Minister of Tourism and Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Thursday said that the Indian government has raised its estimate for foreign tourists attending the Maha Kumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh to 3 million, doubling the previous forecast, due to an overwhelming response from overseas visitors.
He said “We used to expect about 1.5 million people (foreign tourists) to visit Mahakumbh. Considering the kind of response and the inflow we have seen, we have revised our estimation, which is double our initial estimate.”
As of Wednesday, the 17th day of the 45-day festival, 170 million people had visited the Hindu festival at Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj.
The event, which runs until 25 February, is unique this year due to the rare astronomical alignment of constellations, which occurs once every 144 years.
The government is now anticipating a total of 450 million visitors at the festival.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh officials had noted that the Maha Kumbh, which saw 250 million attendees in 2019, would surpass other major global events in terms of attendance.
Shekhawat also highlighted that international tourism is contributing about Rs 2.3 trillion in revenue, a figure nearly matching pre-Covid levels.
Looking ahead, the minister emphasized that India’s tourism industry will likely grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20% in the coming decades, fueled by the growing middle-income group and increasing disposable income.
“We can see the province of India as a destination as well as a market for tourism,” Shekhawat said, adding that the government is focusing on decongesting popular destinations and promoting lesser-known locations to cater to the rising demand.
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