Rural Tourism in India-A Glance

India is famous worldwide as a popular tourist destination with its rich cultural heritage, historical monuments and abundance natural resources. The tourism industry in India has emerged as one of the major economic drivers for growth, contributing substantially to foreign exchange earnings. Tourism is one of the leading global industries contributing 11 percent of global GDP. The world Tourism organization estimates that there will be 1.5 billion tourists in the world in 2020, representing 21 per cent of world population. The World Tourism organization further notes that within the next 5 - 10 years, range of products on offer to tourists seeking the rural experience is to increase significantly. There is a clear trend in growth of rural tourism. India's vast, rural diversity and heritage offer tremendous potential for tourism in rural areas. Rural tourism in India is envisioned to generate employment opportunities, sustainable livelihood for the local community by addressing the issues of poverty reduction and developing a vibrant local economy by revival and regeneration of the old art and crafts and preservation of the rural India culture. This paper is an attempt to have a glance on the rural tourism services in India.