of the travelers are changing and newer experiences are being curated, having longer term funding of 15-20 years will help in giving the promoters some cushion in being able to position and promote their unique concepts. When the duration of borrowing is short, no one wants to take a risk and everyone plays with the plain vanilla offerings – business & leisure. Whereas travel is multi dimensional including wellness, adventure, nature, wildlife, sports, spiritual etc. With the cultural diversity of India, so many aspects can be promoted if benefits of industry status are extended. States like Maharashtra have taken the lead of granting industry status to the hospitality industry, but this is limited only to electricity duty, property tax benefits and the banking community doesn’t recognise this for long tenure lower cost borrowings. 

Secondly, the international travel sentiment remains poor for the next 9-12 months. This is moreover due to the Geo political stress in the west. Hence, there is an urgent requirement for the government to extend all the EPCG licenses for another 5 years to help tide over the situation.

Lastly, we expect lowering the GST to 12%, at least for a period 3-5 years as a gesture to overcome the pandemic stress and the airport infrastructure needs to be upgraded, both for domestic and international travelers as people don’t like the stress at the airports when they want to relax on a holiday.  

Specifically with regard to wellness tourism, the government should incentivise individuals who are imbibing preventive health care & natural healing into their daily lives. These individuals who are in good health by and large don’t add to the already stressed medical infrastructure of the country. Hence, when these individuals travel to NABH accredited wellness centers or subscribe to online health plans, they should be rewarded with lower insurance premiums, LTA benefits etc.” 

SP Jain

Chairman and Managing Director, Pride Hotels Limited

The Honorable Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman has announced the development of tourist places jointly by public and private partnerships. This will give a much-needed boost to the domestic tourism segment. The budget specifies that 50 tourist destinations will be selected and developed as a whole package for domestic and international tourism. We welcome this announcement. For domestic tourism “Dekho Apna Desh” has already been promoted very widely now similarly international tourism too will be revived with these initiates. The tourist infrastructure will also be provided on the border and in North East India which will be highly beneficial for the inflow of tourists. The industry can harness the direct and multiplier effects of tourism in employment generation to the youth of India as the sector creates direct and indirect job opportunities. We believe these implementations will play a pivotal role in overall economic development. This is a good budget for the hospitality and tourism sectors.

Ashish Jatia

Executive Director, Rhythm Hospitality

“The investments in road & airport infrastructure through all the previous budgets and this current one are key in unlocking the tourism potential of our beautiful nation. We also welcome the initiative by the Government to develop 50 tourist destinations. Hotel guests, both domestic and international, are eagerly awaiting the discovery of these new destinations and along with it the natural beauty, food & culture of new parts of India..”

Vijay Dewan

Managing Director, Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels Limited and Co-Chairman of the CII National Committee on Tourism & Hospitality

The budget demonstrates India’s rising global profile and sets the trajectory to be the third largest economy by the end of the decade.

The government has remained focused on the path of fiscal prudence reducing the fiscal deficit from 6.4% in FY 22/23 to 5.9% in FY 23/24.  Strong focus on infrastructure development with outlay being increased from 7.3 lakh crores to 10 lakh crores and at 3.3% of the GDP will drive growth and generate employment.

On tourism, the budget fails to meet industry expectation on being granted infrastructure status and rationalisation of taxes. Increase in tax collection at source for overseas tour packages from 5% to 20% is also a negative and will hit the tour and travel industry especially since the industry has just reconnected from the pandemic.

However, setting up 50 new airports and heliports and 50 new tourist destinations to drive domestic and international traffic is a welcome step.

Over all the budget is inclusive and will inspire investors, tax payers, farmers and the common peopl

Hoshang Garivala

Country General Manager – India | Ascott International Management India Pvt Ltd

“The announcement made in Union Budget 2023 of increased allocation of funds towards the development of tourist infrastructure and promotion of tourism is expected to boost the hospitality sector’s growth while attracting more tourists to the country. The Ascott Limited, a leading hospitality company in the serviced residences space, welcomes the government’s focus on encouraging tourism and infrastructure development. We are confident that there will be rise in demand in the apartment hotel space and will create new opportunities for the industry. The budget has provided a positive outlook for the hospitality industry, and we are eager to leverage this momentum to drive further growth in the coming year.” – Hoshang Garivala, Country General Manager – India | Ascott International Management India Pvt Ltd.

Raoof Dhanani
Managing Director – Sayaji Hotels

Budget 2023 has been revolutionary in its efforts to give relief to every sector. Opportunity for job creation and entrepreneurship in the tourism sector is the need of the hour. Developing a package for domestic and international tourism out of 50 tourist destinations is a great start.

Revival of fifty additional airports, water aerodromes, advanced landing grounds and heliports will help in enhancing regional air connectivity in the country.

Along with these measures GST reduction was also expected which unfortunately was missed.

