Kolleru all set to figure on tourism map

Harita Kolleru Resort is equipped with all modern amenities. The resort is located 16 km away from Eluru and 30 km from the Atapaka Bird Sanctuary on the Krishna-West Godavari district border with road and air connectivity.

This nondescript fishermen village with a lake resort built by the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) in the picturesque Kolleru Wildlife Sanctuary will soon be a favourite destination for nature lovers. The resort, named Harita Kolleru Resort, showcases 12 air-conditioned suites, mini-conference hall, bar-cum-restaurant, gym and library with literature on aquaculture.

“The resort, built at an expense of Rs. 4 crore, will become operational within a month,” says G. Ramakrishna, Divisional Manager, APTDC. A Reverse Osmosis (RO) plant has been installed to provide safe drinking water to visitors. This is besides a generator to ensure uninterrupted power supply.

The resort is located 16 km away from Eluru and 30 km from the Atapaka Bird Sanctuary on the Krishna-West Godavari district border with road and air connectivity. The APTDC is making efforts to provide greenery on the bunds around the resort. Mr. Ramakrishna said there were also plans to put in place pedal boats to the visitors to cruise around.

Additional facilities

The APTDC will provide facilities for visitors to reach the Atapaka bird sanctuary by both road and water. The Divisional Manager said bird watchers could even travel to Atapaka through a narrow creak connecting Gudivakalanka by boat. Atapaka, home to grey pelicans, is equipped with nesting places for birds, children’s play area and view towers enabling visitors to devour the bountiful nature.

The Kolleru Wildlife Sanctuary nestling on the borders of the Krishna-West Godavari district has opened up new vistas for development of tourism after the Operation Kolleru undertaken by the government in 2006 which provided conducive environs to the winged guests to make the water body a nesting place.

The sanctuary attracts migratory birds from Northern Asia and Eastern Europe between October and March.

It draws grey pelicans, Asian open-billed Storks and the other migratory birds such as red-crested pochards, black-winged stilts, herons and Gadwalls. The lake was designated as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar International Convention in 2002 and notified as a wildlife sanctuary in 1999 under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.