Lakshadweep – A Viable Option to the Maldives

GGN EXCLUSIVEINDIAIndia
By Global Governance News

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 9th Jan. 

Lakshadweep – A Viable Option to the Maldives

Lakshadweep, located in the clean blue Arabian Sea, is an ideal destination for travellers looking to enjoy magnificent beaches and water sports. And it appears that soon the untapped Lakshadweep will be the primary focus of the Bharatiya tourism sector.

Earlier this week, Bharat’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea and released magnificent photographs of the island’s beautiful beaches, as well as snorkelling. The pristine coastlines and breath-taking beauty have drawn the world’s attention to the islands, with Lakshadweep remaining the most googled phrase for two days in a row following PM Modi’s visit.

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The PM’s attempt to market Lakshadweep as a tourism destination appears to be off to a promising start.

Lakshadweep could be a viable option to the Maldives

This visit by Prime Minister Modi signifies Bharat’s resolve to promote Lakshadweep as an alternative to the Maldives.

The Maldives, Bharat’s neighbour in the Arabian Sea, is the most popular tourist destination worldwide. The country of 1,200 islands, the majority of which are uninhabited, is a famous tourist destination of Bharatiyas. Everyone, from celebrities to athletes to influencers, enjoys visiting the Maldives and sharing images of their experiences on social media.

According to the Maldivian Tourism Ministry, in November 2023, 161,751 arrivals from Bharat accounted for over 20% of all arrivals. Meanwhile, from January to November 2023, Bharatiya accounted for 10.9% of overall arrivals (181, 371) in the country, ranking second in market share.

In 2018, Bharat was the fifth largest source of tourist arrivals in the Maldives. Out of a total of 14,84,274 tourists, around 6.1% almost 90,474 were from Bharat. However, in 2019, Bharat ranked second, with over double the number of arrivals of approx. 1,66,030 tourists compared to the previous year.

In pandemic-hit 2020, Bharatiya was the Maldives’ largest source market, with roughly 63,000 Bharatiya visiting the country. In 2021 and 2022, Bharat remained the leading market, with over 2.91 lakh and 2.41 lakh Bharatiya tourist arrivals, respectively, and a market share of 23% and 14.4%.

However, despite being located in the same geography, Lakshadweep receives fewer visitors than the Maldives, and PM Modi’s government is definitely working to reverse that. The Bharatiya Union Territory provides the same experience as its neighbouring countries.

Since PM Modi’s visit to Lakshadweep, an archipelago of 36 islands in the Arabian Sea, there has been speculation that the picturesque region could become the next Maldives.

However, several Maldivian government officials and social media users took offence and began disparaging PM Modi and Bharat.

 What’s the point of contention?

Mariyam Shiuna, the deputy minister of youth development, information, and arts, referred to Prime Minister Modi as a ‘clown’ and a ‘puppet of Israel’ while posting photographs from his visit to the archipelago.

“What a clown. The puppet of Israel Mr Narendra diver with a life jacket #VisitMaldives,” Shiuna posted on X.

Zahid Rameez, a Council member of the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), also targeted Bharat, writing: “The move is great. However, the idea of competing with us is delusional. How can they provide the service we offer? How can they be so clean? The permanent smell in the rooms will be the biggest downfall.”

Some other Maldivian leaders followed suit, posting identical racist tirades disguised as digs at Bharat.

Maldivian leaders promptly suspended:

After the Bharatiya side expressed concern, the Maldivian government suspended Shiuna, Malsha Shareef, and Hassan Zihan on January 7 for their offensive remarks.

The Maldives’ foreign ministry explained in an official statement that they were personal thoughts and did not represent the country’s position.

“The Maldives government is aware of insulting remarks made on social media platforms about foreign leaders and high-ranking persons.

“These are personal opinions and do not represent the views of the Maldives government,” the statement stated.

Bharatiya superstars encourages the local tourism

Many renowned Bharatiya personalities, including cricketer Hardik Pandya and actor Akshay Kumar, were shocked by the Maldivian officials’ comments.

 

 

Former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, actor Salman Khan, and others urged people to visit their own islands rather than travel overseas as part of an internet campaign to promote local tourism.

#ExploreIndianIslands became the second most popular trending hashtag on social networking site X in Bharat, and some users began uploading screenshots of Maldivian holiday cancellations.

In addition to the growing outrage over racial criticism by Maldivian netizens and politicians, Bollywood actress and model Poonam Pandey has stated that she will cancel her next shoot in the island nation, stating that she will never shoot in the Maldives again.

She said that when she informed her team that she would not be shooting in the Maldives, they agreed to her terms. Pandey further stated that she wants to shoot in Lakshadweep. In her post, she used the hashtags #NationFirst and #ExploreIndianIsland, as well as tagging the Indian PMO, to assert that the nation comes first in the face of anti-Bharat rhetoric from some Maldivian ministers.

