Despite ‘India Out’ sentiment, Bangladeshi nationals top foreign tourist arrivals in India this year: Ministry data 

Despite an ‘India Out’ campaign, mirroring similar anti-India sentiment seen in the Maldives, following the violent overthrow of government in Bangladesh, majority of nationals from the neighbouring country visited India this year. 

According to official data, Bangladeshi nationals ranked at the top among foreign tourist arrivals in India between January and June this year. 

Foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in India from January to June stood at nearly 47.8 lakh with Bangladesh at top followed by the US, according to official data issued by the Ministry of Tourism. 

“The FTAs during the period January-June 2024 were 47,78,374 compared to 43,80,239 in January-June 2023 and 52,96,025 in January-June 2019, registering a growth of 9.1 percent and minus 9.8 percent with respect to 2023 and 2019 respectively,” it added.  

The data was released on September 27 on the occasion of the World Tourism Day and the figures showed that inbound tourism in the country is trailing the pandemic levels.  

Foreign tourist arrivals stood at 7,06,045 in June 2024 compared to 6,48,008 in June 2023 and 7,26,446 in June 2019, registering a growth of 9 percent with respect to 2023 and a fall of 2.8 percent from 2019, respectively. 

According to the percentage share of FTAs during January-June 2024, the top five source countries were Bangladesh (21.55 percent), the US (17.56 percent), the UK (9.82 percent), Canada (4.5 percent) and Australia (4.32 percent). 

The FTA trend for June 2024 was similar with Bangladesh (28.49 percent) occupying the first spot among the top five source countries, followed by the US (22.59 percent), the UK (6.10 percent), Australia (3.74 percent) and Canada (3.01 percent), as per the data shared by the ministry. 

Leisure holiday and recreation formed the bulk of the segment in the FTAs when it came to the purpose of travelling. 

Student-led protests had begun in Bangladesh from July 1, which swelled into a violent uprising forcing former Sheikh Hasina to flee the country on August 5. Following the situation, India had halted full-fledged issuing of visas to the citizens from Bangladesh. 

Figures yet to hit pre-Covid levels 

A report by Crisil Market Intelligence and Analytics found that inbound tourism in the country is trailing the pandemic levels as FTAs in January-June this year stood at 47.8 lakh, which is about 90 percent of the first half of 2019. 

The report said that the post-pandemic recovery in India’s inbound tourism is lagging the global trend. In comparison, globally, FTAs in the first seven months of 2024 stood at 96 percent of the pre-Covid levels of 2019, implying India is behind the curve, it added. 

Further, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Thailand and South Korea in the Asia Pacific Region are among the top 20 tourism source countries for India signifying the importance of the region as a source market for inbound tourism, the government informed the Parliament in July. 

Of the 92.4 lakh foreign tourists, India received approximately 12.2 lakh tourists from these six countries of the Asia Pacific Region, it said. 

However, many experts and former senior officials of the tourism ministry are optimistic that figures will return to the pre-pandemic level by the end of 2024. 

“Yes, it will return to pre-pandemic levels as international travel is returning to normal levels. Geo-political tensions in Europe and Middle East, however, are negative factors, affecting faster return to normalcy,” former Union Tourism Secretary Arvind Singh told PTI. 

However, the foreign exchange earnings (FEE) figures have shown a rise for the month of June and the first six months period of 2024 indicating that per person arrival spending is more. 

The FEE during the January-June period in 2024 were $15.34 billion compared to $13.04 billion in January-June 2023, and $14.53 billion January-June 2019, registering a growth of 17.62 percent and 5.54 percent with respect to 2023 and 2019 respectively, the ministry data showed. 

Meanwhile, the Indian National Departures (INDs) during the period of January-June 2024 stood at 1.50 lakh compared to 1.32 lakh in January-June 2023 and 1.33 lakh in January-June 2019, registering a growth of 13.73 percent and 12.28 percent with respect to 2023 and 2019 respectively, it said. 

According to the Crisil report, Indian tourists are rapidly emerging as a significant growth engine for global tourism accounting for 2.4 percent of the global outbound market as of 2019. 

The FEE during the January-June period in 2024 were $15.34 billion compared to $13.04 billion in January-June 2023, and $14.53 billion in January-June 2019, registering a growth of 17.62 percent and 5.54 percent with respect to 2023 and 2019 respectively, the ministry data showed. 

(With inputs from PTI)