BERHAMPUR: Beach festivals in the State have been instrumental in improving tourist footfall in the State, said Tourism Minister Ashok Panda. He was here to inaugurate the Gopalpur Beach Festival-2015 on Thursday. Panda said the Tourism Ministry has sanctioned `100 crore for development of Satpada and Gopalpur under Mega Circuit Scheme. Higher Education Minister Pradeep Panigrahy Berhampur MP Sidhant Mohapatra, Ganjam Collector Prem Chandra Choudhary, MLAs RC Choupatnaik, Priyansu Pradhan and ZP Chairman Surath Kumar Pradhan also spoke.