In a continued push to spiritual tourism, there will be a focus on destinations related to the life and times of Lord Buddha.
The central government will develop top 50 tourist destination sites in a partnership with states, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while announcing the Union Budget 2025-2026 on Saturday.
The land for building key infrastructure in these destinations will be provided by states, while hotels in these areas will be included in the harmonised master list (HML) of infrastructure.
"The inclusion of 50 destinations in the HML of infrastructure enables access to easier funding norms thereby spurring hotel investment and development of local economies," said Puneet Chhatwal, managing director and CEO, Indian Hotels Company, which owns brands like Taj and Vivanta.
The government announced plans of bolstering homestays with Mudra loans, alongside streamlining e-visa facilities for certain foreign tourist groups to give a fillip to foreign tourist arrivals in the country.
The ministry of tourism has been allocated Rs 2,534.93 crore (Rs 25.34 billion) in Budget 2025, marginally up from the budgetary estimate of Rs 2,479.62 crore (Rs 24.79 billion) in the preceding Budget. Last year's revised estimate came in at Rs 850.36 crore (Rs 8.50 billion).
In a continued push to spiritual tourism, there will be a focus on destinations related to the life and times of Lord Buddha, announced Sitharaman.
The government will also look to promote medical tourism in the country in partnership with private players, work towards ease of travel and connectivity to tourist destinations, while providing performance-linked incentives to states.
"This holistic approach to promote hospitality and tourism combined with measures for stimulating consumption, well places the sector to continue to be a key contributor to India's GDP and employment," Chhatwal added.
© 2025