Anoop Pandey

General Manager, JW Marriott Mussoorie Walnut Grove Resort & Spa

After nearly three long, rocky years, the winds of change have started to blow for the travel and tourism industry. In 2022, there was a significant upswing in the sector, and the data are encouraging. The year is crucial for India’s tourism and hotel industry because we want to see robust growth following the pandemic-caused downturn. Despite the difficulties and the general inflation, travel is gradually returning to pre-pandemic levels. Planning ahead would appear to be a frequent theme as travellers would be making their way to every part of the world, even if it occasionally requires splurging. After Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman declared a special focus on the tourism sector on Wednesday, shares of companies involved in the travel and hotel industries have also witnessed a surge. The budget also includes development of 50 tourist spots that will be chosen through a challenge method and offered as a complete package for both domestic and foreign tourists, which will undoubtedly revolutionize the travel sector for the better. I think that there is a lot of untapped potential in the tourism industry, and that young people in particular have a lot of employment and entrepreneurial options in the travel and tourism sector. Overall, I can safely state that Budget 2023 has brought a little sigh of relief for all of us although the expectations were many.’

Sharad K Upadhyay

General Manager, Crowne Plaza Greater Noida

” The union budget 2023 has sent ripples of positive energy across the entire hospitality industry. The government’s increased focus on tourism promotion will act as a booster shot for the industry. The increased capital expenditure will help build better roads and railways and enhance the accessibility to various existing tourism destinations and help develop new ones. The hospitality industry in the country has long suffered from the lack of skilled professionals. The government’s focus on skill development in the tourism and hospitality industries will have long-term benefits for the sector. The hotel industry, being an integral part of the hospitality industry will be one of the primary beneficiaries of it. 

The government’s continuous focus on the healthcare industry will boost medical tourism in the country and the hotel industry will be one of the main beneficiaries of this.”

Satish Kumar

General Manager at The St. Regis Goa Resort

“The Union Budget 2023-2024 seems encouraging with the introduction of new initiatives like ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ which promote domestic travel. Goa being a preferred destination for weekend getaways and annual holidays will definitely benefit through this. The development of 50 new destinations, will make travel more experiential and will make India more attractive to international tourists as their options will increase. International tourists will now get to explore more destinations in India and this could help Goa as being an option at the end of their itinerary. This could even create repeat visits amongst international tourists who have visited the country before but missed out on the new destinations. It is also important to continue to improve the travel infrastructure to attract tourists from new source markets too and thus I think our continued focus on development of roads, airports and tourist facilities at popular destinations should help in boosting tourism for Goa and our country”

Satyabrata Sandha

Director of Finance,  Sheraton Grand Chennai Resort & Spa!

In the Budget 2023 announced by Honorable Finance Minister Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman, following are the areas related to the Hospitality industry:

1. Finance Minister has mentioned in her speech that “Promotion of tourism will be taken up on mission mode with the active participation of states’ Convergence of government programs and Public-Private Partnership” – This indeed boosts the tourism, where hotels play major role in accommodating and entertaining guests and helps in uplift of occupancy and revenue growth of all the focused hotels in major tourism cities.

2. Finance Minister also mentioned that “The country offers immense attraction for domestic as well as foreign tourists. There is a large potential to be tapped in tourism. The sector holds huge opportunities for jobs and entrepreneurship for youth in particular” – This indeed creates lot of open positions of job opportunities for youth pursuing in similar careers like Hotel Management courses.

3. Finance Minister also mentioned that 50 new destinations will be made and it will make India more attractive to international tourists through focusing on application naming “Dekho Apna Desh” as their options will increase – This indeed boosts travelers’ experiences and enthusiasm to travel to countries like India which is very rich in its heritage after Covid pandemic.

4. Finance Minister has proposed new tax slabs in the new tax regime in direct taxation which includes No tax for the citizens earning Rs.7,00,000/- & below – This indeed helps most of the associates to save their taxes working in the hotel industry as most usual package offered for work in hotel industry lies between Rs. 2,50,000 – 7,00,000.

Rohit Bajpai

GM, Sheraton Grand Palace Indore

The Budget has been gravely disappointing.

Tourism & Hospitality Industry Disappointed With Union Budget 2023-24, Hospitality and related services are yet to regain their pre-pandemic level of business.

The extension of ECLGS (Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme) with additional allocation to the crawling hospitality sector and provisioning an outlay of Rs 2 lakh crore through CGTMSE (Credit Guarantee Fund for Micro and Small Enterprises) are the only relief measures. However, this is just a drop in the ocean for a sector that has been severely battered. Given the massive damages that decimated the entire sector’s ecosystem, these measures are not adequate to bridge the losses and offer impetus to the hospitality and tourism industry.

Major disappointment as no changes in GST rates.

Although during the Budget speech the Finance Minister announces to take promotion of the Tourism sector in mission mode.

Vinesh Gupta

GM, The Den Hotel, Bangalore

The Budget for 2023 has a broader perception and is more growth oriented and less populist, which is greater for the economy and the nation. The finance minister’s initiative to develop 50 new destinations for tourism is a welcome step forward for a corona battered hospitality. Though our expectation was the announcement of the new tourism policy and a kinder view towards import-export duties and benefits, however that is not visible in the broader print. We look forward to the growth oriented budget as a stimulant for the growth of hospitality.