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To increase tourism in the state, the Lucknow Up administration resolved on Tuesday to implement its Water Tourism and Adventure Sports Policy-2023 and develop nine historic structures as heritage tourist units using a public-private partnership (PPP) model.
Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister, presided over a state cabinet meeting where a proposal to set up automated testing stations (ATS) to issue fitness certificates in 16 divisions/districts in the initial phase was also approved.
The UP Water Tourism and Adventure Sports Policy will be in effect for 10 years and be applicable on all inland, air and water routes, dams/reservoirs, lakes, rivers, ponds, and water bodies in UP, according to Tourism Minister Jaiveer Singh in a briefing to the media.
Water-based tourism, adventure sports, and water sports have a lot of promise in the Vindhya and Bundelkhand regions' hills, which are located on an area of around 16,620 sq km in the foothills of the Himalayas. These places also include forests, rivers, waterfalls, dams, reservoirs, and lakes.
At the divisional level, adventure sports units would be formed. He stated that in order to integrate ex-servicemen into the adventure sports units, the UP State Tourism Development Corporation and the Ex-Servicemen Welfare Corporation would establish a memorandum of agreement.
He promised that within 60 days of the announcement of this policy, the appropriate rules for issuing licenses for adventure sports and tourism would be worked up, and a standard operating procedure (SOP) would be created.
A proposal to develop historic forts and buildings that are 75% or more damaged for use as heritage tourism units was authorized by the state cabinet. According to the minister, the heritage buildings would be developed in accordance with the business plan and include a heritage hotel, resort, museum, banquet hall, and adventure tourist center.
These include Chhatar Manzil, Lucknow (9.88 acres); Chunar Fort, Mirzapur (21.64 acres), Barua Sagar Fort (7.39 acres); Kothi Gulistan-e-Iram, Lucknow (1.35 acres); Kothi Darshan Vilas, Lucknow (1.35 acres), Kothi Roshan-ud-Daula, Qaiserbagh, Lucknow (1.35 acres), Barsana Jal Mahal, Mathura (1 acres); Shukla Talab, Kanpur (6.90 acres) and Tikait Rai Baradari, Bithoor, Kanpur (0.217 acres).
In order to give tourists greater amenities, Singh noted that the UP STDC has 86 Rahi tourism bungalows. The cabinet had resolved to develop 31 of the abandoned or losing bungalows using a PPP approach. Now that a final decision has been made, ten tourist bungalows would be built under a PPP model with a 30-year lease that may be extended for another 30 years while also allowing two years for development.
Sonauli, Maharajganj, Bateshwar (Agra), Gokulgaon, Mathura, Kalinjar Banda, Mathura, Radhakund (Mathura), Sandi Dahar Lake, Hardoi, Neemsar (Sitapur), Deogarh, Lalitpur, and Bhadohi were among the locations of these tourist bungalows.
automatic testing facilities
In accordance with the policy announced on September 2, 2022, the cabinet also approved a plan to solicit bids via an electronic tender site for the installation of automated testing stations. These facilities will give certificates of vehicle fitness. Since there weren't enough of these stations in the state, it was decided to establish one ATS in each division, with the exception of Lucknow, Kanpur, and Agra. A single applicant is permitted to create a maximum of two ATSs.
