VISAKHAPATNAM: Tourism minister Kandula Durgesh has announced plans to secure the Blue Flag certification for AP’s entire 974-kilometre stretch of beach front. This status is granted by Denmark’s Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE).Inspecting the Rushikonda Beach on Thursday, he asserted that all care is being taken to preserve the beach’s Blue Flag status. In this regard, he said the Tourism department has allocated ₹24 lakh just for beautification of the Rushikonda Beach. The minister inspected the coastline along which electric double-decker buses will start operating soon. These hop-on, hop-off vehicles have been designed to provide tourists and visitors an environmentally friendly travel experience. In addition, he said, a comprehensive strategy has been evolved for beach development featuring improved cleanliness and safety protocols, better management of the environment and traffic, efficient management of solid waste and greywater, upgraded infrastructure and amenities, more recreational opportunities for children, and increased green areas and landscaping. For the purpose, he underlined the need to regularly remove garbage from the sewage systems. Durgesh disclosed that the Cordelia cruise service that had been suspended is being resumed following discussions at the tourism conference in Bengaluru. The cruise will operate four times until September, even though efforts are being made to run the cruise throughout the year. The minister said tourism circuits including sea travel connecting cultural and historical places are being planned. He said they are taking up with Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu a proposal to establish a National Tourism University at Visakhapatnam with help from the central government.
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