If things go as per plan, the city will have a theme park on the lines of the Sentosa island resort in Singapore. This is one of the several plans of the state government to draw more tourists.
Chief minister J Jayalalithaa on Sunday sanctioned Rs 500 crore and asked officials to chalk out a comprehensive seven-point programme to develop tourism in the state over ten years. Of the amount sanctioned, Rs 50 crore will be spent on setting up modern tourist parks in Chennai and Trichy, which will be along the lines of Sentosa in Singapore.
Sentosa is an island resort in Singapore which draws huge numbers of tourists from around the world, especially India. It has spas, rainforests, beaches, resorts, golf courses, and a deep water yacht marina.
Sources said that the Sentosa in Chennai and Trichy may not have beaches and yacht marinas but plans are afoot to develop world-class themed parks. "There is great scope for such entertainment centres in our cities for local and foreign tourists. It will add to the tourist attractions in the cities," said an official.
The seven-point programme for all-round development of tourism will also cover cruise and helicopter trips, rope car facilities at hill stations, rural tourism and infrastructure development at tourist spots. Rural tourism will involve creating a cluster of five to seven villages based on the arts and handicrafts specific to the region, said a statement. It aims to provide employment to more than 4,000 youth as they would be given vocational training, said an official.
The government will also identify religious tours, environment tours and heritage tours in Madurai, Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar.
