The Centre has approved a Rs 91.72 crore proposal to enhance tourist amenities in 147 pilgrim centres of different faiths in Kerala.
The Ministry of Tourism has approved the proposal submitted by the state government, made as part of the Tourism Infrastructure Development plan.
Through the project, implemented as part of the Pilgrim Tourism Third Circuit Development Plan, seven clusters covering all the 14 districts of the state would be demarcated and infrastructure will be created in major Hindu, Muslim and Christian pilgrim centres, an official statement said on Thursday.
Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said a detailed project report on the scheme would be submitted to the Centre. “As the next step, a detailed project plan will be prepared at the earliest and submitted to the Centre. The government will be giving priority to the development of pilgrim tourism, considering the growing importance of this segment,” Surendran said. Restrooms, community halls, toilets and food stalls are being planned as part of the project.
The pilgrim centres identified for the project include Ananthapadmanabhaswamy Temple (Kasaragod), Thirunavaya Nava Mukunda Temple (Malappuram), Valiyapalli Juma Masjid (Ponnani), Sri Visalakshi Sametha Sri Viswanathaswamy Temple (Kalpathy), Thali Siva Temple (Pattambi), Paramekkavu and Thiruvambadi temples (Thrissur), Ayyappa Seva Sangham (Erumeli), Nainar Church (Kanjirappally), St Mary’s Church (Chambakkulam), Marthoma Church (Thiruvalla) and Parabrahma Temple (Oachira).
Projects worth Rs 10.91 crore would be earmarked for the first cluster in the project, Kasaragod district. The government has also identified projects for Wayanad, Kannur and Kozhikode (totalling Rs 9.29 crore), Palakkad and Malappuram (Rs 9.03 crore), Thrissur, Ernakulam and Idukki (Rs 14.24 crore), Kottayam and Alappuzha (Rs 19.91 crore), Pathanamthitta (Rs 11.8 crore) and the Thiruvananthapuram-Kollam cluster (Rs 12.16 crore).