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Work to develop Padubidri beach to begin in November

‘The aim is to get Blue Flag certification to attract domestic, international tourists’

Tourists will enjoy quality facilities on the Padubidri beach, the only beach in the State chosen under BEAMS scheme, by April 2019, if everything goes according to the plans of the district administration.

The three major stumbling blocks in the way of creation of better facilities were the lack of a road connecting Padubidri beach to Hejmady, lack of amenities on the beach and opposition from local people.

About a 500-m stretch of the road connecting the Padubidri Beach End Point to Hejmady is not developed. This road belongs to the Department of Fisheries. According to Deputy Commissioner Priyanka Mary Francis, the department has already issued tenders to develop this stretch. Work will begin on this stretch in the first week of November and be completed by the end of that month.

Basic high quality facilities are to be developed on this beach under the Beach Management Services Scheme (BEAMS) of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, at a cost of ₹8 crore.

“Already, a private company has been chosen for developing facilities on the beach. But this company cannot fully develop the beach until the road is constructed for transporting construction material,” she said.

Full-time construction of facilities on the beach will start in December after the road is developed. However, the company will start ancillary work in November. The facilities to come up on the beach include bio-toilet blocks, changing rooms with shower panels, jogging track with outdoor gym, children’s play area, purified drinking water, composting, recycling of solid waste, seating benches, watch towers, and installation of CCTV cameras.

Work on these facilities is expected to be completed in six months. High quality and non-corrosive material will be used for the facilities.

“Our ultimate aim is to get Blue Flag certification for the beach which entails stringent conditions so that we can attract both domestic and international tourists,” Ms. Francis said.

The doubts of local people regarding development plan of the beach have been resolved by forming a Beach Management Committee, which includes the Kaup MLA, the president of the Hejmady Gram Panchayat, the Panchayat Development Officer and representatives of two local fishermen’s associations.

“We want to throw open the beach with all facilities by March–April 2019, to attract the summer crowd,” Assistant Director of Tourism Anita B.R. said.