Orissa To Set Up Tourism SEZ

1,000 Acre Project To Be Funded Via Private Public SPV

Bhisham Mansukhani - Mumbai

In a move to boost tourism to Orissa, the state government is developing a 1,000-acre tourism Special Economic Zone (SEZ) outside Puri. The Taj Group of Hotels is currently preparing a feasibility study for the same on a consultancy basis. A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) that will receive both private and public funding will fund the SEZ. The tourism SEZ will feature several hotels across budget and premium segments. Taj's holding company IHCL is currently building six hotels in Orissa under the indiOne brand. A single window policy for building hotels as part of the tourism policy is already in place in order to boost the state's presently modest inventory.

Minister of tourism, energy and information technology, government of Orissa, Surya Narayan Patra, in an exclusive, revealed, "We have identified 1000 acres of land outside Puri, through a public and private partnership. Taj has been appointed design consultants for the project. The investment for the project will roll out in two phases, 600 crore and 1,400 crore respectively."

The World Bank and Pricewaterhouse Coopers are currently conducting a study as to how best to attract tourism to the state. Bhubaneshwar's domestic terminal runway is being extended to accommodate charter flights coming in from Russia and the business traveller rush in the wake of a potentially booming steel industry -- Orissa is set to become the country's largest steel producer with an annual tonnage of 38 million. Last year, the state received 3.8 million tourists with a strong domestic traveller component, 13000 of which were inbound tourists. While the current tourism budget is merely Rs 10 crore at present, the PWD is spending close to Rs 50 crore for road development to boost connectivity and thereby tourism.

Orissa's leading hotelier and president of its hotel and restaurant association, Swosti Group chairman and managing director, J K Mohanty said, "We are aggressively attracting investment into the state's hotel sector. The single window policy is a big incentive, add to which, the booming steel industry is set to increase business travel to the state and bring about international connectivity. The state has tourism diversity and business potential. Air connectivity and room inventory are critical catalysts in converting the above strengths to incoming tourism."