CHENNAI: From mountains and hills to seashores and backwaters, from millennia-old structures to undisturbed wilderness, from temples and archaeological sites to ruins of a period that went by, the magical and magnetic beauty of Tamil Nadu, and its potential to attract tourists from across the globe, is undisputed.
Now, after long remaining one of the country’s key tourist destinations but not its foremost tourism hub, the State appears to be moving to unlock its untapped potential.
The first Global Tourism Summit that was held in Mahabalipuram this week has sent a signal that the government is viewing the sector with the importance that it deserves so as to bring in revenue in the form of investments and the consequent tourist inflow and job creation.
In all, 127 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) were signed during the summit on February 2 and 3, which involve an investment of Rs 23,000 crore and have the potential to generate around 66,000 jobs. However, as big as those numbers are, they do not convey the full picture.
Among those deals are plans to set up a wide variety of tourist facilities, offering a diverse range of experiences ranging from adventure sports, helicopter and hot air balloon rides, amusement parks, heritage theme parks, ropeways, camps and caravans, glamping, boating (including on electric boats), agri, eco, coastal, and hill resorts.
Besides these, a number of firms have come forward to set up hospitals and medical tourism facilities.
Here is the select list of MoUs that were signed at the summit, separated into categories, including the investment amount and the potential jobs generated by each of them: