The Government of Odisha and JSL Stainless Ltd. has jointly taken up a detailed Archaeological study for preservation of the 700 years old ancient Sisupalgarh site.
The old fortified city is to be developed into an Archaeological park and have it woven among the other well known tourist places of Odisha.
… The details of this project will be taken up either on a PPP mode or on a JV mode with ASI, the decision will be taken by the Government of Odisha.
The preliminary estimation of the project is about Rs.170crores which includes reviving the entire ancient archaeological area with construction of public utility services, parking area, a museum, light & sound, ticket counter, plantation etc.
The idea basically is to preserve and turn it into one of the world’s great historical monument of the country, said Mr.Mohanty, Resident Director JSL.
The above article says that this tribal museum is the best museum of UNESCO. I think what it means is that UNESCO designated it the best tribal museum in India. My interpretation is supported by a 2008 news report from Telegraph. Following are some excerpts.
Orissa Museum of Tribal Art and Artefacts will soon be a little more interactive and organised, thanks to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) that has offered to help.
The capital’s tribal museum showcases one of the widest variety of indigenous tools, weapons, baskets, pottery, textiles, ornaments and ritual objects and was recently identified as the “best” among 21 tribal museums in India.
Unesco has offered museum authorities a chance to get more systemic with scientific documentation of every exhibit.
“We plan to mention certain facts such as the area of origin, the motive or purpose behind the item, its socio-cultural implication and the material used. Digitisation of the documents and data would make each object easier to understand,” said special officer on duty S.C. Sahoo.
… Located on the premises of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Research and Training Institute, the archive displays objects from almost every tribe.
The Museum of Tribal Art and Artefacts currently houses about 2,247 artefacts.
There are dresses and ornaments, dokra items, musical instruments, hunting implements, fishing nets, weapons of offense and defence, agriculture tools, household objects, personal belongings, tribal art, photographs and terra cotta items in the archive.
Traditional costumes such as the ringa of the Bonda tribe, phute sari of the Santhals and gatungkap of Lanjia Saora can be seen at the museum — one of the few places that showcases such clothes.
Ornaments such as tangam of Lanjia Saora, shaska of Kutia Kondh, kunti of Juang and necklaces such as take mecodica of Dongria Kondh, puste of Koya, dabu and lubeida of the Bonda — are also a part of the unique collection.
The institute campus also houses five huts made according to Santhal, Juang, Gadaba, Saora and Kondh styles.
Following are excerpts from a beautiful Forbes India piece by Mindtree CEO Subroto Bagchi.
… it is called Dangamal.
This is a tiny village bordering 672 sq. km. of luxuriant mangroves that are home to the giant Indian saltwater crocodiles. It is an unbelievably beautiful and relatively un-spoilt place. There is the usual forest rest house here, but for the real enthusiast, there is tented accommodation of commendable quality run by a first generation woman entrepreneur named Sanghamitra Jena. I am here to see her.
… After some years, when we came back to Bhubaneswar, I contacted the government-run tourist office to check if they ran courses for would-be tour guides. There was a three-month course coming up and I signed up after paying a fee of Rs. 200.
… But how did you end up becoming an entrepreneur?” I ask. “It was a story of adversity,” she says. “After many years in the same organisation, I had to leave because of disagreements with a new supervisor. For a moment, I was at the crossroads. To my surprise and delight, it led to a flood of offers from other tour operators who had known my work. Seeing that, I told myself that these people are reaching out to me because they have confidence that I could bring them business. So why wasn’t I doing it for myself?
“I had a saving of just Rs. 40,000. I bought a laptop and started sending mails to people I knew from a cyber-café. Eastern Treasure India Tours was born. Clients started coming, I took them on my off-the-beaten track tours to not just places in Orissa but also Pelling, Gangtok and Kaziranga. Word spread. Business grew. Then one day, I felt I should have a product that enables the nature-lover to enjoy a place like the mangroves of Dangamal by living in a completely rural setting. So, I came to this village and I leased a plot of land for five years. I started a high-quality, tented accommodation, complete with Western-style toilets and clean food in a completely rural surrounding. I built a make-do Web site so people could check out the options and pay online.”
