Sea plane, helicopter services to connect tourist spots

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 20 (UNI) 'Sea Plane' and helicopter services will be introduced in Kerala to connect tourist destinations, Tourism Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan told the state Assmbly today.

Replying to discussions on demands for grants in the Budget for his department, Mr Balakrishnan said helicopter services would be operated at the major tourists spots by Deccan Air. There was also an active proposal to operate sea plane services to ferry tourists to major beaches in the state.

Stating that 350,000 foreign and six million domestic tourists had visited the state last year, he said that more emphasis would be given to pligrimage, monsoon, farm, heritage and village tourism packages. In the first three months of the current financial year, there was an increase of 43 per cent in foreign tourists arrival and 34 per cent in domestic tourists.

The state had earned a revenue of Rs 7738 crore, including Rs 1552 crore in foreign exchange, through tourism. Besides giving encouragement to private sector investments in the tourism sector, the government would take measures to strengthen the public sector.

A Tourism Finance Development Corporation would be set up to take up major tourism related projects under the Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC). The work on the guest house in Mumbai would be completed this year. The KTDC would take initiatives to build a complex in 50 cents of lands owned by it in Chennai, he added.

The Tourism Minister also assured the House that the government would accord priority to all tourism-related projects initiated during the tenure of the previous governmnet.

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