OM Bureau
Puri:
The Mahodadhi beach stretching over 3 kms. at Puri will soon be beautified under the Puri Beach Development Project. A comprehensive plan chalked out in this respect by the State Tourism development authorities is to use Rs.4.65 lakhs to illuminate the beach after freeing it from all encroachments and to build up four parking yards for tourists vehicles, out of a central government allocation of Rs.1.27 crore.
In a meeting held here to finalize the project, it was contemplated to develop a grassy park on the beach and to widen the marine drive road towards the sea. But, as it goes against the norms of coastal zone regulations, the state coastal Zone Management authority will be moved to clear it before its implementation.
It was decided to remove all the advertisement hoardings from and over the beach and to upgrade the Sulabh International toilets with better amenities for the tourists.
Pollution of the famous beach by hotels on the shore has attracted criticism unabated. Even the House Committees of Orissa Legislative Assembly have unreservedly expressed their anguish over administrative apathy to this outstanding problem. But the meeting that adopted the project, could not pay any attention to this, though it was participated by the local MLA (who also is the Speaker of the Assembly), Mr. Maheswar Mohanty.