IMPACT OF TOURISM INDUSTRY IN INDIA

The travel and tourism industry has emerged as one of the largest and

fastest growing economic sectors globally. Increasingly, travel and

tourism is emerging as an important category of services exports worldwide. According to the World Economic Forums Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2013, India ranks 65th globally out of 140 economies on travel and tourism Competitiveness Index.

POSITIVE IMPACTS
Generating Income And Employment: 2nd rank in direct contribution of tourism industry to GDP, i.e. 35.9 Billion US $ (app. 2% of GDP). Providing Employment: Looking at the direct contribution of Tourism to employment, India ranks 1 providing 25 million jobs in 2012. Major Source Of Foreign Exchange Earnings: Indias foreign exchange earnings from the tourism sector is about 20 Billion US $. Preservation Of National Heritage And Environment: E.g. Taj Mahal, the Qutab Minar, etc. Likewise, tourism also helps in conserving the natural habitats of many endangered species.

Developing Infrastructure.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS
Undesirable Social And Cultural Change: The more tourists coming into a place, the more the perceived risk of that place losing its identity. A good example is Goa Adverse Effects On Environment And Ecology: Increased transport and construction activities lead to large scale deforestation and destabilisation of natural landforms and also increase in solid waste dumping as well as depletion of water and fuel resources.

Pollution: Tourism can cause the same forms of pollution as any other industry.
Destruction And Alteration Of Ecosystem: Habitats of animals can be degraded by tourism leisure activities.