As part of the eco-labelling process ahead of the prestigious Blue Flag certification, the final round of “I am saving my beach” campaign was kick-started on the Kappad beach in Kozhikode district on Friday. Koyilandy MLA, K. Dasan, hoisted a flag on the historical beach, inaugurating the campaign on the eve of International Coastal Cleanup Day.
The flag-hoisting event also declared the completion of all the major facelift works and safety arrangements at the tourism destination. R.P. Gupta, Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests, opened the event through video-conferencing.
District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) officials said the destination was prepared to win the prestigious international certification from the Foundation for Environmental Education. They said the formal announcement with regard to the title would come from the international jury in the second week of October.
They said Kappad was the only beach short-listed in Kerala for the noted international certification which can boost its tourism prospects. The national jury representing the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, had already evaluated the renovation works and submitted their report to the international jury.
At the same time, the international jury’s decision would be crucial for securing the title, which is accorded after evaluating a number of factors such as environmental issues, safety measures and sanitation standards. The officials said they were confident of Kappad’s success in the final evaluation process as the development works were completed in the area by complying with all the mandatory guidelines.
District-level panel
In support of the process, a district-level committee under the District Collector had earlier assessed the works and given their final suggestions. Based on their recommendations, nearly 1 km of the beach had been brought under the development project. Facilities such as jogging track, washrooms and scenic rain shelters had been completed at the site apart from the major beautification works.
Tourism Department officials said the total cost earmarked for the renovation project was ₹8 crore. There were over 30 criteria to be followed while undertaking the works and those were met without any flaws. A professional team was appointed to carry out the works and its supervision. According to officials, the maintenance of the beach for the next two years too would be followed very strictly to comply with the certification process.
The Kappad beach was short-listed for the certification process in 2018. Responding to the opportunity, the district administration was after a number of awareness programmes to sensitise the local communities about the process and its significance in the global tourism sector.