"Tourism is an underdeveloped sector of the country. We believe that tourism sector will be able to earn substantial amount of foreign currency if it gets proper support from the government," said Faridul Haque, president of TOAB, at a press briefing at a hotel in Dhaka yesterday.

The total duty and taxes on used, reconditioned and new built-in air-conditioned coaches and cruise vessels are now more than 30 percent and 15 percent, he mentioned.

"Presently, there are only seven tourist coaches in the country and very few cruise vessels for providing service to the tourists and it is one of the main hindrances to the growth of this sector," Haque explained.

He suggested import of air-conditioned coaches with a capacity of 15 to 40 seats for the use of tourists only. "These vehicles should be non-transferable."

Cruise vessels with a capacity of 15 to 120 beds with maximum facilities can be imported without duty for operating in the riverine and coastal areas like Sundarbans, Chittagong and Cox's Bazar, he added.

Tourism is one of the largest industries in the world, contributing more than 10 percent of the total global GDP, mentioned the TOAB president.

The tour operators demanded Tk 300 crore allocations in the next budget for developing physical infrastructure at important tourist spots of the country.

A fund to the tune of Tk 10 crore should be allocated in the next fiscal year's budget for marketing and publicity purposes to make Bangladesh tourism popular in the global market, Haque observed.

Taufiq Rahman, secretary general of TOAB, Masud Hossain, executive director of Bengal Tours Ltd, Sadique Ahsan, president of Bangladesh Hotel and Guest House Owners' Association and other members of the association were present at the briefing.