… I am not in Mumbai or Bangalore. This is Orissa. This is not a land of enterprise. For girls, there is a cul-de-sac called marriage. Yet, here is Sanghamitra who has built a business in the middle of nowhere.
Before we leave for the creeks to see the giant crocs basking under the mangroves, I ask her the size of her business this year.
She is bashful for a moment. Then she replies, “I will touch a crore this year”.
Kamat Hotels India Ltd (KHIL) which owns and operates hotels brands like The Orchid, VITS, Lotus Resorts and Gadh Hotels … has acquired the heritage palace ‘Mahodadhi Niwas’ in Puri and also the Eco Resort at Ramchandi, near the Sun Temple in Konark, in addition to the Parikud Palace and Rambha Palace, which are located near the Chilka Lake.
Of the three heritage properties acquired by KHIL, Mahodadhi Niwas opened for business on November 28, 2009. In the first phase, Mahodadhi offers 12 rooms and an additional 60 are expected to be developed over the next phase. KHIL is presently involved in restoring Parikud and Rambha Palaces, which will be commissioned in a phased manner in 2010.
… KHIL intends to strengthen the portfolio of its heritage brand – ‘Gadh Hotels’ in the state. We have already acquired three palaces from OTDC on a long-term lease and their restoration work is currently in progress.” As a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activity, KHIL has also undertaken cleaning and conservation task of Chilka Lake.
KHIL’s F&B arm Kamat Restaurants Pvt Ltd (KRPL), which operates the ‘Vithal Kamat’ chain of vegetarian quick-service restaurants is also making inroads in to Orissa. KRPL has recently commissioned four company-owned outlets in Orissa, on the Bhubaneswar-Puri highway.
The Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned Rs. 610.51 crore for Infrastructure development in the year 2007-08 and Rs.482.07 crore in the year 2008-09.(Upto Oct.2008)
The Ministry has launched a scheme for development of nationally and internationally important destinations and circuits through Mega Projects. To date 22 mega projects have already been identified and of these 15 projects have been sanctioned for an amount of Rs.320.15 Crore . Of these, Amritsar, Agra, Varanasi, Gangtok, Bhubaneswar, Aurangabad and Hyderabad are also being developed as mega destinations through the joint plans of all the key Ministries of Government of India, which includes connectivity through road, rail and air and upgradation of civic infrastructure.
Infrastructure Development holds the key to India’s sustained growth in the tourism sector. Therefore, the Ministry of Tourism has been making efforts to develop quality tourism infrastructure at tourist destinations and circuits. The Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned 91 projects for an amount of Rs.503.56 crore for infrastructure augmentation including rural tourism projects in the year 2008-09 (up to November 08).
The Ministry has launched a scheme for development of nationally and internationally important destinations and circuits through Mega Projects. To date 22 mega projects have already been identified and of these 17 projects have been sanctioned. In the year alone the Ministry has sanctioned 11 mega projects at Amritsar, Bhubaneshwar-Puri-Chilka, Tirupati (Nellore-Chittor), Dwarka, Haridwar-Rishikesh, Vidarbha Heritage Circuit, Hampi, Gangtok, Kadapa, Mahabalipuram and Ganga Heritage Cruise Circuit. The mega projects are a judicious mix of culture, heritage, spiritual and ecotourism in order to give tourists a holistic perspective.
Ministry of Tourism is also taking initiatives with other Central Govt. Ministries, such as Railways, Civil Aviation, Road Transport & Highways, Food Processing and Urban Development and also the concerned State Governments to achieve convergence and synergy with their programmes so that the impact of investment on these destinations is maximized. Based on continuous coordination and interaction, 6 tourism sites – Agra, Varanasi, Gangtok, Bhubaneswar, Aurangabad and Hyderabad are being developed as mega destinations through the joint plans of all the key Ministries of Government of India. With the loan assistance of JBIC, the Ajanta Ellora Conservation and Tourism Development Project (Phase-II) is under implementation.
In addition, Mega shopping festivals are also being organized in cities of different regions of the country such as Bhubaneswar, Hyderabad, Aurangabad and Noida where artisans and artists from rural tourism sites would be given a platform for exhibition and sale of their handicraft products and for cultural performances.This kind of exposure to the domestic and international tourists would have far reaching benefits for the socio-economic development of the rural artisans.
