DOI No.10.20968|rpm|2017|v15|/1|151687 9 Problems & Perspectives of Financing Tourism industry in West Rengal: An Empirical study Sudipta Ghosh*, J.K. Das** Abstract Tourism encompasses economic activities viz. accommodation, transportation, food and beverage, informa- tion dissemination and entertat.nments etc. This sector generates a large investment and financing opportuni- ties. Asper the estimate of the World Tourism Organisatt.on, India is projected to become the world fifth largest business travel destination. Indian tourism sector is expected to get USD1O9.30 billion investment by 2020. The growth of tourism is heavily depended upon the availability and accessibility of financial re- sources over above the geographic attributes for tourist attractions. West Bengal, a state of India has a great scope to be the destination of tourism due to well developed communication links & strategic location ; above all its diverstfied and rich tourism resources such as mountains, sea, jungle, mangrove area, religious sites, heritage, culture, fairs and festivals. Developing tourism and attracting tourists need substantial financing investment. Tourismprojects require large int.tial investment and then tourism business organt.sations/toun.sm entrepreneurs need funds for staring entrepn.ses. Tht.spaper is an attempt to analyse and understand empirically the financial aspects of the tourism industry of West Bengal. The present study is based on both primary and secondary data. The scope of tourism investment and financing at derent nodes of tourism development across West Bengal have been t.denttfied on the basis of published reports by the Central Government, the State Government andpn.vale institutions. Primary data on financial perspective have been gathered through a survey on selected tourism business organt.satt.ons/toun.sm entrepreneurs located in West Bengal to understand their views and opinions regarding tourism in West Bengal. Findings of this paper related toproblems andprospects of the financial aspects of toun~sm shall help to formulate strategy for tourism development in West Bengal at desired level. Keywords: Tourism Industty Tourism Financing, Tourism Investment, Strategy fOr tourism Introduction Tourism is a service industry and plays important role comprising of Economic activities such as accommodation, transportation, food and beverage, entertainments etc. Tourism is recognised as one of the important revenue earners of many countries. The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) confirmed the role of tourism as a development tool in the Manila Declaration (27 September to 10 October 1980, Manila, Philippines). Arrival of tourists in a particular Mr. Sudipta Ghosh, Assistant Professor Department of Commerce, Maharani Kasiswari College, Kolkata Dr. J.K. Dos, Professor Department of Commerce, University of Calcutta, Kolkata destination creates multiplier economic activities. As a result, tourism has a notable contribution in country's GDP through foreign exchange earnings and employment generation. This sector is considered as a smokeless industry although it has few negative impacts like environmental degradation, increase in the price level, displacement issues etc. Important components of tourism sector are tourists, tourism business organisations, public enterprises, public private partnership ventures and the Government. Tourism activities generate the scope for financing investment. It attracts investment to build tourism infrastructure and superstructure. Growth of tourism is heavily depends upon the availability and accessibility of financial resources. Also, tourism business organisations/tourism entrepreneurs require proper financial support to achieve profitability, growth and sustainability. There are Review of Professional Management, Volume 15, Issue 1 (January-June-2017) ISSN 0972-8686 Online ISSN 2455-0647