Tourists visiting the capital will soon have a rejuvenated attraction as the Veli tourist village is to get a grand and massive makeover with six projects worth ₹ 34.8 crore, including a convention centre.
A 2.5-km miniature railway, primarily targeted for children, worth ₹ 9 crore and an urban park of ₹ 4.99 crore will appeal to tourists seeking leisure at Veli, which has for long been known for its beautiful confluence of the sea and the lake.
Development of the lake shore at a cost of ₹4.76 crore, a 25,000-sq-ft convention centre of ₹9.98 crore, a multipurpose facilitation centre (₹3.60 crore) and renovation of the existing swimming pool and park (₹2.47crore) are the other projects of the makeover.
Launching the projects at the village on Tuesday night, Minister for Tourism Kadakampally Surendran said providing basic facilities together with ensuring security of tourists, especially children, is the aim of the development plans.
“In the last 1,000 days the government has taken dedicated steps to improve the infrastructure and safety of the tourist village including 37 units of solar lamps and 32 CCTV cameras,” he said. The Tourism Minister called for making the village a plastic and garbage-free tourist destination.
V. S Sivakumar, MLA, presided over the function.
V. K. Prasanth, Mayor; Director of Tourism P. Balkiran; R. Rahul, Managing Director, KTDC; K. G. Mohanlal, Chairman and Managing Director, Kerala Tourism Infrastructure Limited; Mary Lily Rajas, councillor, Vettukad; Shaji Madhavan; Managing Director, Tourfed; E. M. Najeeb, vice president, IATO; Baby Mathew, President, Kerala Travel Mart; spoke on the occasion.