Insight

Peaceful Pondicherry

Preeti Kannan examines how tourism has increased steadily in this sleepy town that is famous for its French connection with campaigns that highlight these key points

A much sought-after holiday spot for Indians and international tourists alike, Pondicherry is a heady mix of a rich colonial past, scenic beauty and historical allusions. It comprises the town of Pondicherry, Yanam in Andhra Pradesh, Mahe in Kerala and Karaikal in Tamil Nadu, all of which are governed by the Pondicherry government.

A town with a laid-back attitude, Pondicherry is popular not only for its 32 kilometre long coastline but also its backwaters, fishing villages, resorts, the quaint French town, handicraft factory in the precincts of the town, and the famous Sri Aurobindo Ashram. It is therefore easy to see why the destination has evolved from a one-day itinerary to a long sojourn for foreigners. According to the tourism department, tourist arrivals has grown over the years and the region welcomes about 50,000 foreigners, many of whom are repeat tourists, and about five lakh Indians every year.

For visitors from South India, it has become a popular weekend getaway. This could be attributed largely to the government's aggressive and enthusiastic ad campaigns like 'Peaceful Pondicherry' that was launched in October 2002 in cities like Chennai, Bangalore and Madurai. These ads were in the form of a to-do-list meant to woo young travellers itching to get away from busy cities and hectic schedules for the weekend.

The idea was to drastically alter the image of Pondicherry from a modest heritage centre and a watering-hole for college-goers to a culturally vibrant city. This was done by cashing in on the city's French heritage. Positioned as a place to laze and de-stress, the tagline was aptly coined 'Give time a break'. While the 'Peaceful Pondicherry' campaign is here to stay for long, other advertising strategies and marketing plans are being worked on by the government and will be in place in the next few months. According to a recent study by the government, the motivation for 60 per cent of tourists visiting the Union territory is because of its image as a leisure and holiday destination.

Budget allocation

All these ad campaigns have been due to the generous allocation of funds, which was increased from Rs 75 lakh in 2002 to about Rs 2 crore recently. The plan is to set apart about Rs 11.58 crore.

Although this appears to be miniscule as far as advertising and tourism is concerned, P Gautham Reddy, director, Department of Tourism, believes that this is a huge amount for a small place like Pondicherry. The next financial year will see an increase of about Rs three crore in the budget.

Backing these ad campaigns are numerous interesting initiatives outlined by the government. One of them is the plan to revive the Pondicherry airport from where no commercial airline has taken off in the last 13 years. The government has recently signed an MoU with Delhi-based Jagson Airlines that is slated to begin flights connecting Pondicherry to Chennai, Tirupati and Bangalore.

Although the MoU was signed earlier this year to operate an 18-seater Dornier 228 aircraft between the three sectors, six times a day from February, the project is yet to jumpstart. Vinod Malhotra, chief general manager, Jagson Airlines, points out that a delay in clearances from the DGCA and AAI has held up the project but he hopes to commence operations from April 2006. Putting aside operational delays, the government has underwritten 50 per cent of the seats in all the sectors, an encouraging sign to private players.

There are also plans to acquire more land from neighbouring Tamil Nadu to upgrade the airport into an international one. The present runway measures only 1,222 metres - too small to handle a big aircraft. If this idea materialises, then foreigners, especially the huge number of French tourists, can fly into Pondicherry directly instead of stopping over at Chennai. Karaikal may also get a Greenfield airport once the feasibility study is over.

Other interesting projects that the tourism department has outlined, explained Reddy, is a 45-acre seaside golf course south of Pondicherry. "We are in the process of land acquisition. This will take more than a year to be completed and will be a huge attraction for golf lovers with its world-class infrastructure," he claimed. There are also plans to develop a multiplex-cum- mall, the first of its kind in Pondicherry, apart from a 15-acre art and craft village.

Arikamedu, located in the south of Pondicherry and reputed to be a famous archaeological site with its Roman connection, is slated to be revived by the department as a tourist site. The famous Tirunallar temple in Karaikal is also being viewed as a potential hotspot and there are plans to develop a temple town in the next five years with a whopping Rs 200 crore.

Luring investors

Projects and initiatives aside, the Pondicherry government has been encouraging investments in the tourism sector. It has estimated that there is a demand for more than 3,800 hotel rooms as on date while only about 1,300 rooms are available. In fact, a Gazette Order will be passed soon to revise the investment subsidy from 20 per cent subject to Rs 25 lakh to 25 per cent subject to the maximum of Rs 1 crore. Investors will get the subsidy after two years of operations. They will also be given an interest subsidy and will be exempted from registration fee.

While there are several plans to promote Pondicherry as a place where people can unwind and relax, only time will tell if these projects will really see the light of the day.