Vizag to be developed as an international tourism destination

Visakhapatnam: In the next three years, a number of tourism projects will be launched in Visakhapatnam, informed District Collector MN Harendhira Prasad.

Speaking at the ‘World Tourism Day’ celebrations hosted by Hotels, Merchants Association at VMRDA Children’s Arena here on Saturday, the Collector, who participated as chief guest, said, “Along with developing domestic tourism, efforts are on to make Visakhapatnam a destination for international tourists as well. Several projects have been rolled out in Visakhapatnam in the recent past and they are now made available to the tourists.”

They included double-decker buses, UH-3H Helicopter Museum and renovated Yatri Nivas hotel, among others. Going forward, the Collector informed that some more hotels and resorts are getting added to the list for which land allotments have already been made. Novel activities will be carried out at the beach corridor to draw more tourists.

The state government is paying special attention to the development of Visakhapatnam and the focus is also on developing temple tourism. Bheemili Utsav, Visakha Utsav will be hosted next to enhance the brand image of Visakhapatnam. In February, the International Fleet Review (IFR) and Visakha Parade are scheduled. With encouraging response received for the recent food festival, Harendhira Prasad mentioned that similar festivals would be hosted in the city.

Later, the collector gave away prizes to the winners of video and photography competitions. A blood donation camp was organised on the occasion. About 100 volunteers came forward to donate blood.