Kolkata-based Speciality Group of Restaurants, a leading restaurant chain in the country, plans to introduce its restaurant brands like Oh! Calcutta, Sigree and Machaan in Orissa by March 2010.
The group is also exploring the possibility of opening standalone restaurants that would exclusively serve the Oriya delicacies.
Specialiy Group, which is run by more than 2,500 people, has set up the Mainland Institute of Oriental Catering in Kolkata keeping in view the group’s increasing requirement for hospitality professionals to meet its expansion plans.
The group is also keen on setting up an institute in Bhubaneswar. … China restaurant in the city is the 53 rd restaurant opened by the Speciality Group of Restaurants. It is the second restaurant of the group in the city after Haka.
Mainland China is the flagship brand of the Speciality Group with 17 standalone outlets in the country. This restaurant is present in cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Nashik and Baroda.
The other restaurant brands of the Speciality Group include Sweet Bengal, Just Biriyani and Mostly Kabab.
An Economic Times news report mentions that Mainland China is opening at Hotel Crown. Following are some excerpts.
Speciality Restaurants [SRPL] the country’s largest chain of fine dining eateries of reputed brands on Monday will open Mainland China – the flagship brand of the group with 23 standalone outlets in the country, at the Crown Hotel, here.
Though the Group has already got its footprints here with the opening of Haka – one of it’s ‘casual dining’ brand, the Mainland China is all set to offer exotic Chinese delicacies at an affordable price.
“Bhubaneswar is the much happening state capital in the east. The opening of Mainland China will go a long way to satisfy food connoisseurs looking for vast spread of rare delicacies from the varied regions of China. We have an ambitious plan to open at least half-a-dozen restaurants in the state capital, Puri and other small towns with an investment of about Rs 15 crore”, SRPL founder Anjan Chatterjee on Sunday told “The ET”.
It also plans to invest abut Rs 50 crore for an entertainment and food park near the Infocity here. The company has already acquired one and half acre land from the state government.
… Meanwhile, SRPL has set an ambitious target of investing around Rs 200-250 crore through both the organic and inorganic routes to become a 100-resturant company in the next one year from its present strength of 52 restaurants.
It also has firmed up plans for backward integration in the form of trained manpower and food processing. Aware of shortage of skilled and trained manpower to manage restaurants in the country, Mr Chatterjee is planning to set up a Restaurant Management School here.
“We have a Speciality Catering College at Kolkata for our in-house requirements. I am looking for vertical knowledge based schools which can run one-year course to manage restaurants. Managing hotel and managing restaurants are two different things”, he observed.
… “We will first launch select ready to cook Mainland China poly packs followed by ready to eat food. We have identified Khurda Food Processing Zone, near Bhuabneswar for packaged food items”, Mr Chatterjee reveals saying that the expansion plan will be funded througha mix of debt and equity.
I finally decided to visit the Chandaka-Dampada Sanctuary which is adjacent to Bhubaneswar. We entered the sanctuary through the Godibari gate.
The above sign was visible from the road.
The above is the outer gate to the sanctuary.
The inner gate is beautifully made.
As soon as you enter the gate the above is the view of the forest with a dirt road bisecting it.
Looking back at the gate one can see the moat and the mechanism to prevent the elephants to get out. However, the elephants do get in and out of the sanctuary through other gaps in the boundary moat.
The dirt road has signs to a few destination points; the first one being the Kumar Khunti watch tower.
On the way we pass through an old structure that was part of the fort of the local king.
The above is the view from the top of a watch tower looking towards the dirt road that took us there.
In the other direction there is a lake.
About 100 yards from the watch tower there is a man made salt mound to attract the elephants.
The watch tower is a four story structure with two bed rooms in each of the second and third floors. Guests can stay there overnight. We peeked at the bath room. They looked clean. Near the watch tower there are huts where some staffs stay. The staff bring water to the watch tower rooms and cook food for guests.
The above is a closer view of the salt mound.
Ambilo watchtower and Dampara gate are two other landmarks. Note the distance; 20 kms of forest road to the Ambilo watch tower. The whole sanctuary is 193 sq kms, almost as big as present day Bhubaneswar city limits.
