COVID-19 Pandemic and Tourism Industry in Himachal Pradesh: An Economic Analysis

Abstract

The emerging infection of COVID-19 pandemic was initiated from Wuhan, China got spread to more than 200 countries around the globe including India. The COVID-19 pandemic is not only dangerous for our health but for the health of the nation also. Indian economy is highly affected due to the lockdown. A large segment of the Indian population lost their livelihood due to shutdown of trades, travel and tourism, commercial and other business activities during the lockdown. In India, the various measures adopted to control this deadly virus had a wide- ranging impact on the various business activities in general and Tourism and Hospitality Industry in particular. Tourism Industry is the backbone of the economy of Himachal Pradesh and provides employment to larger section of the society directly or indirectly. During COVID-19 pandemic, the Tourism Industry has experienced negative growth rate and affected a larger section of the society. This paper made an attempt to study various impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the Tourism sector of Himachal Pradesh.