The National Statistics Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has launched the Domestic Tourism Expenditure Survey (DTES) in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Conducted as part of the 80th round of the National Sample Survey, the exercise began in July 2025 and will continue until June 2026.
The Directorate of Economics and Statistics in the islands is coordinating with the NSO’s Field Operations Division at Lamba Line, Sri Vijaya Puram, to ensure smooth execution. Data will be collected across selected sample units to provide insights into household expenditure on domestic tourism, along with information about visitor and trip characteristics.
The survey is regarded as vital for preparing the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) by the Ministry of Tourism. The TSA provides a structured framework to measure the economic contribution of tourism within the overall national economy. By capturing detailed spending patterns, the survey will help policy-makers better understand the scale and distribution of tourism-related economic activity.
Tourism plays an important role in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, both as a source of income for local communities and as a sector with significant growth potential. Data from the survey is expected to inform strategies for infrastructure development, service quality improvements, and sustainable management of tourist flows.
The NSO has appealed to the public to cooperate with enumerators and supervisors during data collection. All information will be treated as confidential, ensuring that household privacy is protected while enabling researchers to gather accurate insights. This assurance is aimed at encouraging greater participation and honest disclosure from households.
The DTES is expected to capture multiple dimensions of domestic tourism. These include expenditure on transport, accommodation, food, and recreational activities, along with information about the nature of trips, whether for leisure, business, or other purposes. Collecting such granular data allows for a nuanced understanding of how tourism spending contributes to both household budgets and the broader economy.
For the islands, where tourism has long been viewed as a driver of economic development, participation in such surveys is crucial. Accurate data enables better planning of facilities, targeted investment, and more efficient allocation of resources. It also allows authorities to track how domestic tourists interact with the unique geography of the islands, and how spending patterns differ from other parts of India.
In addition to its economic significance, the survey also carries social value. By highlighting patterns of participation in tourism, it can inform policies aimed at making tourism more inclusive and accessible. This may include identifying barriers that prevent certain sections of the population from engaging in travel, and formulating measures to address them.
The year-long exercise, therefore, holds importance not just for the Ministry of Tourism but also for local administrations. The results will provide a knowledge base for both national and regional strategies, supporting the goal of making tourism a sustainable and broad-based contributor to growth.
By undertaking the Domestic Tourism Expenditure Survey, the government is reinforcing its commitment to evidence-based policy-making. For the islands, where tourism remains both a challenge and an opportunity, the survey offers a chance to align development strategies with actual consumer behavior and economic realities.
