JOIN US"One of the priorities we need to push hard is granting infrastructure status to the hotel industry. Such a status will enable it to receive easy loans at lower interest rates," Tourism Secretary Sujit Banerjee told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
The Government is working on this and a notification is expected soon, Banerjee said.
A single-window clearance to hoteliers and rationalisation of service tax across states are the other areas that the Government is presently working on, he said.
A draft proposal seeking infrastructure status for the hotel industry is awaiting Centre's clearance for quite some time now.
The Government is also keen to grant visas on arrival to 18 countries, the proposal for which has been under consideration for several years now.
"We would also like to see that at least five of the 18 countries, for which visas-on-arrival are under consideration, get the nod soon," he said.
Banerjee said the recent promotional campaigns unleashed by the Government to promote brand India have given a boost to tourism in the country.
"Foreign tourists' arrival improved in April compared to March this year, though it is still on the negative trajectory. We hope in May, the negative growth will come into single digit," Banerjee said.
The Visit India 2009 campaign and several roadshows overseas have certainly given a fillip, the official said.
He said that hotel reservations, at around 40 per cent till recently, have gone up to 50-60 per cent, indicating a positive sign for the foreign exchange-earning sector.