The Kerala High Court heard a writ petition filed by the Kerala Travel Mart Society (KTMS) on December 1. KTMS had filed a writ plea in the Kerala High Court against the central government’s inaction to facilitate the tourism industry’s revival. Calling the central government’s inaction violative of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 14, 19(1)(g) and 21 of the Constitution of India, the petitioners pointed out that the Centre and its various agencies are “duty-bound” to ensure that the predominant contributor to its GDP, revenue and various earnings is not left in the lurch at the time of crisis.
The petitioners pointed out that the government had denied help to revive the sector and requested the High Court to direct the Ministry of Commerce to release the SEIS benefit as an interim relief pending the hearing and final verdict of the case. The petitioners said that although the government had announced loan moratoriums and the revamping of existing loans, most banks are discriminating against borrowers from the sector.
The petition pointed out that the continued travel restrictions on domestic and international travel are a continued challenge for the tourism sector. “In the absence of intervention from the government along with incentives, relaxations in norms, availability of finances, the tourism industry will face an imminent collapse. These measures have to be implemented in a well-planned and thought out a manner to revitalize and promote tourism as done in other countries, and in particular, to gain the confidence of the tourists,” said the petition.
The High Court has asked the government’s counsel to file an affidavit detailing the actions taken by them to revive the tourism sector. The case is posted for a hearing on December 8.
Kerala Travel Society was formed in 2000 to promote tourism and its related activities in Kerala. The non-profit organisation’s prime objective was to build a common ground for travel agents from around the world and the service providers in Kerala to connect.
