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Informist, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026

 

--BUDGET: To set up 5 regional hubs to promote medical tourism

--BUDGET: Medical tourism hubs to have Aayush centres

--BUDGET: To set up 5 medical tourism regional hubs with pvt sector

--BUDGET: Tourism sector has large role in creating employment

--BUDGET: Propose pilot scheme to train 10,000 guides from 20 tourism spots

--BUDGET: Upgrade Ayush pharmacies, drug testing labs

--BUDGET:Propose to develop 15 archeological sites into cultural destinations

 

NEW DELHI – The government aims to promote tourism by establishing five regional medical hubs and developing 15 archeological sites into cultural destinations, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her Budget speech for 2026-27 (Apr-Mar) on Sunday. The government has also proposed to set up a National Institute of Hospitality and National Destination Digital Knowledge Grid in order to generate employment through tourism, she said.

 

The medical hubs will be established in partnership with the private sector, and will serve as integrated healthcare complexes, Sitharaman said. These centres will have Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy (AYUSH) centres, medical value tourism facilitation centres, and infrastructure for diagnostics, post-care and rehabilitation. In order to promote AYUSH, the government has proposed setting up three new All India Institutes of Ayurveda, and upgrading AYUSH pharmacies and drug testing labs. The government also plans to upgrade the World Health Organization global traditional medicine centre in Jamnagar to bolster evidence-based research, training and awareness for traditional medicine.

 

In order to promote cultural sites, the finance minister said that these would have curated walkways, immersive storytelling skills and technologies to conserve labs, interpretation centres and guides. The government has also proposed a pilot scheme for upskilling 10,000 guides at 20 tourist sites through a standardised, high-quality 12-week training course in hybrid mode, in collaboration with Indian Institute of Management. In order to promote trekking and hiking, the government plans to develop mountain trails in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu & Kashmir, the finance minister said.

 

The government also plans to develop Araku Valley in the Eastern Ghats, Podhigai Malai in the Western Ghats and key nesting sites in the coastal areas of Odisha, Karnataka, and Kerala. The government also plans to develop bird watching trails along the Pulikat lake in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. This year, the government will host the first global big cat summit where 95 countries will deliberate on collective strategies for conservation, Sitharaman said. The government established the International Big Cat Alliance in 2024.  End

 

Reported by Astha Oriel

Edited by Avishek Dutta

 

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