With the ongoing political unrest in Bangladesh, medical tourism from the country to India has taken a hit. Many of such travellers are either cancelling or postponing their trips, according to stakeholders of the industry.
“There are about 30 to 40 hospitals in Kolkata (capital of West Bengal) for whom Bangladesh is one of the major source markets. The current situation has led to setbacks for them. Kolkata is also a weekend destination for many Bangladeshis who visit the city for shopping. So, the impact is on the overall local economy as well,” shared Kolkata-based Debjit Dutta, director and CEO of Impression Tourism Services.
Due to the situation in Bangladesh, many travellers are either cancelling or postponing their trips to India; Dhaka City in Bangladesh, pictured
Besides the bordering Indian state of West Bengal, a large number of medical tourists from Bangladesh visit different Indian cities for medical reasons.
“About 85 per cent of Bangladesh inbound tourist arrivals to India are for medical reasons. The volatile situation in Bangladesh is impacting the medical tourism business in the country,” said Zia Siddiqui, managing director, Alliance Hotels & Resorts.
For over 10 days, protests have continued against a government job quota system in Bangladesh. The country has witnessed clashes between the protestors and law enforcement agencies over the issue.
“We have been exploring the Bangladesh market for some time now and have seen a slight increase in people coming from there for treatments. We were talking to a few Bangladeshi clients who were planning a trip next month but have now postponed their trips for later this year,” said Abhilash K Ramesh, executive director of Kairali Ayurvedic Group.
However, Dutta sees the current unrest in Bangladesh as a matter of concern for overall inbound tourism to India and regional tourism too.
“There are two things involved in this issue: one is regional business and the other one is bilateral business. Bangladesh is the largest inbound source market for India. Post-pandemic, 23 per cent of the total inbound tourism business to India has been from Bangladesh. Unlike natural calamities, the impact of social or political unrest on tourism is for a longer period,” he said.
Dutta further elaborated on the destinations favoured by Bangladeshi leisure tourists, including Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, and Ajmer. Some also visit north-eastern Indian states like Meghalaya via the Dawki border crossing and Agartala through the Akhaura border.
“We, as a company, had a couple of cross-country tours lined up, combining Bangladesh and India. If the situation persists, we are going to lose that business. This is a bad time for unrest as foreign tour operators start to work on their brochures for 2025. If the situation lingers, they might be sceptical about working on a regional tour product that might not materialise,” Dutta added.
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