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Tourist Guest House at Koraput catches dust

The possible drastic fall in the number of tourists to Koraput and Malakngiri districts  as a result of  the recent restrictions imposed by the state government on  the tourists  visiting  the habitations of primitive tribes in the region should not provoke  the state government to make any delay  in opening the tourist reception centres at Koraput , Gupteswar and Sunabeda for the public .

According to Bhagavan Khora , tourist officer at Koraput , these buildings were already completed and been handed over by OTDC  to the department of tourism  almost one year back  . While the tourist reception centre with twelve spacious suits to stay adjacent to the special circuit house at Koraput was built at an estimated cost of Rs.73 Lakhs , the Panthikas at Gupteswar and Sunabeda were built with an expenditure of Rs.1.2 Cr. each . However for the lack of any interest from the state headquarters , the buildings were catching dust without giving anything in return .

Moreover all these guest houses also were so well placed in the region  that a minimum investment in furnishing the buildings , making them suitable for accommodation ,  could easily meet the growing needs of tourists. Koraput has been attracting tourists for its mountains and valleys , rivers and dams apart from its tribal culture and heritage over the last many years  .There was  the famous Jagannath temple at Koraput ,the old  King’s palace at Jeypore , tribal weekly markets at Onakadelli , Boipariguda , Subai ,Kakirigumma and Kunduli , water fall at Machkund  in addition to the scores of  tribal fairs and festivals happening outside their original habitations attracting  the  focus of  tourists year after year  rather than confining them into some  specified brackets .

  More than 35 thousand domestic tourists and scores of foreign tourists’ visit to the region  were recorded officially  , last  December alone  , Mr.Khora added .