Sprucing up

TOURISM: Now Haryana wants a Formula 1 racetrack, but could settle for a temple complex instead.

Haryana is set to wheel its way back into development. According to a recent announcement by Bhupinder Singh Hooda, chief minister, Haryana, there will soon be a Formula 1 racetrack in Gurgaon.

A pioneer in highway tourism, the state had somewhere lost track. It now plans to revamp its policy and has even lined up a slew of activities to bounce back into business.

Kiran Choudhary, minister for tourism, Haryana, informed that the department is working on a brand new tourism policy for the state which would put emphasis on improving infrastructure in the state as well as use the public-private partnership model more effectively for future tourism projects.

The state plans to develop Special Tourism Zones (STZs) which would include convention centres, theme parks, entertainment parks, hotels, hotel management institutes among other tourism related infrastructure.

"We have hired a foreign consultant to identify land suitable for such STZs, mainly along the Palwal-Manesar highway," said Choudhary.

The historic city of Kurukshetra will be developed as an integrated tourism destination, with a brand new masterplan. Apart from heritage conservation, the state has given six acres of land to Iscon for constructing a unique temple in the area.

There is also a plan for a big temple complex on the lines of the Akshardham temple in Delhi, for which talks are on, said Choudhary. All shrines in the area will be integrated in this complex, for which Rs 25-50 crore have been promised by the centre, she added.

There is also a plan to develop spa tourism and one such centre is being planned near Kalesar. "The area is close to a national forest and the ambience is just right for setting up spas," she said. The idea being to attract high-end tourists to the state by offering world-class spa facilities.

Also, proximity to Delhi would mean that the state would get some spillover of the Commonwealth Games traffic. The Union government has reportedly asked Haryana to provide for 10,000 hotel rooms before 2010.

According to Choudhary, Haryana Urban Development Authority and Haryana State Industries Development Corporation are identifying land especially for hotels. While land will be provided for five-star hotels in and around Gurgaon, the focus would be on developing budget hotels.