Tourism hit hard in Mysuru due to lockdown

The tourism and hospitality industry is hit hard in Mysuru due to the lockdown, in the wake of coronavirus or COVID-19. The tourism-dependent economy of Mysuru and its surroundings is crippled due to the ongoing crisis

President of Mysuru Hotel Owners Association C Narayana Gowda said that Mysuru is one of the most preferred destination for tourists in India.

“In Mysuru city alone, there are over 400 hotels, with a total of over 9,500 rooms, equipped to accommodate around 35,000 people. There are 25 star hotels with over 700 rooms in Mysuru. Tourism and hospitality is the main industry of Mysuru and surrounding areas as there are not many manufacturing and service industries around,” he said.

“The economy of Mysuru is either directly or indirectly related to tourism and hospitality. Even employment generation is dependent either directly or indirectly on tourism and hospitality. The sector employs over 25,000 persons. Besides, March, April, May and June being summer, is the major tourism season. Thus, Mysuru region is suffering a loss of over Rs 50 crore per day due to the lockdown,” he said.

According to Confederation of Indian Industry estimates, coronavirus would result in an overall loss of Rs 5 lakh crore and job cuts up to 4 to 5 crore people across India.

Narayana Gowda said, "Once the pandemic is eradicated and the lockdown is lifted, it may take at least two years for the tourism and hospitality sector to stabilise and show growth."

Deputy Director for Tourism H Janardhan said that compared to other tourist destinations, Mysuru has a potential to pickup faster, once the lockdown is lifted and once life returns to normalcy. “The advantage for Mysuru is that, it was a preferred tourist destination even before Independence. Mysuru is seen as a synonym for tourism,” he said.

Stating that the financial loss due to the lockdown cannot be estimated now, he said, however, it is a big blow to the entire economy of Mysuru and its surroundings, as most of the activities like public transport to sales of handicrafts are related to tourism, here.

He said, "Once the other sectors start to stabilise and grow, the tourism and hospitality sector will get a boost. Tourism is also vital for de-stressing. Thus, there is hope.”