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No dollars, Associated Press – January 4, 2008 No dollars, just rupees please. In a sign of how the once-mighty U.S. dollar has fallen, For years the dollar was worth about 50 rupees, and tourists visiting
most sites in But with the dollar at a 9-year low against the rupee -- falling 11
percent in 2007 alone and now hovering around 39 rupees -- that deal has
become a losing proposition for the tourism industry. The tourism minister said, though, that the decision was only in part
a reaction to the currency's plunging value. "Before the dollar lost its value, there was a demand to have
[admission tickets] just in rupees," Tourism Minister Ambika Soni told the CNN-IBN news
channel. Soni said that charging only
rupees will be more practical and save money because "the dollar was
weaker against the rupee." The Taj Mahal, The move makes visits pricier for American tourists, who now have to
shell out nearly $20. And it's likely to get worse. "We expect a slight appreciation of the rupee to continue,
although it won't be as dramatic as last year," said Agam
Gupta, head of foreign-exchange trading at Standard Chartered Bank in The dollar has fallen against most major currencies. It has lost
ground against the rupee because of an influx of foreign capital into Soni said she isn't worried
about the decision affecting tourism numbers, as "I always say it's not numbers I am looking for or working for. I
am working for tourists to have a complete experience," she said. www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-rupeesjan04,0,6152102.story
https://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/print.asp?ID=7805 Last updated 07/01/2008 |