Spiritual tourism surges as improved infrastructure sparks cultural connection, says SBI report
32 crore tourists visited the state in 2022, with an impressive footfall of 2.21 crore in Ayodhya alone. The total expenditure by these tourists exceeded ₹2 lakh crore.
The state with its numerous holiest places and shrines, such as the Ganga River, Varanasi, the Taj Mahal and now the new Ram Temple in Ayodhya, has experienced a remarkable upswing in domestic tourism Further, it stated that the spending by foreign tourists was around ₹10,500 crore in India, with the UP ranking fifth in terms of foreign visitor numbers. It is estimated that with the completion of Ayodhya Ram Mandir this year and a melange of initiatives taken by the UP government to promote tourism, the total expenditure by tourists in the state is likely to cross ₹4 lakh crore mark by the end of 2024.
This would help the state government earn an additional tax revenue of ₹20,000-25,000 crore due to a huge spurt in number of tourists during FY25. As India is expected to achieve the $5 trillion economy by FY28, the country needs to grow by a CAGR of 8.4 per cent till 2027 (in dollar terms) which translates into 11.0-11.5 per cent nominal GDP growth per annum.
The report further added that Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh to break the $500 billion threshold and contribute 10 per cent to India’s GDP. “UP will be one of the two states which will break the $500 billion mark in 2027 (or FY28) when India achieves the 3rd place in the global economy.
Read on livemint.com