Assam tourism hit hard by anti-CAA protests, loses Rs 1,000 crore
Guwahati, Dec 31: The tourism sector in Assam has been severely hit by violent protests against the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the loss is an estimated at Rs 1,000 crore, a top official said on Tuesday.
The sector was badly impacted in December and will also be in January, two of the peak months for tourist inflow, Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC) chairman Jayanta Malla Baruah said here.
The peak tourist season in Assam is from December to March and accounts for 48 per cent of the sector's contribution for the entire year, he said.
"Due to the violent protests during December, we suffered badly. We estimate that Rs 500 crore will be the loss to the sector for December and January each," he told a press conference here.
The hotel industry alone suffered a loss of Rs 60 crore in 15 days since December 11, when violence erupted across Assam against the CAA.
Along with domestic tourists, the flow from abroad also took a hit after a number of countries issued travel advisories due to the ongoing protests, Baruah said.
The earnings of the state from the tourism sector is Rs 2,000-2,500 crore per annum.
"Because of the impact on the peak season, we expect 30 per cent fall in tourist footfall in 2019-20. We hope to slightly recover from this situation in February," he added.
There had been adverse travel advisories by developed countries like the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, Singapore, UAE and Saudi Arabia and it usually takes three to four years to fully recover, he said.
"Peaceful democratic agitations do not affect much, but violence impacts very hard. This year we had expected around 65 lakh domestic and 50,000 foreign tourists to Assam.
But already 80 per cent of the bookings for December and January are cancelled," the ATDC chairman said.
The state had seen an inflow of 60,27,002 domestic and 41,209 foreign tourists during 2018-19, he said.
Baruah said that around 50,000 people are directly employed in the tourism sector, while another one lakh are indirectly dependant on it.
On the steps being taken by the government to recover from the losses, Baruah said ATDC has tied up with online giant Google to promote Assam Tourism on its various platforms.
"From January, we plan to hold four roadshows in Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Goa for domestic tourists.
We will contact the embassies of all the countries that issued travel advisories and urge them to lift it.
"If necessary, we will organise FAM (familiarisation) trips for them," he added.
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Telangana survey flags 89,000 child labourers, highlights caste disparities in employment
Hyderabad: A caste-based survey conducted by the Telangana government for 2024–25 has identified around 89,000 children engaged in labour across the state, with a large share belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities.
The findings are part of the Socio, Economic, Educational, Employment, Political and Caste (SEEEPC) Survey, which covered about 3.5 crore people across 242 caste groups. According to the report, nearly one per cent of individuals below 18 years are involved in daily wage work. While the percentage appears small, officials noted that the absolute number reflects a serious concern.
The survey found that 11 per cent of identified child labourers belong to the ST Lambadi community, while 14 per cent are from the SC Madiga community. The highest incidence was reported among the ST Kolam group, where 7.2 per cent of minors are engaged in daily wage labour.
The data also revealed wider socio-economic disparities. Nearly half of the Scheduled Caste population is dependent on daily wage work, while only around 5 per cent are employed in the private sector, compared to about 30 per cent among General Castes.
State Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar said the findings show that SC and ST communities remain three times more backward than General Castes, while Backward Classes are about 2.7 times more disadvantaged.
The report further noted that, on average, 31.3 per cent of people in the 25–65 age group depend on daily wage work. Among communities, the BC-A Odde group recorded the highest share at 55 per cent. In contrast, only 2.6 per cent of OC Brahmins rely on such work.
Several SC and ST communities, including Kolam, Beda, Madiga, Koya, Gond, Yerukulas and Mala Sale, were found to have among the highest proportions of daily wage earners. On the other hand, most General Caste communities and some Backward Class groups such as Goldsmiths and BC-C Christians showed lower dependence on daily wage employment.
The survey also pointed to inequalities in access to formal employment. Communities such as OC Rajus, OC Brahmins and Kapus were found to have a higher presence in private sector jobs, with up to 27 per cent of their population employed in such roles.
