THE ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF THE COVID-19 LOCKDOWN ON THE VENDORS OF TOURIST DESTINATIONS IN ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS

Abstract

Tourism plays a vital role in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) in terms of generating income and employment for the islanders. However, if there is any natural disaster that occurs on the islands, like COVID-19, then the entire population of ANI will be affected, including the informal workers (vendors) as well. The study was conducted in various tourist places in South Andaman of Andaman and Nicobar Islands (India) in 2023. The study followed a simple random sampling technique to collect the samples from the study area. The researcher chose 30 samples based on the availability of the population in the different tourist locations, and a structured interview schedule was framed to collect information from 30 respondents regarding economic loss and effects due to the COVID-19 lockdown. This study mainly focuses on the three different periods of the COVID-19 lockdown, such as before, during, and after the COVID-19 lockdown. The study has found many negatives of the COVID-19 lockdown on the vendors’ daily lives, such as vendors could not make rent for the houses during the lockdown; no income was generated during the lockdown and lowered the income after the lockdown; employees in the business suffered financially and later quit the work; monthly expenditures of the family were increased during and after the lockdown; they were unable to pay the bank loan EMI during the lockdown; and so on. Since most of the vendors require financial support during an emergency, the administration of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands should always be ready for any natural disaster or emergency that would harm tourism and the income of the informal workers.