Renowned artists Sudarsan Pattnaik and Manas Sahoo created sand sculptures on the shore of Puri Beach in Odisha over the weekend to mark the World Tourism Day.
Since 1980, the United Nations World Tourism Organization has celebrated World Tourism Day on September 27.
The agenda of this day is to create awareness on the role of tourism within the international community and to demonstrate how it affects social, cultural, political and economic values worldwide.
Both the artists created sculptures on this year's theme pitched by UNESCO - 'one billion tourists, one billion opportunities'.
Pattnaik created a sand art of famous Konark Sun Temple in Odisha with the UNESCO's message below it.
Konark Sun Temple is a masterpiece of Odisha's medieval architecture temple and declared a world heritage site by UNESCO.
Pattnaik said tourism is important as it helps the economy grow.
"More tourists bring more opportunities and more business. Tourism brings direct profit and people, especially business men earn a lot wherever tourism is good," said Pattnaik who used about four tons of sand for his six feet tall sculpture.
Meanwhile, Sahoo created various known wonders of the world for his sand art, including the Taj Mahal, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty.
"I have made this sculpture on the occasion of World Tourism Day. This year our theme is billion tourists, billion opportunities. I have replicated a lot of tourist spots in my sculpture, for example pyramids, Taj Mahal and the Statue of Liberty," said Sahoo, who used about 20 tons of sand for his art.
The NDA Government is taking extensive measures to promote tourism in India. In the run-up to the announcement of the new National Tourism Policy, the government took measures to create more jobs and increase India's share in global tourism market. It is also to launch the 'Incredible India 2.0' campaign.
