Gujarat gets a hattrick of national awards

New Delhi, Jan 31: With a hattrick of national awards in this month alone, Gujarat appears to be the flavour of the season.

Having bagged the best award in e-governance and the first prize for preservation of natural resources, Gujarat has now received an award in tourism.

The Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (TCGL) received the award for excellence award in publications on tourism, which provides detailed information given on various popular tourist spots, including sea beaches and places of pilgrimage.

The award was presented by Union Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni to TGCL Managing Director P D Vaghela at a National Tourism Awards distribution function here.

Mr Vaghela said the state government had launched a lot of measures in 2006, which was observed as the Tourism Year.

He said an integrated action plan for tourism infrastructure and basic facilities was prepared and implemented. The state government also launched an attractive marketing and promotion scheme in and outside India during the entire year, he added.

Mr Vaghela said the domestic tourist growth also increased 30 per cent during the year. ''During the just-concluded Global Investors' Summit in Ahmedabad, the tourism sector received MoUs for investment in 73 projects worth Rs 22,000 crore and this indicates the resurgent tourism in Gujarat,'' he added.

The growth of foreign tourists increased 2.5 times during the year.

Earlier this month, Gujarat received the best award in e-governance by Union Communication and IT Minister Dayanidhi Maran.

Later, it bagged the first prize for outstanding work in the area of natural resources preservation for recharging of ground water in the abandoned Kabootri mine in Junagadh.

The state was awarded this prize at the concluding function of World Sustainable Development Forum-Delhi Sustainable Development Summit-2007, organised by TERI.

Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh presented the award to Mr P N Roy Chowdhary, Principal Secretary, Forest and Environment Department, Government of Gujarat.

Mr Roy Chowdhary said the drought-prone Saurastra region in Gujarat has greatly benefited by recharging of sub-soil aquifers.

''Excess runoff rainwater is being easily utilised by diverting the same to abandoned mines and using those mines as water recharge units,'' he said, adding that the Kabootri mine was a unique example for recharging of ground water.

UNI