Minister for Tourism, Culture and Youth Advancement Muttamsetti Srinivasa Rao has called upon all stakeholders in the tourism industry to come up with suggestions that could be incorporated into the new tourism policy being prepared by the State government.
The A.P. Tourism Regional Conference on Promotion of Tourism and Investments was held at Harita Resorts of the A.P. Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) at Rushikonda here on Tuesday.
Presiding over the meeting, the Tourism Minister allayed apprehensions among investors, hoteliers and service providers that the new government would shelve all the projects initiated by the previous government. The Chief Minister was keen on a transparent and realistic approach on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said.
‘Strengths of A.P.’
Acknowledging the contribution of private players to the tourism sector, Mr. Srinivasa Rao briefed the meeting on the strengths of A.P. and North Andhra region for the promotion of tourism.
“A.P. has the second largest coastline, a number of Buddhist heritage sites, eco-tourism projects, hotel rooms and five airports, including two international airports.Visakhapatnam could be developed on the lines of Goa but tourism promotion while protecting local heritage and culture would be better,” the Minister said. He sought the support of private stakeholders in areas like transportation, infrastructure and accommodation.
Minister for Municipal Administration Botcha Satyanarayana said that while the focus of the government was on stability of the projects initiated, the prime concern of investors was profit. While there was nothing wrong in concentrating on profits, investors should have a commitment towards the project undertaken by them, he said.
