Slow progress on India medical tourism plans

The Indian government has failed to deliver promises on promoting medical tourism.

The notoriously slow bureaucracy of any government body in India means that promises to help promote medical tourism are not being met.

For many months the government has promised electronic medical visas, but there is no deadline and many political promises but no action.

The much-vaunted promotional body for medical and wellness tourism met for the first time in January but appears not to have met since then. It made promises on promotion but as yet appears to not even have a website.

The Ministry of Tourism made many promises on wellness and medical tourism, but nothing has happened.

Claims that medical tourism has grown in the last three years may be as much due to people using medical visas rather than normal ones, than real growth.

Promises of accreditation and tougher standards for hospitals and wellness centres have not been met as yet again, nothing is happening.

The medical tourism world may be surprised that as some competitors struggle, India is not acting quicker to promote medical tourism.