A Study on the Impact of Sri Lankan Crisis on Kerala Tourism

Abstract

Tourism is a major sector in the world that has a significant role in the economic development of various countries. Tourism sector also helps in the generation of employment opportunities. Sri Lanka and Kerala are two major tourist destinations in South Asia. Millions of tourists visit Sri Lanka and Kerala every year. Sri Lanka as a nation suffered from a brutal civil war and it adversely affected all the major sectors in the country. After the end of civil war, Sri Lanka achieved significant growth and development in multiple fields. Millions of tourists visited the nation and Sri Lanka received foreign exchange earnings worth billions of Dollars. But the terrorist attacks in the year 2019, COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing economic and political crisis shattered the nation and especially the tourism sector. Kerala, the southern state of India is currently benefitting from the Sri Lankan crisis. Kerala is a major rival to Sri Lanka in terms of tourism. Both Sri Lanka and Kerala has similar climate, landscape, food cuisine, geography etc. As a result of the Sri Lankan crisis, international tourists started preferring Kerala over Sri Lanka. This article aims to analyze the impact of Sri Lankan crisis on Kerala tourism.