CHENNAI: Tourism Minister R Rajendran on Thursday announced eco-tourism and infrastructure development projects worth over Rs 200 crore across Tamil Nadu during the demand for grants for his department in the Assembly.
The government plans to invest Rs 100 crore to modernise major religious tourism destinations across Tamil Nadu, including Mamallapuram (Rs 30 crore), Kanniyakumari (Rs 20 crore), Tiruchendur (Rs 30 crore), and Velankanni and Nagore in Nagapattinam district (Rs 20 crore). The state will also set up cultural heritage centres to showcase TN’s Buddhist and Jain legacies, in Kancheepuram and Madurai respectively.
Kalvarayan Hills in Kallakurichi district, Gomuki and Manimuktha dams, and the Karumandurai Farm Lake in Salem district will also be developed with improved infrastructure for tourists at a cost of Rs 10 crore, the minister said.
A separate Rs 10 crore will be allocated to develop Sirumalai in Dindigul district as a tourist destination, including the setting up of a park, parking facilities, and basic amenities. Infrastructure in the historic coastal town of Poompuhar in Mayiladuthurai district will be upgraded at an outlay of Rs 12 crore.
A comprehensive project report will be prepared for eco-tourism development in the Nilgiris and its surrounding areas such as Devala, Naduvattam, Erumadu and Cherangodu, located along the Tamil Nadu-Karnataka-Kerala border.
Additionally, public-private partnership (PPP) models will be encouraged for setting up water sport activities in Manapad and Mullakadu (Thoothukudi), Uvari (Tirunelveli) and Aathankarai (Ramanathapuram), as well as for establishing theme parks in Hogenakkal (Dharmapuri) and Mukkombu (Tiruchy).
In Tiruvannamalai district, the iconic Sathanur Dam will be reimagined as a tourist destination with a restaurant, resting rooms and recreational infrastructure under a Rs 3-crore initiative by the Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC). Feasibility reports will also be prepared for tourism development at Amaravathi (Tiruppur), Aliyar (Coimbatore), Bhavanisagar (Erode), Mettur (Salem), Krishnagiri and Vaigai (Theni) dams, with an allocation of Rs 2 crore.
To enhance aerial sightseeing experiences, technical feasibility studies for eco-friendly rope car projects at Yercaud (Salem) and Yelagiri (Tirupattur) will be conducted, he added.
A Rs 2-crore capacity-building programme will be launched through the State Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology in Tiruchy to train stakeholders in the tourism sector, Rajendran said. Tourist amenities and parking will be upgraded at the Pykara waterfalls and boat house in the Nilgiris at Rs 20 crore, he added.