The Indian government on Tuesday approved a plan to build a dolphin and water theme
park along the Arabian Sea coastline in Sindhudurg. Chief minister Prithviraj
Chavan has given an in-principle approval to the Rs 510- crore project that
will be part of a plan to promote the 720-km-long coastline.
“The land for Sea World, to be built on a PPP model, will soon be identified
and constructions will start on the lines of a dolphin theme park in Florida. We
will start the tendering process as early as possible,” state tourism minister
Chhagan Bhujbal told TOI. He has been visiting Orlando and other
parts of the world to study theme parks there. But a source said industries
minister Naryan Rane, who is also the guardian minister of Sindhudurg, did not
hide his reservations about the project and its feasibility.
The state hopes that by developing such a park, the Konkan coastline, so far
lying in neglect, could be turned into a major tourist attraction. The MTDC has
already conducted a feasibility and viability study with the help of Pune
University after which a final blueprint was presented to Chavan who agreed that
such a facility was required.
Going by the blueprint, Sea World will have a giant aquarium, a dolphin park
and a stadium, a facility to train and keep dolphins, guest houses, a theatre
and theme restaurants. The government had initially planned to set it up in the
sea but now, it has been shifted to the land. “The water could then be drawn
from the sea through outlets,” said a tourism department official.
After considering Raigadh and Ratnagiri, the MTDC finally zeroed in on
Sindhudurg because of its proximity to the national highways and airports of
international quality.
Source: Times of India
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