DUBAI, June 14 — India is projected to achieve the highest growth in wellness tourism worldwide in the next five years, with over 20 per cent annual increase through 2017.

A study conducted by SRI international projects India’s wellness market will surpass US$18 billion (RM58 billion) in the next four years, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

Wellness tourism is a US$439-billion global industry and represents 14 per cent of total tourism spending in the US$3.2 trillion world tourism industry.

The luxury wellness tourism segment is estimated to grow 50 per cent higher than global tourism by 2017.

“India has a wealth of knowledge and medical systems to treat people and help maintain their health through natural means and therapies,” said Indian Business and Professionals Council president Paras Shahdadpuri today.

“India must come forward and give its gift of naturopathy to mankind; it has a hidden treasure which should be discovered. Unfortunately, we got used to quick fixes through allopathy which treats only the manifestations instead of the cause,” he said.

SRI International is a US-based non-profit, independent research and innovation centre. — Bernama