By Dhruv Shringi
The year 2020 witnessed unforeseeable impact on the travel and hospitality industry due to the pandemic. The sector was severely hit with restrictions on both international and domestic travel. During the unlock phase, domestic tourism was the first to open up creating demand for various destinations. While travel touch-points continue to take measures ensuring safety of consumers, the future of travel and hospitality sectors look promising and optimistic with vaccination against the virus underway.
Additionally, there is a need for greater collaboration between various stakeholders be it the industry or the government to cull out relevant policies and schemes for this sector. In order to see continued growth in the travel industry, we would like to see better spends to provide necessary infrastructural capabilities, public utilities and more amenities that would promote social distancing norms.
Moreover, providing customers with tax incentives and fiscal measures for consumers to stimulate demand are critical for the sector. Relief on regulatory aspects on compliances such as TDS & TCS on online players, support to the inbound industry and measures to articulate the government’s plan will provide a roadmap and give clarity to the industry players. The travel and hospitality industry is one of the largest providers of jobs and has a multiplier effect on economic growth, and we are optimistic that the industry will continue to see buoyant growth driving overall economic growth in the country.
(The author is Co-founder and CEO, Yatra.com)