PRESS TRUST OF INDIA
New Delhi, Oct 27: Days after a Swiss couple was attacked in Agra, Union Tourism Minister KJ Alphons Friday said India was safer compared to many developed countries of the world.
Alphons, who had sent a letter to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Thursday asking him to take steps to ensure swift action against those involved as such incidents negatively impact tourism in the country, tried to set at rest fears among tourists visiting India.
“We are 1.3 billion people. How many incidents take place in India? Very, very few. But of course these unfortunate incidents and should not happen,” Alphons said.
Quentin Jeremy Clerc, (24), and his girlfriend Marie Droz, (24), who came to India on September 30, were allegedly attacked by a group of men near the railway station at Fatehpur Sikri in Uttar Pradesh Sunday. The Swiss nationals were reportedly left bloodied and bruised by the attackers.
Earlier this month, the minister had said that the “stories” of India being unsafe for foreign tourists are “exaggerated”.
According to the National Crimes Records Bureau (NCRB), crimes against foreign tourists had declined by 29.4 per cent in 2015 compared to the previous year.
In 2014, 384 such cases were reported from across the country, the NCRB said, adding that the number came down to 271 in 2015.