Boost To Sea-Side Tourism: Government Sanctions 11 Projects Worth Rs 800 Crore To Develop Coastal Circuits

The Union government has stated that it has sanctioned eleven projects with an estimated cost of Rs 800 crores to develop coastal circuits across the country’s coastline, reports The New Indian Express (TNIE).

This figure also includes Rs 82.17 crores sanctioned to develop the Sindhudurg coastal circuit in Maharashtra in 2015-2016.

The Union Ministry of Tourism, in reply to an unstarred question raised in Rajya Sabha, said that the government has created a roadmap to develop India’s beaches to promote tourism along India’s 7,500 km long coast.

While starred questions usually require an oral answer from the government, written answers are provided for unstarred ones by the concerned Ministry.

To leverage the economic potential of India’s scenic beaches and generate employment, the government has identified 17 coastal circuits across the country to promote tourism under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme.

The Central government has also extended financial assistance to states and union territories (UTs) to promote Cruise Tourism.

However, India’s track record in this regard has been far from satisfactory. India received only 10.4 million inbound tourists in 2017. On the other hand, Thailand, with a far smaller coastline, received nearly 35 million inbound tourists in 2017.

Also Read: No Country For Visitors? How India Can Come Good On Its Tourism Potential