With the dirt road giving us the view of only a very small part of the forest we did not see many animals. Above we saw a few jungle fowls.
We also saw a few jungle peacocks.
This is the lake made due to the Deras dam.
Near the lake there were nicer guest houses. The elephants don’t come here. Hence they are not elephant proof.
The view of the Deras lake is beautiful. But it was getting dark. So I could not take very many pictures.
As it was getting dark and we did not have plans to make an overnight stay, we could not visit the Ambilo tower. We got out through the Kantabada gate which is near the Dearas dam.
The above Oriya delicacies are being currently offered at the Hotel Kalinga Ashok Bhubaneswar in their family restaurant ‘Phulbani’. Non- vegetarian thali meal is Rs 120 and vegetarian thali meal is Rs 100.
Located in Bhubaneswar, Orissa.
The Sixty Four Yoginis temple at Hirapur is a circular enclosure with a narrow doorway to the eastern side. The diameter of the enclosure is 7.62 meters or 25 feet and height of the wall on the paved floor inside is 1.87 metres or 6 feet 2 inches. Yogini was considered sacred, hence this temple was created. Inside the temple there are 60 niches and in every niche there is a figure of a Yogini. All the Yogini images stand and are carved on black chlorite stone.
Nandan Kanan National Park
Located in Chandaka Forests, 20km from Bhubaneshwar, Orissa.
The park is spread in about 4 sq.km. of area, while the wildlife
sanctuary is spread in around 5 sq. km. The park is home to more than 75 species of mammals and reptiles.The Nandan Kanan National park houses the very first captive gharial breeding centre of the country. Nandan Kanan justifies its literal meaning i.e. "Garden of Pleasure".
Lingaraja Bhubaneshwar Temple
Located in Bhubaneswar, Orissa.
The Lingaraja temple is located in a spacious courtyard covering
over 250000 sq feet and is bounded by fortified walls. Its tower rises up to 180 feet and is elaborately carved. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva and the Lingam here is unique which is a harihara lingam -half Shiva and half Vishnu.
Built by Yayati Kesari in the 7th century. This temple is dedicated to Tribhubaneshwar or the Lord of Three Worlds. The Lingaraja temple is about 1000 years old.
Udaygiri and Khandagiri Caves
The caves are located atop the twin hills known as Udayagiri
(meaning the hill of the sunrise) and Khandagiri (meaning the
broken hill) which rise abruptly from the coastal plain, about 6km
West of Bhubaneswar, separated by a highway. Udaygiri caves are approximately 135 ft high and Khandagiri caves are 118 ft high.
The main attraction of these caves consists of its stupendous carvings. Of all the caves in Udaygiri, the largest one is the Rani Gumpha or the Queens Cave. The origin of the rock cut caves of Udaygiri and Khandagiri dates back to the 2nd century BC.
The caves are reminiscent of influence of Buddhism and Jainism in Orissa. The inscription and carvings on the walls show that they once served as Jain Monasteries.
Raghurajpur Craftsman Village
Located 14 kms from Puri in Orissa. The village is inhabited by artisans producing sheer poetry on pieces of treated cloth, dried palm leaf or paper. The Villages runs from east to west with houses arranged in two neat rows facing each other. In the centre runs a line of small temples. The village has a community of artisans who produce different verities of handicraft items like pata paintings, palm leaf
engravings, stone carvings, wooden toys and mask, wood carving, wooden toys, cow-dung toys, tusser paintings, etc.
Puri Beach
Located on Shores of Bay of Bengal, at a mere distance of 35 kms from the Sun Temple and 65 kms from Bhubaneshwar. Pilgrims from all over India visit Puri to take a dip in the holy water of the rolling waves which is considered religious. It is renowned for the sand sculptures created particularly by the internationally famed Sudarshan Patnaik. Puri is the abode of Lord Jagannath and considered one of the most important Hindu pilgrimage destinations. The beach is a festive place where people come to relax and be entertained. It serves as the venue of the Puri Beach Festival.
