INDIA’s tourism minister Subodh Kant Sahai revealed last week that an outlay of 10 billion rupees (US$200 million) would be allocated for building 20 tourism parks across the country.
Envisaged along the lines of Singapore’s Sentosa island and Cancun in Mexico, each tourism park, built on 50 acres (20 hectares) of land, would comprise of entertainment and sports facilities, F&B outlets, hotels, restaurants and venues for cultural festivals.
The parks are expected to be joint partnerships between private investors and the government, whose role will be to facilitate connectivity and infrastructure.
An initial investment of US$10 million per park will be allocated by the central government, with the rest of the startup funding sourced from the respective state governments and private sector partners.
“Indian tourism is looking bullish”, said Vijay Thakur, president, Indian Association of Tour Operators. “In order to attract more foreign tourists, we need to evolve, constantly upgrade existing facilities, offer new products and develop infrastructure.”
