By P.K.Balachandran
Colombo, October 11: With the Maldives badly needing foreign exchange to meet its basic needs, President Mohamed Muizzu is bending over backwards to woo Indian tourists whose numbers have fallen due to the diplomatic standoff early this year.
In 2023, India was the biggest source market for Maldivian tourism, accounting for over 11% of the 1.8 million tourist arrivals. But by July 2024, India had come down to No. 6 with 71,381 arrivals, a 42.5% drop from the previous year. Currently, the highest number of tourist arrivals are from China. 228,000 Chinese have visited the Maldives so far this year. Russia accounts for 166,000 arrivals, UK 128,000, German 110,000 and Italy 107,000.
Be that as it may, by August 2024, India and Maldives had ended the estrangement. India offered Maldives much-needed financial relief and other bonanzas mainly to keep rival China at bay. But India is also simultaneously trying to build the Lakshadweep islands off the Kerala coast as a competitor to the Maldives, though it was at first a knee-jerk reaction to the “India Out” campaign in the Maldives.
Those in the Indian tourist trade say that Lakshadweep is too small, too undeveloped, and too ecologically fragile, to be a challenge to the Maldives, which is a well-developed and established international tourist destination.
But Maldives is not taking India’s challenge lightly tiny as Lakshnadweep may be. On October 9, President Muizzu held a networking event in Mumbai to promote tourism in Maldives. The event was attended by a number of Bollywood celebrities, including Shilpa Shetty, Arbaaz Khan and his wife Shura Khan, Sunny Kaushal, Sonakshi Sinha and husband, actor Zaheer Iqbal, and Karisma Kapoor. All of them, except Karisma, have visited Maldives in the past and expressed their love for the country.
President Muizzu extended a special invitation to shoot Bollywood movies in Maldives to promote it as a tourist destination. He stated the Maldives had been the “World’s Leading Destination” for four consecutive years and attributed that to the trust that travellers from all corners of the globe had in the country. In 2023 Maldives got tourists from over 180 countries. The Maldivian government aims to reach the target of 2 million tourists by the end of 2024.
“Our pristine beaches, luxurious resorts, and unmatched hospitality have been the cornerstone of our success and India has been a key partner in this journey. For many Indian travellers, the Maldives has become not just a destination, but a haven where they can unwind, recharge, and create cherished memories,” the President said.
According to the Maldivian media, the President went on to say that given that Indian travellers are increasingly seeking new and diverse experiences, Maldives is ready to meet this demand with niche segments such as ecotourism, wellness tourism, and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) tourism and film tourism.
In 1972, Maldives started with just two resorts, with a capacity of around 280 beds. But soon backpackers and adventure seekers flocked to it attracted by its unspoilt palm-fringed beaches and calm turquoise- blue waters. Honeymooners found it the isolated getaway they had dreamed of. It did not take long for the idyllic atolls to grab the attention of celebrities, especially Bollywood stars. Westerners seeking warm waters as a change from their cold and wet countries made a beeline to the Maldives. Chinese and Indians gave the much-needed numbers.
Beginning with the regime of President Abdulla Gayoom, successive Maldivian governments have been innovating the facilities on offer. The “One Island, One Resort” concept was a masterstroke. This gave each island resort exclusivity and its guests a sense of having their own domain. It appealed to the top-end tourists from the affluent countries, and brought in the dollars in quantities that mattered.
There are underwater restaurants from where one can watch marine life while dining. Glass-bottomed spa rooms are perched above coral reefs. Arriving by private seaplanes gives the visitor a sense of class. Divers explore the depths of the ocean, uncovering underwater caves and coral reefs.
Maldives offers visa-free arrivals to its major source markets, which include India, Russia and China. As of January 17 2024, there were 180 resorts, 15 hotels, 811 guesthouses, and 140 safari vessels offering a total of more than 62,000 beds. For the less affluent there are guesthouses in inhabited islands which give a peek into Maldivian village life and village cuisine. 39 airlines bring tourists.