Sun Temple, Konark
Situated at a distance from the famous religious and tourist centre of Puri (35 Km.) and the capital city of Bhubaneswar (65 Km). The entire temple was designed in the shape of a colossal chariot with seven horses and twenty four wheels, each about 10 feet in diameter, with a set of spokes and elaborate carvings. The Sun Temple of Konark marks the highest point of achievement of Kalinga architecture depicting the grace, the joy and the rhythm of
life all it`s wondrous variety. It was built by King Raja Narasinghs Deva-I of the Ganga Dynasty in the thirteenth century. It is a temple to Surya, the sun God.
Chilika Lake
Chilika Lake (also called Chilka lake) is a brackish water coastal lake in India`s Orissa state, south of the mouth of the Mantei River.
The area of the lake varies from 1165 km sq. in the monsoon season to 906 km sq. in the dry season, and is studded with numerous small islands. The lake is an important habitat and breeding ground for both
resident and migratory and aquatic birds, most notably flamingoes.
The lake was formed due to the silting action of the Mantei River
which drains into the northern end of the lake, and the northerly
currents in the Bay of Bengal, which have formed a sandbar along the eastern shore leading to the formation of a shallow lagoon.
The main attractions inside the lake are Kalijai Island, Honeymoon Island, Breakfast Island, Birds Island, Nalabana (Island of Reeds) and Parikud Island.
The Other Five sites in Orissa:
Olive Ridley Sea Turtles
Found in the Indian Ocean along the Bay of Bengal is Orissa. Average weight of the turtles is just over 100 lb (up to 50 kgs). They have a high-domed shell, with a carapace length of only 30 inches (70 cms). Olive Ridleys are omnivorous, feeding on crabs, shrimp, rock lobsters, sea grasses, snails, fish, sessile, pelagic tunocates and small invertebrates. The Orissa coast is one of the three sites worldwide where mass nesting of the olive ridley turtle occurs. This sea turtle is especially known for its mass nesting when several thousand turtles migrate to the breeding ground to mate and nest simultaneously. Hindu mythology worships sea turtles as an incarnation of one their gods. Over the past five years, sea turtles have suffered mass mortality along the Orissa coast due to death by drowning as incidental catch in trawl- fishing nets. About 5000 to 10,000 dead turtles have been washed ashore each year, a total of over 100,000 in the last ten years.
Sitabinji Caves
Situated on River Sita, 30 km from Keonjhar. The structure is like a half opened umbrella. It depicts a royal procession.
It has gained prominence for the ancient fresco painting on a rock shelter called “Ravan Chhaya”.
Khandadhar Waterfall is located amidst the forest of Sundergarh (specific location is Nandapani). The Khandadhar Falls is categorized as a horsetail waterfall. The falls appear to be located on a smaller watercourse, though are said to be perennial.
During the monsoon months the water from the Koprani Nala, a rivulet, overflows and it drops down as a fall from a height of 800 feet.
This waterfall because of its height is visible from a distance of about 5 kilometres.
Located 15 km from Sambalpur, Orissa. The Hirakud Dam is built across the Mahanadi River, about 15 km from Sambalpur in the state of Orissa in India. The dam regulates the flow of the Mahanadi River and produces hydroelectricity through several hydroelectric plants. Hirakund dam is about 4.8 km long, bordered by earthen dykes on its left as well as right. Built in 1956, the dam is the world`s largest earthen dam. The dam helps control floods in the Mahanadi delta and irrigates 7,500,000 hectares of land. Hirakud dam was the first post- independence river valley project in India.
Sleeping Vishnu Temple
The sleeping statue of Lord Vishnu is situated in Bhimkund, at a distance of about 28 kilometres from Talcher. The sleeping image of Vishnu at Bhimkund is second only to Gomateswar (Karnataka) in size. It has the honour of being the largest sleeping image in India.
In spite of its magnanimity, image contains a natural softness. The period of its creation is believed to be 8th-9th century AD.
The State Government today decided to develop Puri as a mega tourism circuit with an investment of Rs 50 crore.
An outlay of Rs 30 crore will be made in the next budget for the project that includes improvement of Badadanda (grand road), beautification of Puri town and sea beach, dynamic lighting system of Jagannath temple and Gundicha temple, development of parks and parking lots and construction of a tourist complex.
The high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik also decided to give a facelift to the peripheral areas of Puri, a major tourist attraction.
