The Survival of Travel and Tourism Industry amidst the Covid 19 Pandemic – Challenges and Opportunities of the Indian Tourism Sector

Abstract

The Covid 19 pandemic has severely impacted the world and almost brought it to a complete standstill. Most industries have been affected adversely as countries across the world went in lockdowns and imposed restrictions on travel, trade, and businesses. The tourism, aviation, and hospitality industry are among the few that have been most affected due to the pandemic.As pleasure travel had almost ceased and many countries worldwide had closed their borders, restricting international tourists. In order to survive this, the travel industry players had to cut down their employees and their pay. Many tourism professionals have lost their jobs or have their jobs at stake. This paper focuses on analysingthe overall impacts of the pandemic on the travel and tourism industry of India. The study aims at understanding the challenges faced by the different players in the tourism industry to survive the pandemic. The study also sheds light on the opportunities that await in the future on a post-Covid scenario and some of the methods adopted by the industry players to manage the future demand in the more sustainable and safe manner. The paper is conceptual and purely based on literature reviews of various research papers focusing on the Covid pandemic globally.