She wrote, “I love shooting in the Maldives, but I’ll never shoot there again. When I was set to shoot my next shoot in the Maldives, I told my team that I would not fly if the shoot got stranded there. Fortunately, they consented and are now aiming to shoot in Lakshadweep.

 

EaseMyTrip took a crucial move by suspending all Maldives flight bookings

Further adding to this online boycott of the Maldives, flight and trip booking company EaseMyTrip decided to suspend all Maldives flight bookings after derogatory remarks were made by some of the Maldives’ now-suspended ministers against Bharat following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Lakshadweep.

Nishant Pitti, co-founder and CEO of Bharatiya online travel giant EaseMyTrip, spoke out in support of Bharat on social media, saying, “In solidarity with our nation, @EaseMyTrip has suspended all Maldives flight bookings.”

EaseMyTrip took one step further, launching a tour Lakshadweep campaign with the hashtag #ChaloLakshadweep.

 

Speaking with ANI, Prashant Pitti said, “Our company has recently taken the decision to not accept bookings for Maldives. The reason for this is the row over Maldives MP’s post on PM Modi’s visit to Lakshadweep. We have taken this decision to establish ‘nation first and business later’.”

Meanwhile, on January 8, the Bharatiya Chamber of Commerce made a “appeal to boycott Maldives”. Subhash Goyal, the head of the ICC’s aviation and tourism committee, urged all Bharatiya trade associations to “stop promoting Maldives in light of the anti-Bharat feelings expressed by Maldivian ministers.”

“Please divert all such queries to Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar Islands which are even better than Maldives in many ways other destinations that can be promoted in the Bharatiya Ocean region are Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Bali, Phuket etc,” he said. Goyal further “appealed” Indian carriers to suspend the flights towards Maldives and appealed Bharatiya hotel companies to make more investment in Lakshadweep “for better returns.”

Meanwhile, Goyal’s STC Travels has also stopped offering Maldivian tickets and packages.

Bharat aids Maldives in defence, economy, and education

Since 1988, Bharat and the Maldives have collaborated closely on defence and security. Bharat has been very accommodating and flexible in meeting the Maldivian needs for defence equipment and training, from signing a comprehensive Action Plan for Defence in April 2016 to supplying defence equipment, improving defence infrastructure, and training Maldivian forces.

In terms of financial support, the Modi government supplied the Maldives with an additional $100 million in November 2022. The assistance took the form of budgetary support to help the archipelago nation cope with its tough economic circumstances.

It should be underlined that the help is being extended without limits, and the Maldives has been given the opportunity to spend whatever it sees fit in its economic recovery.

Bharat’s prompt delivery of 30,000 doses of measles vaccine in January 2020 to avoid an outbreak in the Maldives, as well as its prompt and thorough aid to the Maldives during the COVID-19 epidemic bolstered Bharat’s credentials as a “first responder”.

Every year, several Maldivian teenagers pursue higher education at Indian universities.  Bharatiya instructors have been a presence in Maldivian schools for decades. Bharat has regularly provided a significant amount of ICCR scholarships to Maldivian youngsters, namely 39 for 2021-22 and 34+ for 2022-23 and 2023-24.

 

Maldivians’ “pro-China” and anti-Bharat sentiments

This effort to promote Lakshadweep as the preferred destination over the Maldives is also viewed as an insult to the island nation, which has recently been portrayed as “pro-China” with anti-Bharat sentiments fuelled there. Mohamed Muizzu, the Maldives’ President, was elected last year and is pro-China. Shortly after his victory, he heightened tensions with Bharat by requesting that its troops leave from the island nation. Mohamed Muizzu, the Maldives’ President, was elected last year and is pro-China. Shortly after his victory, he heightened tensions with Bharat by requesting that its troops leave from the island nation.

Meanwhile, he is connected to China’s communist party and actively promotes Chinese interests in the region. China has already begun utilising Maldivian land to retain its influence in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean. A new Free Trade Agreement is also in the works between China and the Maldives.

Tourism remains the primary source of revenue for the Maldives, and Bharatiya’s attempt to reduce its share of the tourism business by promoting Lakshadweep as an alternative sends a strong signal to the Maldives. By promoting Lakshadweep, Bharat is sending a message to the Maldives that their recent anti-Bharat and pro-China actions are being noticed, and Bharat is disappointed. As a result, the current dispute with New Delhi may have major consequences for the Maldives.

Aside from delivering prosperity to the archipelago, growth of Lakshadweep will also warn Maldives that they need to course-correct when it comes to their relationship with their neighbour, especially Bharat.

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