The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal dedicated key maritime projects to the nation during the 2nd Indian Lighthouse Festival in Puri, Odisha.
Key points
- The festival, in its second avatar here, aimed at rejuvenating the rich maritime history of India iconic lighthouses in a culturally vibrant atmosphere.
- The Union Minister also announced two new lighthouses on Odisha’s coastline – one at Chaumuck at Narayanpur in Balasore district and another at Dhamra in Bhadrak district of the state.
- The new Kalwan reef Lighthouse at Jamnagar in Gujarat as well as two projects in Padadip Port, Odisha; i.e., Stacker-cum-Reclaimant & a Flyover bridge, were inaugurated.
- In Odisha, five lighthouses—Gopalpur, Puri, Chandrabhaga, Paradip, and False Point—have been developed as part of this initiative to promote lighthouse tourism.
- In the fiscal year 2023-24 alone, the 75 dedicated lighthouses attracted an impressive 16 lakh visitors.
- In 2023, the maiden edition of Indian Lighthouse Festival took place in Goa with a spotlight on 75 historical sites to be developed into tourists destinations.
- The ‘Bharatiya Prakash Sthamb Utsav’ was conceived with an intent to transform these historical sites into tourist destinations with the help of Public Private Partnerships.
