The Orissa tourism department may team up with two neighbouring states- West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh for jointly running its proposed luxury train for tourists to be modeled on the Palace on Wheels.
“We had given a proposal to the Union tourism ministry for starting a luxury train for the tourists. Of late, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh have evinced interest in partnering us for this venture. We have asked these state governments to come out with the details of the partnership like sharing of revenue and operational costs”, an official source told Business Standard.
The proposed luxury train project for tourists involving an investment of Rs 37 crore is to be taken up on the public-private partnership (PPP) mode.
Earlier, the state tourism department had negotiated with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) for working out the modalities of the proposed luxury train.
Apart from providing catering services, IRCTC will also be responsible for designing the interiors of the train.
The luxury train will provide the tourists with a flavour of the state's wildlife, beaches, Buddhist sites, exquisite temples, arts and crafts, dance forms, Chilika lake and the tribal culture. Unlike other luxury tourist trains operating in the country like Palace on Wheels, Deccan Odyssey and The Golden Chariot which cater to high end tourists, the luxury train planned by the state tourism department would also be affordable for the middle income groups.
It may be noted that Orissa, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh are also set to come together for the country's first inter-state cruise tourism project.
The proposed project involves cruise connectivity from Visakhapatnam to Kolkata via Orissa.
The project was to be implemented on the PPP mode and a private operator was to operate the cruise. The state tourism department has completed the first round of negotiations with a private player for this project.
The cruise tourism project has been mooted by Debi Prasad Mishra, the Orissa tourism minister who has earlier negotiated with his counterparts in West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh on the project.
