The Hindu Business Line : Karnataka sprucing up tourist spots

Luring schemes
Karnataka Darshana package to be introduced from November 1 targets NRI Kannadigas and those living outside the State
Unforgettable Weekend Scheme wherein the tourist destinations within a five-hour distance from Bangalore would be developed with the IT traveller in mind

A REPLICA of the temple at Tiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu displayed at the Travel & Toursim Fair in Bangalore on Friday. — K. Murali Kumar

Bangalore , Jan. 12

Karnataka has ample potential to attract tourists, and all major destinations of tourist interests in the State are being spruced up to woo tourists in a big way, said Mr I.M. Vittala Murthy, Secretary - Kannada and Culture Information, and Tourism Department, Karnataka, while inaugurating the 52nd Travel and Tourism Fair here on Friday.

The three-day fair provides Bangaloreans a one-stop opportunity to gather information on various domestic and international destinations, hotels and resorts and tour operators, among other things.

Mr Murthy said that the State Government was undertaking major initiatives to promote Karnataka as a tourist destination, and in that regard it has participated in all major travel and tourism fairs across the country.

One such initiative is a special `Karnataka Darshana' package that would be introduced from November 1 targeting NRI Kannadigas and those living outside the State.

Mr Murthy said that this package, which offered four tours — Northern Circuit, Southern Circuit, Coastal Circuit and Eco-tourism Circuit, would be free of cost to those NRI Kannadigas and those living outside Karnataka participating in the Vishwa Kannada Sammelan to be held in November.

For IT travellers

Another noteworthy initiative is the Unforgettable Weekend Scheme, wherein the tourist destinations within a five-hour distance from Bangalore would be developed with the IT traveller in mind. "IT people in Bangalore need to get away from the maddening crowd to leisure destinations," he said.

All efforts are being undertaken to improve tourist destinations in the State and develop those that lack the necessary infrastructure to handle heavy tourist traffic. For instance, Jungle Lodges & Resorts has been entrusted with developing a property on the banks of Sharavathi river at Jog Falls, he said.