40 tourism projs get approval to boost lesser-known destinations in India
Forty projects worth over Rs 3,295 crore and spanning 23 states have received nod from the Centre for developing lesser-known destinations into iconic sites and promote a more balanced distribution of tourists across the country.
As per the directives of the Department of Expenditure, the Ministry of Tourism issued operational guidelines for Special Assistance to States/Union Territories for Capital Investment (SASCI) for the development of iconic tourist centres, officials said.
The Ministry of Tourism circulated the SASCI guidelines to the state governments with a request to formulate and submit the project proposals to the ministry, which are iconic in nature and can create impactful destinations, they said.
By the last date of submission, October 15, 2024, a total of 87 project proposals were received costing more than Rs 8,000 crore, a senior official in the ministry said.
Thereafter, the Ministry of Tourism in line with the guidelines and as per the procedure or criteria, shortlisted 40 projects across 23 states for Rs 3295.76 crore which have now been sanctioned by the Department of Expenditure, the official said.
