Crime Against Women Tourists

New Delhi, March 14, 2016: The Ministry of Tourism does not compile the data regarding crime against foreign or domestic tourists. However, the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Ministry of Home Affairs has started collecting data on crime against foreign tourists since 2014. Hence data on crime against foreign tourist prior to 2014 is not available with NCRB. The total number of cases registered under crime against foreign tourists were 384 during 2014. The State-wise/UT-wise number of reported incidents against foreign tourist during 2014 is given below. This information is not available for 2015.
The steps taken by Ministry of Tourism to ensure the safety and security of tourists including foreign tourists are as below:

i) 24X7 (all days) in a year offering a “multi-lingual helpdesk” in the designated languages to provide support service in terms of providing information relating to Travel & Tourism in India to the domestic and International tourists and to assist the callers with advice on action to be taken during times of distress while travelling in India and if need be alert the concerned authorities. The languages handled by the Tourist Helpline include ten International languages besides English and Hindi, namely, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish. The calls made by tourists (both international and domestic) while in India will be free of charge.
ii) Adoption of code of conduct for Safe and Hon’ble Tourism, which contains a set of guidelines to encourage tourism activities to be undertaken with respect to basic rights like dignity, safety and freedom from exploitation of both tourists and local residents, in particular women and children.
iii) All the Chief Ministers of the State Governments and Administrators of Union Territory Administrations have been asked to take immediate effective steps for ensuring a conducive and friendly environment for all tourists and also requested to publicize the steps being taken/proposed to be taken to increase the sense of security amongst the present/prospective visitors and also to counter the negative publicity, if any.
iv) The National Tourism Ministers’ Conference was convened on 18th July, 2013 and 21st August 2014 in New Delhi which resolved that the Departments of Tourism of all States and UTs will work for ensuring the safety and security of tourists, especially women. The State Governments/UT Administrations of Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha have deployed Tourist Police, in one form or the other.
v) Grant of Central Financial Assistance to the State Governments of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh for setting up of Tourist Facilitation and Security Organization (TFSO) on a pilot basis.
vi) In the wake of some unfortunate incidents happening involving foreign tourists, Ministry of Tourism posts an advisory on its website www.incredibleindia.org.
vii) The Ministry of Tourism has issued the Guidelines on Safety and Security of Tourists for State Governments/Union Territories and Tips for Travellers in September 2014. These guidelines were sent to the State Governments/Union Territories and other relevant authorities to stress the importance of safety and risk management, assist in identifying best practices and encourage closer cooperation for ensuring a pleasant experience to the tourists. The Guidelines are indicative references that may be useful to the States in sharing or adopting the best practices and design their domestic measures to better protect tourists. In addition to these guidelines “Tips to Travellers” are also offered to make the visit of tourists to Incredible India, a memorable experience.

The foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in India has shown continuous increase in last 5 years. The number of FTAs in India during the period 2011-2015 are as below: