Visakhapatnam to be made as tourism destination: CM

Visakhapatnam: Visakhapatnam will emerge as a major film-making centre and hot tourism destination and all efforts will be made to develop the infrastructural facilities in the city to realise the goal, the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, has said.

He was addressing the audience in the Ramanaidu film studio built atop a hillock in the vicinity of Timmapuram village overlooking the Bay of Bengal on the Vizag-Bhimli road.

He said Visakhapatnam, endowed with beautiful beaches and exquisite locales, could be turned into a major film-making centre and tourist destination. “We have merged the nearby villages into the Greater Visakha Municipal Corporation and are investing a lot on improving the urban infrastructure,” he said.

Expressing his happiness over the construction of the studio, he said still 300 acres more was available for other such projects and the Government was willing to allot land, if entrepreneurs came up with suitable proposals.

He also suggested that a modern convention centre and a star hotel could be built with public-private participation.

Mr D. Ramanaidu, the film producer who built the studio, thanked the Chief Minister for his co-operation and said it was his ambition to develop the studio in a such a way that a producer, coming to the studio with a script, could go out with the film print in his/her hand and he/she should not experience any handicap.

Later, he told reporters that he had so far invested Rs 10 crore on developing the facilities and laying the road to the hilltop.

“We have developed only 10 acres or so and there is still a long way to go. We will invest Rs 20 crore or more. A colour lab has to be constructed and we are also building a five-star hotel. This studio will have all the modern facilities and I am sure the film-makers will favour it,” he said.