A must-visit on the itinerary of visitors and tourists coming to the city from different parts of the country and the world, especially those coming from land-locked regions, is the beach.
The fascination to watch the waves, play on the silver sands or just to chill out on the beach can be gauged from the fact that more than a lakh people converge at Ramakrishna Beach alone during weekends and holidays.
The stretch from R.K. Beach to The Park Hotel junction is being given a facelift with Rs.5.33 crore. Landscaping, provision of amenities at the beach-side parks, tiled pavements and granite benches are being provided for people to chill out. “We have completed 70 per cent of the work on this stretch and hope to complete the rest in a month’s time,” AP Tourism General Manager G. Bheemasankara Rao told The Hindu on Saturday.
The beautification work on the R.K. Beach – Naval Coast Battery stretch could not be taken up due to erosion and waves hitting the walls. A report from the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) is awaited, based on which further developments would be initiated on this stretch.
An amount of Rs.3.30 crore was sanctioned for construction of tourist amenities at Rushikonda Beach. The proposed works include construction of pathways, toilets and changing rooms and a security tower and souvenir shops to sell the fancy products made with shells and other items by fishermen.
Greens’ concern
A hue and cry was raised by environmentalists that the CRZ Rules were being violated even as the souvenir shops were being constructed and they had to be abandoned. The Tourism Department has contested the matter in court and judgment is awaited, according to the official.
