Travel agents seek bailout package from state, Centre

Visakhapatnam: Members of Tours & Travel Association of AP (TTAA) launched a ‘save tourism’ campaign in five cities across the state on Tuesday to draw the government’s attention towards their plight.
TTAA president K Vijay Mohan sought a bailout package from the government for the travel industry. “The industry is staring at bankruptcy and mass unemployment and will not be able to recover without financial relief from the government,” he said.
There are around 1,000 travel agents in the state, who have incurred a revenue loss of over Rs 2,000 crore due to the Covid-19 pandemic.“The loss is projected to touch Rs 3,400 by the end of the year, with a cash loss of about Rs 275 crore. Even after the situation becomes normal, the recovery will still take at least a year,” he said.
“We request the central and state governments for a bailout package based on the GST each travel agent paid over the last one year and bring in new regulations in income tax with an exemption on spending on domestic tours under 80C. To push inbound tourism, we have requested waiving of airport terminal fees, discounted landing and parking fees for airlines,” Vijay Mohan added.