Measuring the economic impact of the tourism industry in India using the Tourism Satellite Account and input-output analysis

Tourism contributes significantly to the gross domestic product (GDP) and employment of an economy. However, its contribution to an economy is difficult to quantify as it does not fall within the system of national accounts because of its demand-driven nature. In the Indian context, while the basic tourism statistics are readily available and the authorities have also started to prepare a Tourism Satellite Account, the inter-linkages of tourism with other industries are not known, as tourism does not feature in the framework of the nation's input-output tables as a separate industry. This paper attempts to fill this void and analyses the tourism industry's inter-linkages by placing it in the framework of the Input-Output Transactions Table (IOTT) and quantifying its overall impact on other industries through multiplier analysis.