It’s been a month, but the impact of the GST within the travel and tourism industry is still being decoded and deciphered by stakeholders. The entire process of gaining clarity on the subject has been rather taxing, especially for the SMEs in the trade. There is a certain concern expressed by members of the fraternity as they feel the exercise is detrimental to business. The hospitality industry too has expressed concern.
According to HRAWI, the MICE business has been impacted. However, as diverse options on GST prevails, we have received feedback from major travel industry players that consumer travel patterns have not been affected by the GST.
Sungita Sharma, principal commissioner, Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) is representing tourism and travel industry to the GST council. Sharma informs that 18 electoral groups have been appointed to give an in depth approach for the industry. The committee is to create an impact analysis for all segments and flag it to the GST Council. Please refer to Pg 12 of this issue for more details.
Though the pressure of GST seems a bit of a challenge for businesses, there has been a lot of action on the sidelines within the trade. From road shows by NTOs to state boards and associations announcing their conventions, the coming months promise to have a lot of action.
September has a lot on offer in terms of conventions by trade associations. From the IATO Convention in Bhubaneswar to IAAI Conclave in Kerala and the ATOAI convention again in Kerala, there is lot to learn and unlearn at these events. Further on, the Tamil Nadu Travel Mart is scheduled to be held in October 2017, while during the same month, Odisha Tourism is also scheduled to conduct its Travel Mart.
The cover story this issue speaks about the world of luxury but tackled and addressed in a different light. We list some of India’s bespoke luxury experiences which travel agents can package for the discerning Indian world traveller.
Reema Lokesh
Editor