Corporates came forward to “adopt” tourist destinations in the State by pumping in funds and maintaining them. As many as six Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were signed here on Thursday when the State’s Tourism Department launched its Tourism Policy for 2015-20. The MoUs were exchanged between the corporates, nodal departments and the Department of Tourism.
Among the destinations that got picked first from the 46 identified were Ranganathittu, Belur-Halebidu and Lalbagh Botanical Gardens.
Under the ‘Adopt a tourist destination’ scheme, corporates will finance the activities, operations and maintenance as part of their CSR (corporate social responsibility) on their own rather than transferring funds to the government. They will also ensure that adequate funding is provided for a minimum period of five years.
While six deals were sealed on Thursday, there are more in the pipeline. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson and Managing Director of Biocon, confirmed that they have come forward to build toilets in Bannerghatta National Park. “We will also develop a visitor area as you enter the park to make visitors understand how the park works, among other information,” she told The Hindu .
In addition to these, the Tourism Department handed over management letters to private players for managing tourist properties which were not operational on ROMT (renovate, operate, maintain and transfer) basis. Among these were Yatri Nivas facilities at Shantisagar (Davangere), Madhyaranga temple (Chamarajanagar), Lakkundi (Gadag), Aihole (Bagalkote), Hotel Mayura Malaprabha (Belagavi) and Wayside Facilities at Telgi (Vijayapura) and Ganagapura (Kalaburagi).
