Tuesday, March 18, 2008

No plan to develop tourist spots in Saurashtra: Govt .

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Gandhinagar: Gujarat government admitted on Monday that it had not prepared a blueprint for developing tourist spots in Saurashtra. In a written answer to a question posed by BJP MLA Pravin Makadia in the state Assembly, tourism minister Jay Narayan Vyas said, “Though as of today no such blueprint has been prepared, the Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (TCGL) is considering to prepare a plan to develop tourist spots.”

The minister said, “The Gujarat Pavitra Yatradham Board will soon be asking the Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology (CEPT) University to prepare a detailed plan to develop places of holy worship in Saurashtra, particularly Girnar, Somnath and Dwarka. Besides, the TCGL is thinking of planning out development tourist spots at Junagadh, Dwarka, Somanth, Porbandar, Sasan Gir, Jamnagar, Ahmedpur-Mandvi, Palitana, Veraval and Rajkot.”

The admission comes against the backdrop of tall claims by the Gujarat government over a sharp rise in tourism facilities, especially Saurashtra, where majority of tourists visit. The government had declared 2006 as the Year of Tourism, with all district collectors being asked to identify important tourist sites and prepare plans to develop them. Gujarat’s tourist industry, significantly, lags behind most Indian states despite longest sea shore and major tourist attractions.

Source: http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOIA&login=default

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