Tirupati: District Collector Dr S Venkateswar underlined the need for coordinated efforts between tourism and forest departments to develop popular tourist destinations in the district. Addressing a review meeting on Wednesday through virtual mode, he stated that Tirupati district should be developed as an eco-tourism hub using the hub-and-spoke model.

Joint Collector Shubham Bansal, DFO P Vivek, and officials from tourism and forest departments were present at the meeting, which focused on enhancing the district’s tourism potential. The Collector highlighted the importance of providing livelihood opportunities to artisans and handicrafts men through initiatives like Vana Prasadini.

Key aspects such as geo-tagging red sanders trees, promoting organic products, and boosting eco-tourism were also discussed. Under the One District One Product scheme, red sanders and related products were identified as significant elements for promotion. The Collector stressed the importance of community involvement in environmental conservation and suggested launching awareness programmes to encourage public participation in sustainable development.

The officials were instructed to identify key tourist attractions and enhance their facilities through collaboration between the tourism and forest departments. The Collector directed authorities to work towards both tourism development and livelihood generation for artisans. He emphasised the need for initiatives by the forest and district tourism departments to support the local handicraft industry. The tourism department was specifically asked to improve Kalyani Dam and the zoo park.

The Collector suggested setting up stalls at tourist locations to help artisans sell red sanders-based handicrafts.

This move aims to provide them with a steady source of income while attracting more visitors to these sites. The meeting saw participation from officials of the forest department and representatives from the tourism department via video conference.