Kerala - Kochi   

Volvo Ocean Race to give boost to tourism

KOCHI: Kerala Tourism will leverage the Volvo Ocean Race stopover in the city next month to boost the State’s tourism fortunes in the time of a global financial meltdown.

Kerala Tourism will sponsor the main events at the 10-day Volvo Ocean Stopover here starting December 3. A team of senior officials from Kerala Tourism is expected in the city on Thursday for discussions on the preparations for the race stopover.

For Kerala Tourism, which is already a little worried about the effects of the global crisis, the race stopover offers a great opportunity both to woo tourists and to boost Kerala’s brand image.

Preparations for the stopover in Kochi is on schedule and clear ground for setting up the race village and temporary pavilions will be ready by November 15 as announced earlier.

A spokesman for the Cochin Port Trust said on Wednesday that about 70 container loads of equipment were expected to arrive in Kochi in the first week of December. These include equipment dispatched from Spain ahead of the start of the Volvo Ocean Race from Alicante.

The race office and pavilions for the exhibition are expected to be ready a week ahead of the 10-day stopover. The pavilions will include a two-storey temporary structure.

The Cochin Port Trust, along with Kerala Tourism, the moving forces behind organising the Volvo Ocean Race stopover, have roped in Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) as a major sponsor for the programmes, it is learnt.

TCS comes in as a major sponsor after real estate major Purvankara Projects Limited signed an agreement with the port trust last month for a Rs. 1-crore sponsorship of the Volvo Ocean Race stopover events here.

Hectic parleys are on to woo other sponsors for the event. The Cochin Port Trust estimates an investment to the tune of Rs. 65 crore for the preparations. This includes about Rs. 40 crore being invested in permanent structures that will be used by the Port Trust.

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