New Delhi, March 12: With the Union Health Ministry suspending all tourist visas to combat coronavirus pandemic, reports arrived that tourist industry is expecting an upcoming crisis in the tourism and travel sector. A report claims that Union government's move could damage an industry that caters to about 10 million foreign tourists a year.

Informing about the latest development, CEO of the Federation of Hospitality and Tourism of Rajasthan -- Rachna Singh -- said, as quoted by global news agency Reuters, "Everything has been cancelled". She added that many of their clients had abandoned plans which they booked for scheduled visit next month. Apart from this, Singh said recent case of Italian visitors tested positive for COVID-19 had impacted their business. Coronovirus Impact on Indian Economy: GDP to Decline by Atleast 70-80 BPS, COVID-19 Playing Adverse Effect on Stocks, Says JPMorgan. 

Similar are the views of other domestic tour operators in the country. General secretary of the Association of Domestic Tour Operators of India -- Chetan Gupta -- opine that government latest decision to ban tourist visas had risked taking tourism and business activity to an "all time low". He said, as the agency quoted, "All our members are suffering at the moment."

Not only Rajasthan, even Kerala's hotelier are concerned who claimed that their hotel occupancyhad dropped to 20 percent. Director of the five-star Crowne Plaza hotel -- Sooraj Nair -- in Kochi expects that the situation is going to become worse in the coming times. As per to an estimate, the average hotel occupancy in India in 2019 was around two thirds.

Meanwhile, industry sources claim that expected economic growth is likely to slide for at least two quarters. Amomng the other sector that is expecting a hit is airline sector. Soon after Union government's decision, the shares of Indian airlines tumbled on Thursday.

Earlier on Thursday Sensex recorded the worst fall since 2008, by ending almost 3,000 points at 32,778 down. Also, Nifty, on the other hand, ended the Thursday session at 9,590, down 868 points (8.30 percent). With this, investers claim that Dalal Street mayhem wiped off wealth worth over Rs 10 lakh crore today. Sensex Records Worst Fall Since 2008, Tanks 2,919 Points, Nifty at 9,590, Dalal Street Witnesses Bloodbath Due to Coronavirus Pandemic.

Also, Reserve Bank of India on Thursday said that they are taking all necessary measures to ensure that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Indian economy are mitigated. Adding on, the RBI even mentioned that they have decided to undertake 6-month US Dollar sell or buy swaps to provide liquidity to the foreign exchange market.

Informing about the COVID-19 cases, Indian government on Thursday said that 77 positive cases have been reported, which includes 60 Indians and 17 foreigners. The government informed that 52 testing facilities are located across the country along with 56 sample collection centers.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 12, 2020 08:14 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).