GUNTUR: In a move to boost tourism and make Palnadu district a major tourist destination in the State, Palnadu district administration is planning to conduct Kondaveedu Fort Fest 2024 on February 10 and 11.
In the aftermath of the erstwhile Guntur district division into three new districts, Palnadu district is filled with famous tourist attractions including Amaravathi, Kondaveedu Fort, Kotappakonda, Nagarjuna Sagar, Pulichintala, Daida Bilam, Guthikonda Bilam, Chejarla, Durgi Shilpakala, Chennkesava Swamy temple in Macherla and many more. Kondaveedu Fort was developed into a major tourist attraction in the last couple of years after years of negligence.
Speaking to TNIE, Kondaveedu Fort development committee convenor Siva Reddy said that the construction of ghat road, developing basic infrastructure led to the increased footfall to the Fort.
Additionally, the Fort also features a museum with state-of-the-art facilities, trekking, rock climbing, archery, rappelling, camping, kayaking, horse riding, pedal boating, team building activities and yoga. Buddhavanam at Amaravati was constructed at a cost of `15 crore to attract Buddhists worldwide under the Union Government’s Swadesh Darshan Buddhist theme-based circuit.
An open-air theatre, pooja mandir, auditorium, food court, open meditation hall, information centre and library hall were set up at Buddhavanam. In terms of tourist attractions with Archeological importance, Nagarjunakonda is considered a very important site in the country with a vast expense of Buddhist ruins including stupas, statues, and scriptures. This site stands as a beacon for Buddhist civilization. The ruins are visible even today in their reconstructed form at the island museum .
Apart from the domestic tourists, people from Japan, Nepal and China visit the previous-era civilization. In addition to Nagarjunakonda, a mega tourism project has been taken up at Nagarjuna Sagar to attract tourists. According to the officials, luxury resorts, and agribusiness projects will be set up around a radius of 250 KM which will be an add-on to the Nagarjunakonda Museum.
On the occasion of World Tourism Day, the district tourism department has started boating activities, fun parks, and food courts under Jal Vihar and Anand Vihar at Kotappakonda, expecting a heavy footfall during Shivaratri. The Fest will be organised to promote tourism in Palnadu district, said Collector Siva Sankar Lotheti. He further said that various cultural programs will be held and prize money will be distributed to the winners. He instructed the officials to ensure the fest is organised festively.