Budget reaction: The hospitality industry feels dejected

The hospitality industry feels dejected and is extremely disappointed with today’s Union Budget. Tourism contributes 7.5 per cent to India’s overall GDP and hospitality is the backbone of tourism. Hospitality is the single biggest contributor to India’s tourism GDP and its growth or decline or stagnancy directly reflects on the health of tourism in the country.

The foreign exchange earnings (FEE) from tourism amounts to roughly 23 billion U.S. dollars and once again the largest chunk of this earning is generated by the hospitality industry.

Employment generation which is one of the focus areas for the Government has the biggest support of the hospitality sector. It directly employs over 12 per cent of the Indian workforce and is one of the biggest employers of unskilled and semi-skilled labour.

According to a KPMG report, the hospitality sector is expected to grow at a CAGR of 16.1 per cent to reach Rs.2796.9 thousand crores in 2022. Despite having Hospitality as an asset at its disposal which can propel the country’s growth, the Government has yet again chosen to ignore its potential,” says Mr. Dilip Datwani, President, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI).

 About Hotel & Restaurant Association Western India (HRAWI)

The Hotel and Restaurant Association (Western India) is a 68 years old Association of Hotels and Restaurants in Western India. Its members include smaller Hotels up to 5-Star Deluxe categories. The bulk of its members like any growth economy are made up of budget hotels. With membership base spread across Western India, HRAWI covers Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Goa and the Union Territories of Daman, Diu & Silvassa, and is considered to be the voice of the Hotel Industry. The association is part of the national body of Federation of the Hotels & Restaurants Associations of India (FHRAI), located in New Delhi, which was originally founded in Mumbai in 1950 by the late Mr. J.R.D. Tata.

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