TN Minister S Rajesh Kumar Announces 15 Projects To Upgrade Tourism Infrastructure

Presenting the demands for grants in the assembly on Wednesday, Tamil Nadu Minister for Tourism S Rajesh Kumar announced 15 projects aimed at strengthening tourism infrastructure, improving visitor safety, and expanding new tourism sectors across the state.

As part of the initiatives, the tourism department will undertake a feasibility study to assess the development of tourism infrastructure at R K Nagar beach. The state will also establish the Chennai MICE Promotion Bureau to position the city as a major destination for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions.

The department has proposed ₹2 crore for technical feasibility studies on cruise and ferry tourism routes. These include a Chennai-Kovalam route, as well as routes connecting Poompuhar-Tharangambadi-Nagapattinam and Rameswaram-Tuticorin-Kanyakumari.

Kumar noted that domestic tourist arrivals in Tamil Nadu rose from 30.80 crore in 2024 to 36.47 crore in 2025, ranking the state second in the country. To accommodate growing visitor numbers, development work worth ₹48 crore will be undertaken in Kanyakumari, Tirupur, Krishnagiri, and Erode districts. An additional ₹30 crore will fund general tourism infrastructure, including pedestrian pathways, roads, sightseeing amenities, visitor facilities, and food parks.

Tourist safety is another key focus of the plan. The state has earmarked ₹2 crore for AI-enabled CCTV cameras at major destinations. Dedicated tourist security organisations will also be set up at Mamallapuram, Ooty, Kanyakumari, Rameswaram, and Kodaikanal. Furthermore, ₹1 crore will fund training programmes for tour guides, hotel staff, entrepreneurs, travel agents, and lifeguards.

To promote sustainable travel, diesel boats operated by the Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation will be converted to electric boats at a cost of ₹17.82 crore. Other projects include a ₹60 lakh rural tourism initiative and a rope-car project connecting Dindigul district and Kodaikanal to the foothills through Vellagavi, which will proceed after securing technical clearance.