Compared to other destinations, India very safe: Alphons

Alphons, who had shot off a letter to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath yesterday asking him to take steps to ensure swift action against those accused as such incidents negatively impact tourism in the country, today tried to assuage fears among tourists visiting India.

"India is safe. Compare the number of incidents in India to the US where shooting sprees happen almost in every city everyday killing people. Then there are terror attacks in Paris and across Europe. Compared to that India is a very safe destination.

"We are 1.3 billion people. How many incidents take place in India? Very, very few. But of course these are unfortunate incidents and should not happen," Alphons told PTI.

Quentin Jeremy Clerc (24) and his girlfriend Marie Droz (24), who came to India on September 30, were allegedly attacked by a group of men near the railway station at Fatehpur Sikri in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday. The Swiss nationals were reportedly left bloodied and bruised by the attackers.

Earlier this month, the minister had said that the "stories" of India being unsafe for foreign tourists are "exaggerated".

According to the National Crimes Records Bureau (NCRB), crimes against foreign tourists had reduced by 29.4 per cent in 2015 as against the previous year.

In 2014, 384 of such cases were reported from across the country, the NCRB said, adding that the number came down to 271 in 2015.