Bakasura hills in Coonoor to turn into tourism spot
NILGIRIS: Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation Limited (TTDC) officials are planning to develop ‘Droog Fort’, located 13 km from Coonoor, to promote tourism in the area. In this regard, the officials of TTDC are in the process of acquiring around 40 cents of land from the forest department and build a view point with handrails along with a food court and toilet facilities.
According to sources, the fort, also known as Bakaura malai, is located 6,000ft high and tourists will be able to see the western ghats and hairpin bends between Burliyar and Katteri from the proposed place.
A senior TTDC official from Nilgiris said, “We have planned to construct a viewpoint, which can accommodate 10 tourists at a time. The tourists have to walk 500m to reach the viewpoint through the tea gardens. Nilgiris collector SP Amrith has given NOC for the project and we are in the process of getting approvals from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. A group of architects visited the site recently and are finalising the design.”
The officials have also planned to develop lesser known places, like HPF (Hindustan Photo Film) in Ooty, Nedugula near Kotagiri and Maathumanagar in Gudalur across the district. “We have planned to set up an amusement park on 30 acres abandoned HPF land, which is owned by the forest department,” the official added.