BENGALURU: The Karnataka government will soon announce the first-ever coastal tourism policy. This will be separate from the existing tourism policy.
Chairing the meeting along with Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Friday, Tourism Minister KJ George said this new policy will soon be released and announced in a cabinet meeting that will be held in Mangaluru. The meeting on Friday was to take inputs from all stakeholders before finalising it.
Adding to this, LK Ateeq, financial advisor to CM, said that before the new policy, all the required approvals will be taken and finalised. He also said at the meeting, stakeholders raised concerns over the method of operations, business opportunities and stringent laws.
Pertaining to the Coastal Regular Zones (CRZ) rules, Ateeq said, the stakeholders pointed out that it was a big concern. They informed the CM that the rules were more stringent in Karnataka when compared to Kerala and Goa. The CM said that he will lead a delegation to the Union government to seek amendments and relaxations to the existing CRZ rules.
A proposal will also be submitted to the central government for approval. Sources told TNIE that a discussion was also held on inviting a team of experts from a Chennai-based coastal research institute to visit the coast of Karnataka and undertake a detailed study on the CRZ rules and the state’s coastline. The coastal policy will complement the tourism policy, identifying gaps to boost coastal tourism development.
Karnataka government officials are examining the feasibility of introducing a smart card system for beneficiaries of its guarantee schemes, according to Ateeq. Discussions are underway on the technology to be adopted, including whether the card should function through a swipe or tap-and-go mechanism. Authorities are also considering a single smart card for all guarantee schemes.
Tenders for appointing a transaction advisory committee will be floated soon, while a resurvey for reapplications and a new KYC process are being planned.
A house-to-house verification drive will also be conducted. Officials are prioritising the Gruha Jyothi and Gruha Lakshmi schemes, he said. Ateeq said there are 1.64 crore RR number consumers who are eligible for the Gruha Jyothi scheme but have not taken it. A discussion was also held on increasing the coast of the bus fare based on the rising fuel charges, he stressed.