Wednesday, January 31, 2024
As India anticipates the Union Budget 2024, Madhavan Menon, Executive Chairman of Thomas Cook India Ltd., underscores the pivotal role of the Travel & Tourism sector. Constituting 5.8% of India’s GDP in 2022, the sector aims to reach a $1 trillion mark by 2047. Menon’s expectations echo the sector’s aspirations for transformation and growth.
Menon emphasizes the necessity of infrastructural development, advocating for the establishment of new airports through private participation to facilitate a robust hub-and-spoke model. He highlights the importance of expanding transportation networks, including rail, road, and waterways, to foster accessibility to high-demand destinations like religious circuits and lesser-known treasures such as Lakshadweep.
In addressing inbound tourism, Menon calls for the revival of the Inbound incentive scheme, albeit for select destinations. He proposes adjustments in taxation policies to stimulate domestic and foreign travel, advocating for reduced income tax levels to enhance disposable income for travel expenditures. Additionally, he suggests standardizing Tax Collection at Source (TCS) rates on foreign travel packages and clarifying TCS procedures on Forex card payments.
On the GST front, Menon urges for the facilitation of GST input credit for both inbound and domestic tourism, streamlining compliance mechanisms, and centralizing issues faced by assesses across multiple states to mitigate administrative burdens and legal complexities.
In summary, Thomas Cook India and SOTC Travel’s expectations for the Union Budget 2024 revolve around infrastructural enhancements, tax reforms, and simplification of GST processes to propel India towards becoming a premier global destination.
Sunday, April 28, 2024
Sunday, April 28, 2024
Sunday, April 28, 2024