Maldives has a detailed blueprint for development called the Fifth Tourism Master Plan 2023-2027 (5TMP), done with the assistance of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). It incorporates the recommendations of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and international best practices. The aim is to double income from tourism to US$ 6 billion by 2027. The 5TMP envisages a 50-60% increase in accommodation and 25 to 40% increase international air connectivity.
As per 5YMP many resorts have embraced eco-friendly practices, establishing coral rehabilitation programs, installing solar power systems, and implementing waste management strategies. Maldives has taken a pledge to be carbon-neutral by 2030.
Lakshadweep
As stated earlier, when the Maldivian government became hostile to India and launched the “India Out” India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally promoted the Lakshadweep islands off the coast of Kerala as an alternative destination for Indian tourist.
“Those who wish to embrace the adventurer in them should travel to Lakshadweep,” he said and suddenly arrived at Lakshadweep and had himself photographed and videoed in various poses. These were flashed all over by the Indian media. The Indian travel agents stopped bookings for Maldives and promoted Lakshadweep. Bollywood also jumped into the fray.
Lakshadweep, is a group of 36 coral islands with a total area of only 32 sq km. The islands between 220 km and 440 km from Kochi in Kerala. Lakshadweep is an archipelago consisting of 12 atolls, three reefs and five submerged banks. The inhabited islands are Kavaratti, Agatti, Amini, Kadmat, Kiltan, Chetlat, Bitra, Andrott, Kalpeni and Minicoy. Bitra is the smallest of all having a population of 271 persons. Bangaram has a population of only 61.
Among the inhabited islands, Kavaratti has a capacity of 243 cottages Bangaram, which Prime Minister Modi visited, has the largest carrying capacity of 200 cottages. According to India Tourism Statistics for 2019, 10,435 domestic tourists and 1,313 foreign tourists visited Lakshadweep in 2018; 6,620 and 1,027 respectively in 2017.
This is minuscule in comparison with arrivals in Maldives. But there is scope for increase. The marine fauna are plentiful. Water sports activities such as scuba diving, wind surfing, snorkeling, surfing, kayaking; canoeing, water skiing, yachting and night-voyages into the sea could be developed. Tourists can come to Lakshadweep throughout the year except during the South-west monsoon months when seas are extremely rough.
But the fragility of Lakshadweep’s ecology has been a major concern. In May 2012, the Indian Supreme Court appointed a panel under retired Justice R V Raveendran to look into the environmental and developmental challenges on the islands. The report noted the “fragile ecology of the islands and the need for conservation of the corals, lagoons and other ecosystems” and laid down the “carrying capacity” of each island.
The Raveendran committee recommended that all infrastructure development proposals be in accordance with an Integrated Island Management Plan, and should be implemented in consultation with elected local self-government bodies.
But people who have been living on the islands for generations, are opposed to the administration behaving “as if the land belongs to the government”, media reports said. Lakshadweep Administrator, Praful Patel, has faced protests for his development initiatives, and local groups obtained a stay on some of the works from the Kerala High Court.
“Even if you want to develop the islands, there is not much land available,” former Member of Parliament for the Lakshadweep Mohammed Faizal Padippura told Indian Express. Additionally, even Indian citizens require an entry permit issued by Lakshadweep Administration to visit it. Only bonafide Lakshadweep residents don’t need a permit. This is a cumbersome requirement.
A small 72-seat aircraft flies between Kochi and Agatti, often only once a day. Seven passenger ferries ply between Lakshadweep and Kochi but the passage takes 14 to 18 hours. The ships together can carry 2,100 people, but not all the five ships are available every day. Only about 1,500-1,900 seats would be available at a time, and only a few ships have some seats reserved for tourists, Faizal said. Local people complain this is inadequate even for their requirements.
Lakshadweep is looking to low volume but high end tourism.
Indeed, making Lakshadweep a challenger to Maldives is a far cry.
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