More than 60% jobs lost in tourism during pandemic first wave

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic proved to be truly devastating for people across the globe. Of the many industries impacted, tourism is among the worst affected with millions of people having lost their jobs and occupation due to lockdowns and travel restrictions.

In India, about 14.5 million jobs during the first quarter of FY2020-21, 5.2 million during Q2 and 1.8 million jobs during Q3 are expected to have been lost compared to an estimated 34.8 million jobs in the pre-pandemic period of 2019-20 (Direct jobs), said the Minister of Tourism, Kishan Reddy in the Lok Sabha.

With restrictions on international travel, foreign tourist arrivals (FTA) in India have been impacted considerably.
Due to overall economic slowdown during 2020-21, tourism economy or tourism direct gross value added (TDGVA) declined 42.8 percent in Q1; 15.5 percent in Q2 and 1.1 percent in Q3, as per findings from a study–India and the Coronavirus Pandemic: Economic Losses for Households Engaged in Tourism and Policies for Recovery, conducted by the National Council of Applied Economic Research.

The government along with the stakeholders is making efforts to revitalize and support the industry and related sectors. Amid the global travel restrictions, the ministry is promoting domestic tourism under the “Dekho Apna Desh” campaign maintaining travel protocols and guidelines.

For rebuilding trust and motivating the industry, the government has recently announced several support measures like free tourist visas among others.

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