India - Sustainability and the Tourism Rankings.

Abstract

Sustainable tourism leads to environmental protection, community development, and the improvement of livelihood of the local residents of a place. This has been a prime concern of the Government of India in every five-year plan and national tourism policy undertaken. Sustainability is essential for the country’s prosperity, growth and development. The present research study is a review of current research literature and policy frameworks of the Indian tourism industry in terms of sustainability. The research analyzes the Indian tourism global ranking and the ‘environmental sustainability’ rankings of the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index. The study is based on secondary data analysis including analysis of five-year plans of Indian planning processes, national tourism policies and the global tourism rankings of the Indian tourism industry obtained from a Travel and Tourism Competitive Index provided by World Economic Forum. Based on the secondary data analysis, the study highlights a paradoxical situation of ‘sustainability and the tourism rankings’ for the Indian tourism industry.

Keywords

• Competitiveness
• India
• policy planning
• sustainability
• tourism industry