The shocking gang rapes plaguing India have taken a huge toll on its tourism industry — with 25 percent fewer foreigners visiting in the first three months of the year.
Even more dramatically, the number of female tourists visiting India fell by 35 percent compared to the same period last year, the
Guardian newspaper of London reports.
The downward spiral in tourism is revealed in a just-released survey by Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India.
The survey found that tourists fear being the victims of sexual assault.
It says Indian tour operators reported large numbers of tour cancellations after the nauseating gang rape of a young physiotherapist on a Delhi bus last December. The victim died from her injuries.
Since that attack, six foreign women have complained to police about being attacked or traumatized by men, most of the incidents occurring at busy tourist destinations.
And last week, an 18-year-old male Delhi University student who had gone out to meet a Facebook friend was gang-raped.
Many foreign tourists are now bypassing India in favor of such countries as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
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