At Satapada, a sunset viewpoint and a park will be developed. There will be tourist jetty at Sipaguda and Rajahansa, official sources said. Plans are afoot to paint the buildings lined up on both sides of the Badadanda with a unique colour to give an added attraction to the Puri town. This will be done in consultation with various stakeholders.
While additional parking places for vehicles will be created in various parts of the city, arrangements will be made to ease out traffic during festivals like Rath Yatra. There will be three interchanging nodes within the town to evacuate traffic. It has been proposed to set up a multi-media museum called Srikhetra Sankrutika Sangrahalay. Vending zones will be set up on the sea beach to keep it clean and free from pollution.
Special board and lodging arrangements will be made for tourists. A few tourist complexes will be developed in various locations.
It has been estimated that about 34 lakh out of 52 lakh tourists coming to the State every year visit Puri.
The Kolkata-based Shyam Group has joined hands with another local company Century Plyboards India Ltd and floated Puri Ports Ltd to launch a port at Baliharchandi, about 40 km from Puri (Orissa), the Business Line reported.
About 3,500 acres of land has been identified for the proposed port project and a memorandum of understanding with the Orissa Government is to be signed shortly.
The Ministry of Tourism’s clearance would be required because, as it was pointed out, a cruise terminal would be an important component of the proposed port.
The first phase of the proposed port, to be complete with four berths including the cruise terminal and an industrial park.
The Kolkata-based Shyam Group is planning to set up an integrated minor port in Orissa for which IIT Chennai has been engaged to prepare the detailed project report, Deepakk Goyal, Executive Director of Shyam Steel, said.
The diversified Shyam Group which has interests in cement, power and steel is hopeful of signing a memorandum of understanding with the Orissa Government by January 2009, according to company sources. After signing the MoU, the company will approach the Coastal Regulatory Zone for its approval.
In the first phase, the project will entail an investment of between Rs. 1,800 crore and Rs. 2,000 crore and a capacity of 12 million tonnes annually which includes a four-berth port, two dedicated cruise terminals and a wood-based industrial park. The ultimate capacity will be between 30 million tonnes and 40 million tonnes and the implementation may have to be done in three phases.
The site that has been identified for the project is Baliharchandi, which is south of Puri and north of Chilika Lake. Around 3,500 acres has been set apart for the project. The land is proposed to be acquired through the Orissa Industrial Infrastructure Development Company and the project is to be completed within 24 months of land acquisition.
Shyam Steel, which is the third-largest stakeholder in Century Plywood, has already formed an equal joint venture with Century. The company is called Puri Port Ltd. The cargo will be clean cargo like wood and export-cargo of steel and import-cargo of raw materials.
Swosti Group is redesigning two of its upcoming resorts according to chartered tourist requirements, since both properties were initially designed for individual and MICE segments. Puri’s Swosti Chandan Spa Resort and the company’s upcoming resort at Chilka, Orissa will undergo a number of redesigning and renovation processes as they target chartered segments (in large numbers), instead of regular tourists.
About this sudden change in plans, S Patnaik, General Manager, Swosti Group, told Hospitalitybiz, “We have experienced a sudden influx of MICE travellers in Bhubaneswar; this has resulted in many hospitality giants commissioning projects in the state capital. Similarly, other places in the state, especially Puri and Chilka, will be ideal to host chartered segments. Moreover, the segment’s favourite Indian destinations like Goa and Kerala are exceeding their carrying capacity; therefore, chartered operators are now looking for other options.”
The number of chartered flights to Puri is increasing from 180 to 250. Hence, Swosti Group is already in talks with leading chartered tour operators in India, who have exhibited an interest in the suggested places and upcoming properties. “Our Puri property was earlier designed with 70 rooms, but the inventory has been hiked to 100 rooms in favour of hosting chartered groups. The Chilka property, which has not been named as yet, will offer 50 cottages to start with, while it will be somewhat experimental with chartered tourists. The Chilka property will upgrade rapidly if it did well with the mentioned segment,” informed Patnaik. Slated to start operations in October 2008, both properties will take another few months to start. “The season for this segment (to visit India) is from October – March 2008,” added Patnaik. He added that even though the company will lose out on most of the season, it wishes to atleast begin catering to some chartered tourists.
