THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Batting for better air and road connectivity between Kerala and the rest of the country, Governor P Sathasivam on Sunday said the state needs to improve its connectivity if it has to attract tourists.
Delivering the inaugural address of Nishagandhi Monsoon Music Fest at the Nishagandhi Auditorium, Kanakakunnu, he said improved connectivity will provide further fillip to the state’s tourism sector.
He also advised the state government to utilise the Centre’s ‘UDAN’ (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) scheme aimed at improving rural airports and connectivity. “If the state government has made any request regarding the scheme, I will follow it up,” he said.
Highlighting Puducherry’s better connectivit, he said despite its small size, they have every day flights to Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad and are charging equal to two- tier train ticket,” he said.
Regarding the music fest, he said similar programmes should be staged in other cities, at least those in northern Kerala.
He underscoring the musical side of the monsoon, saying it has inspired legendary musicians to create ragas. Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said the tourism sector endures a lean patch during the monsoon and the intention behind the programmes like the Monsoon Music Fest is to make Kerala tourism viable throughout the year.
He said events like the Malabar River Cruise, World Kayak Fest at Thusharagiri and Champion Boat Race League reflect the government’s tourism policy which is intended to revolutionise the sector and will be added to the tourism calender.
Music to ears
Interestingly, Governor P Sathasivam can lay claim to be the channelising force behind the Music Fest. Last year, during the inauguration of the Nishagandhi Dance Festival, he had suggested the organisers to come up with a separate event for music. The Governor did allude to this in his speech. “When the Nishagandhi Dance and Music Festival was being limited to dance alone till last year, I had suggested I hoped to see the birth of a separate Nishagandhi Festival of Music,” he said.