With the aim to increase the geographical spread of arrivals to the state, Kerala Tourism plans to promote its Malabar region aggressively through a Rs 325 crore project. This includes unexplored destinations such as Kozhikode, Wayanand, Bekal and Kannur. This was revealed by P. Bala Kiran, IAS, Director, Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala. He says, “To promote river cruise, the Government of Kerala has envisioned a Rs 300-crore project for nine rivers in Kannur and Kasaragod. In order to ease travel for international tourists, Cochin International Airport has been entrusted to execute the cruise tourism project by forming a Special Purpose Vehicle. In addition, the state government is planning to develop a few adventure parks as well. The government has allocated Rs. 45 crore for the Prasadam project in Kasaragod and Rs 120 crore for Green Carpet scheme for Alappuzha, Enranjil, Neyyar and Thenmala.” The state government also plans to develop 10 eco-tourism circuits to connect various forests in order to promote green tourism.
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