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The Travel and Tourism
industry is well on its way tobecoming one of the most powerful
growth engines in the coming millennium and is anticipated
to generate nearly 338 million jobs by the year 2005 with
an annual growth rate of 4.8%.
Acknowledging the vast
potential and spin-off tourism has on other industries, the
Government of Andhra Pradesh is focusing on tourism for generating
greater employment and achieving higher economic growth.
We have a vision of making
Andhra Pradesh the destination state of India, given its attractive
diversity, natural endowments and friendly population. Andhra
Pradesh has a rich tourist potential, which is yet to be exploited.
"Bring the world to Andhra Pradesh, take Andhra Pradesh
to the world", is our guiding spirit.
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Andhra Pradesh has
great potential for tourism with its temple towns, beach resorts,
monuments and other tourist attractions. Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam
airports are proposed to be expanded to receive international
flights. Hyderabad has been identified as one of the 5 locations
in the country for the establishment of a full-fledged international
airport. Direct flights to Singapore have recently commenced
from Hyderabad in addition to other destinations. Hyderabad
is being developed as a major transit hub between Europe and
the far East.
"Andhra Pradesh Unlimited", is
the strategy of this policy. We recognize the advantage of
offering the collective attractiveness of other places in
the region with places in Andhra Pradesh. We plan to decentralize
tourism development to districts and local bodies. This policy
will also encourage private sector in the tourism industry
and provide a frame work for private-public partnership.
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To encourage private
investment in tourism and related industry, various incentives
and concessions are being offered. In keeping with our objective
and spirit, taxation has been attempted to be rationalized
on the logic of intelligent taxation to enable private sector
to expand tourism. While acknowledging the primacy of the
private sector, the state retains with itself the responsibility
of provision of public goods and for addressing issues related
to safety, quality and regulation.
We view this new tourism policy as the product of a shared
vision for the state. A series of consultations within the
government and with the industry culminated in this policy,
which stands enriched by the inputs of the industry. It is
necessary that the state moves in a clear direction and consolidates
its comparative advantage and realizes its tourist potential
to the fullest. It is in this context that the tourism policy
has to be evaluated.
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