Bangladeshis are turning away from India

The political unrest in Bangladesh has had a severe impact on the tourism industry in India. This instability started from the beginning of last month i.e. July.

The tour operators of Bangladesh say that on July 1, the tourism business began to be affected when the movement of students spread across the country to demand reform of the quota system in government jobs.

After that, as time went by, the business situation continued to deteriorate. Businessmen said that after Sheikh Hasina resigned from the post of Prime Minister and left the country on August 5, their business has hit the bottom.

At present the situation is dire. According to local operators, the number of tourists traveling to India from Bangladesh has dropped by more than 90 percent.

According to a report by the Indian media The Economic Times, Bangladeshis account for almost one-fourth of the tourists visiting India. The report further states that these tourists mainly go for medical tourism or shopping, especially during Durga Puja and wedding season.

Operators say that the situation has worsened since Sheikh Hasina left the country. Because flights are temporarily disrupted and most visas are suspended except for medical visas.

According to a report in The Economic Times, even though flights have now resumed, an official of an airline operating flights to Dhaka noted that passenger pressure on their trips has reduced by more than 50 percent.

Sabbir Ahmed, managing director of Bangladeshi tour operator Cosmos Holiday, told the media that India currently only offers medical and student visa services.

He said, 'A few days ago, one of his clients' medical visa was also rejected.'

He further said, 'On an average, 500 people visit India every month through our company. But not even three have gone through us in the last one month.'

As a result, business activities have to be continued with loans. I myself have taken a loan of Tk 60 lakh in the last two months,' he said.

Taslim Amin Shovan, CEO of Inoglobe Travel and Tours, another domestic tour operator, said his company's number of tourists traveling to India has dropped by 98 percent.

He said, 'Only those who need to go to India urgently are traveling. In the current situation, many have postponed their plans to travel to the neighboring country.'

According to the Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh, a major destination for Bangladeshi travelers is India, accounting for about 40 to 45 percent. Most of these travel for medical treatment (about 80 percent), shopping (15 percent) and leisure (5 percent).

Kolkata is the first choice for travelers for shopping. It is followed by Sikkim, Goa, Kashmir, Darjeeling, Gujarat, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad and North East India.

According to a report by the Economic Times, the number of tourists in India will increase to 43.5 percent in 2023. But this figure is 15.5 percent less than the pre-pandemic.

Last year the country received 9.23 million foreign tourists. From here the country earns more than 24 crore rupees.

According to the report, the number of tourists from Bangladesh was more than 22.5 percent, which is the highest compared to any other country.

Devjit Dutta, Chairman of Indian Association of Tour Operators West Bengal Chapter, said that the business of travel operators, hotels and guesthouses adjacent to hospitals in West Bengal has decreased by 90 percent.

A director of the Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh told the media that the current situation has greatly affected the tour operators going abroad.

Due to this many people have to run their business with loans, he said.

He said, 'If I calculate, more than five thousand Indian visas are given to Bangladeshis every day. If each of them spends Rs 50,000 in India, that means India is losing Rs 750 crore every month.'