The Tourism Department has sanctioned Rs.38 lakh for the beautification of the Kappad beach, where Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama landed in 1498. A special committee constituted under the Kappad Tourism Destination Management Committee will supervise the work, which will begin next week.
The action comes on the basis of a report submitted by the Destination Management Committee chaired by K. Dasan, MLA, to the State government. The report had stated in detail the poor infrastructure facilities at the tourist destination despite its historical importance.
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“Almost all the ornamental lights along the beach had been vandalised by anti-social elements. The rain shelters are in ruins and no more fit to serve the purpose,” says Mr. Dasan. The beach area is still missing a good security cover and proper sanitation arrangements.
The Destination Management Committee, comprising the people’s representatives from Chemanchery panchayat, is also of the view that the Tourist Protection and Assistance Centre set up by the Kozhikode Rural Police at the spot fails to curb the anti-social elements. The committee has urged the Tourism Department to ensure better cooperation on the part of the police to safeguard the facilities on the beach.
For around two years, the prominent beach destination has been waiting for a proper beautification package. So far, the local development fund of the MLA was the sole source of income to carry out any emergency works.
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“We have very good flow of tourists to this location, but we are yet to provide them standard facilities. The Tourism Department has not even a dormitory for tourists at Kappad, where the private investors cash in on the situation,” said a former local body member from the region. No life guards were posted on the beach despite an increase in the number of drownings in the sea, he added.