Rushikonda Beach stripped of its Blue Flag certification temporarily

Visakhapatnam: Visakhapatnam Rushikonda Beach has lost its prestigious Blue Flag certification temporarily.

According to the officials, there is only a temporary withdrawal of blue flag status primarily due to crowd management and Traffic issues. The blue flag is likely to be restored soon after completion of the safety audit scheduled on March4, 2025.

During a visit to Rushikonda Blue flag Beach in June 29 last year,

Blue Flag India jury member Dr Ajai Saxena, national operator, Blue Flag India Dr Shriji Kurup had given some observations and suggestions for improvement of facilities and services at Rushikonda Beach.

District administration received a from the national operator, Blue flag of India on February 13 that there will be temporary withdrawal of Blue Flag and appealed to take appropriate corrective measures at the beach in 10 days. Based on the suggestions, the beach management committee meeting was organised on February 17 and all the stakeholders were instructed to take immediate action.

Regional Director of APTDC in-charge was instructed to review the performance of the contract employees daily, and improve the infrastructure at the venue.

The officials mentioned that it was wrong propaganda that the Blue Flag Certification had cancelled.

The Denmark-based Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) had granted the certification in 2020, designating a 250-meter stretch of Rushikonda Beach as a Blue Flag site.

Blue Flag is a certification given by the Denmark-based Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) for beaches, marinas or boat tourism. The Beach Environment and Aesthetics Management Services (BEAMS) project is initiated by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the Society for Integrated Coastal Management (SICOM) as a part of the World Bank funded Integrated Coastal Management (ICZM) for protection of coastal degradation and development eco-tourism in India. About 12 beaches across the country nominated for the Blue Flag certification. Rushikonda beach got shortlisted for meeting 31 parameters. As part of the project, infrastructure facilities developed at a cost of Rs.7.35 crore.

The maintenance of the beach was completely neglected during the YSRCP government.