Sailing academy to take Marina to new level: CM

The academy, to be set up at a cost of Rs 7 crore along with a skill training centre for sailing and rowing competitions, would come up as part of fulfilling her party’s promise made in the election manifesto that it would set up sea water sport facilities. It was part of the various initiatives undertaken to motivate and equip sportspersons in the State to make them win laurels at national and international events, besides providing necessary incentives. 

The Chief Minister said an electronic library will be set up at a cost of Rs 2.15 crore in the Tamil Nadu Physical Education and Sports University, which was started during her previous regime. The library will help students and professors of the varsity to update themselves with latest developments. Recalling her earlier announcement that an exclusive NCC training academy would be set up in Madurai, she said works on the Rs 12 crore facility were fast nearing completion at Edayapatti in Madurai.

Tourism Minister Vellamandi Natarajan shared statistics suggesting a marginal rise in tourist arrivals to Tamil Nadu. According to the minister, around 32.75 crore domestic and 46.57 foreign tourists had visited Tamil Nadu in 2014 and the number rose to 33.34 crore and 46.84 crore in 2015, respectively, highest for any state in the entire country. 

In a bid to promote coastal tourism, the government has also advised tourist operators to design packages in such a way that people arriving in Chennai and Tuticorin ports in cruise ships would spend not less than three or four days here, the minister said.