On the other changes in terms of architect and design, Patnaik said that both properties will highlight their swimming pool as it is the biggest attraction for the chartered segment. The resorts will be equipped with bigger lawns and additional private areas as the segment does not appreciate external disturbance from other guests. “We are working on the properties’ sloping structures and the proximity of the pools and beaches from the resorts,” informed Patnaik.
… We are inclining our properties towards chartered tourists as we will be able to provide them with the peace and serenity that they seek.” Swosti Group is also interested in presenting Buddhist tourism to this segment, in a new light.
Eleven hospitality majors like the Indian Hotels Company, ITC Welcomgroup, Dubai-based Emaar MGF, DLF, IHHR Hospitality, Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels, Goa-based VM Salgaonkar Bros Pvt Ltd, Unitech, Delhi-based Zoom Developers, Kolkata-based Shristi Infrastructure Development Corporation and Mumbai-based Subha Hospitality have been selected by the Tourism Department of Orissa to convert Samukha Beach, the long virgin beach situated near the Konark Temple, into the biggest beach city of India.
The project was planned to be completed in two phases on a public private partnership (PPP) format in October 2007. The beach city will house five-star properties, golf courses, convention centres, handicrafts centres, art centres and conventions halls. It will also include special varieties of housing estates, social housings, condominiums, budget hotels and villas.
The Tourism Department inaugurated the commencement of the awaited hop-on and hop-off bus services, recently. Sasank Rath, Officer on Special Duty, Orissa Tourism said that the work for sizing of the lands is currently going on, while lands will be disbursed by the end of August 2008. The Tourism Department plans to invest Rs 2000-3000 Crore to build the whole project. The State Government will invest Rs100 Crore for infrastructure development. Work on the project is expected to start in August 2008 and it will take another 42 months for it to be completed.
Painter Jatin Das’s dream of a museum for traditional and contemporary art in his native Orissa has gone international.
Das was in Washington and New York last week outlining his plans for the J.D. Centre of Art in Bhubaneswar to his American and Indian American fans.
At an interactive evening at the Indian embassy here, hosted by India’s deputy chief of mission Raminder Singh Jassal, with slides of his life’s work, Das said the proposed centre would be the first in India to display both traditional and contemporary art in 14 permanent galleries under one roof.
The Orissa government has allotted an acre of land to the painter, who was born in Mayurbhanj. B.V. Doshi, the famous architect from Ahmedabad and associate of Le Corbusier, has designed the master plan for the ambitious centre.
The painter said he had been dreaming of the project for almost a decade and expected that it would cost Rs 50 crore to make it a reality.
“I have been funding the centre, which has a board and a small staff of six people, with money from my paintings. They are temporarily working out of a house in Bhubaneswar given by the state government,” Das told this correspondent.
But he plans to make international requests for funding and hopes Indian Americans will join in the effort.
When the centre is ready, Das will donate his entire collection of 45 years, including paintings, books and antiquities, to the new venture to be housed in one place.
Ministry of Tourism has taken the programme of integrated development of mega destinations and circuits further. During the first quarter of 2008-09 mega tourism projects have been sanctioned at a cost of Rs.8474.20 lakh for development of the following 3 tourist circuits in the country:
1. Bhubaneshwar-Puri-Chilka Tourist Circuit in Orissa
2. Dwarka-Nageshwar-Bet Dwarka Tourist Circuit in Gujarat
3. Heritage Tourist Circuit at Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh
The project for development of Bhubaneshwar-Puri-Chilka circuit includes development of interchange nodes, upgradation of protected/ unprotected monuments, development of parking/anchor points, upgradation of approach roads to monuments/temples, lighting of monuments/temples and creation of a multimedia museum.
The project for development of Dwarka-Nageshwar-Bet Dwarka as a mega tourist circuit includes development of beach area, development of parikarama path and lakes, repair and restoration of ghats, development of camping sites for eco tourism and development of a village haat.
The heritage circuit project at Tirupati includes construction of tourist arrival centres/tourist information centres, landscaping, street lighting, drinking water points, relaxation huts, public conveniences and children park with all amusement facilities.
These projects are expected to greatly enhance visitors’ experience in all the mega destinations.
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