It seems to be India’s time to ride the wave of transformation. Driven by a dynamic synergy of improved connectivity and state-of-the-art infrastructure, India is ambitious enough to be among the emerging meeting destinations in the Indo-Pacific region.
As an aspirational tourism destination, the meeting industry seems to be the last frontier. The Indian MICE Story, as we move into the 2025s, is not complete unless you bring into focus the insatiable growth in infrastructure and connectivity across India’s vast geography. The India story, with an anticipated growth of around 8% in its GDP and leapfrogging into being among the top three global economies, is quite aligned with the growth of a story of connectivity both in the digital arena and the country’s infrastructure.
Having recently been crowned as the world’s most populous country, India has over half a billion Internet subscribers, and data consumption, as per the latest report by Nokia India, has reached a record 24.1 GB per month for an average user in 2023. This is a growth of 24 percent in a year—from 19.5 GB per user in 2022, making India the second largest telecom network in the world. The report further indicated there were 724 million and 131 4G and 5G data subscribers in India by the end of December 2023. Additionally, there were 796 million 4G capable active devices in the country, of which 134 million were also 5G capable.
The Indian aviation scenario has drastically changed over the last decade, with the number of airports having doubled to nearly 150 operational airports. The sheer number of new connections being added, especially to smaller cities, is the more exciting scenario. Delhi, with 140 destinations, 71 of which are domestic and 69 being international, leads the pack. Mumbai comes next with 62 domestic and 49 international. Bangalore with 100 destinations with 72 domestic and 28 international, followed by Hyderabad with 80 connections with 62 domestic and 18 international. The linkages to smaller cities have helped create a hub phenomenon, where one today is not surprised to hear someone from Jabalpur is now travelling to Mauritius via Bangalore.
According to the Ministry of Civil Aviation’s Press Release, the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)—UDAN, or “Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik,” which was launched on October 21, 2016, has surely brought in a success story with 601 routes, including helicopter routes, having been operationalized. The number of operational airports in the country has doubled from 74 in 2014 to 157 in 2024, and the aim is to increase this number to 350-400 by 2047. Domestic air passengers have more than doubled in the past decade, with Indian airlines significantly expanding their fleets.
The release further adds, “A total of 86 aerodromes—comprising 71 airports, 13 heliports, and 2 water aerodromes—have been operationalized, facilitating the travel of over 1.44 crore passengers across more than 2.8 lakh flights. Since its inception, fixed-wing operations have cumulatively covered approximately 112 crore kilometres, roughly equivalent to circumnavigating the globe around 28,000 times.” As we glide into 2025, two greenfield airports in the form of the Navi Mumbai International Airport and Noida (Jewar) International Airport being operationalized this year will further catalyze the connectivity growth story.
As connectivity gets a push and hospitality brands find newer homes in smaller towns, one sees the need to discover the potential of India’s hinterland.
As we move into the transportation infrastructure mode, the entire country seems to be in one big construction frenzy. Roads and highways making headlines, new trains chugging along, Metro lines in urban metros already having crossed a 1000-kilometer mark, etc., all hogging headlines. India has the second-largest road network in the world, spanning over 6.37 million kilometers. The Indian Road network transports 90% of passengers and 64.5% of goods, making a good read, while the government now aims to construct 65,000 km of national highways for Rs. 5.35 lakh crore (US$ 64.17 billion).
Coherent Market Insights reported that the Indian MICE market size is to be valued at US$ 3.30 billion in 2023 and is expected to touch US$ 10.52 billion by 2030.
Meeting Infrastructure: China has 92 purpose-built exhibition sites spread over three million square meters. India has just 12 exhibition venues that occupy barely 2.6 lakh square meters of space. India is 40% of China in terms of the size of the economy, but in the exhibition’s infrastructure sphere, we are only 9 percent of what China does. Germany, on the other extreme, has over three million square meters of exhibition space, which, considering India’s exhibition industry, is on a different planet altogether! With longer gestation periods, no convention centers make money in the short run. It is the City Municipal Corporation to ensure we create world-class convention facilities. With increased footfalls, increased tax revenues, and adding a new employment engine, the meeting industry has complained that India did not have major mega convention centres and we could not bid for mega conferences with 10–15,000 delegates. Now, the inauguration of Bharat Mandapam and Yashobhoomi in Delhi by the Prime Minister is an opportunity the MICE industry in India cannot ignore. Bidding for mega-association conventions is a long and tedious process.
The faster the Indian Convention Promotion Bureau and India Tourism can facilitate and aid in creating viable bid documents and a winning presentation, the meeting industry in India will find another successful segment to compete in on a global scale. Globally, convention centers, unless backed by the city and government funding, seldom make money. It should be part of the government’s (at both the state and national level) city infrastructure. To give a perspective, China has invested in over 100 convention centers with a minimum area of 3500 square meters across the country to be part of the city’s infrastructure.
The successful conduct of the G20 events in India held across a variety of meeting venues, from far-flung venues such as the Rann of Kutch in Bhuj, Gujarat, Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, Jodhpur in Rajasthan, Siliguri/Darjeeling in West Bengal, Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, etc., brought in an enhanced image of India as a viable meeting destination.
In conclusion, India’s ambition to emerge as a global leader in the MICE sector reflects its dynamic economic growth, robust infrastructure, and diverse cultural offerings. Should the government get its act together at the national and state levels with strategic initiatives and bring life to world-class event venues, the entrepreneurial spirit of its industry will set new benchmarks in the global MICE landscape.
As India continues to embrace innovation, resolve, and a spirit of collaboration, it will strengthen its position as a preferred destination for business events. In the tapestry of global connectivity, India is not just weaving threads—it is stitching a great MICE story. With improved infrastructure, seamless connectivity, and a meeting industry that knows how to blend business with a touch of Indian magic, the country can redefine how the world meets. Whether it is boardrooms with a view of ancient palaces or conferences powered by cutting-edge tech, India should not just keep up but be a cog in the wheel to lead the story. After all, when it comes to connecting the world, India is not just a speed-breaker; it is the destination!