Mangalore, Jan 28: Tourism hotspots like Shanghai and Beijing in China have developed greatly owing to PPP investments. Asking district authorities to take lessons from here, Dr. H A C Prasad, Senior Economic Advisor, Department of Economic Affairs, New Delhi said that Mangalore as a city too has the potential to develop and grow through various PPP projects and investments.
“There is ample scope for development of tourism as there are innumerable places of historic interest in Dakshina Kannada district but there is a need for better marketing of these destinations,” he said.
Stressing on need for widening railway network in Karnataka, Mr Prasad said that authorities in Karnataka must think of having train connectivity between towns in the state, something which is in vogue in North India where even villages are connected with train services.
“PPP investment in developing this train network for faster connectivity and enhancement of tourism is something Mangalore can benefit from,” Mr. Prasad opined.
Delivering the keynote address at the inaugural ceremony of the 'National Conference on Public Private Partnership with Special Reference to Infrastructure Development, Industrialization and Tourism' at SDM College, Mangalore, on Monday, Mr. Prasad said that the Government of India is finalizing the PPP (Public Private Partnership) Policy, one of the proposals which includes disallowance of states to have MoUs (Memorandum of Understandings) with private sector undertakings.
“The new PPP Policy being drafted by the Union Government is debatable and may attract criticism. The government has not finalized on it yet though,” Mr.Prasad said adding that another notable change that the Government is contemplating to bring about through the PPP Policy is the complete visualization of the projects and schemes for investment by the government beforehand, instead of a private party coming with a plan and asking for investment.
Stating that a higher and successful PPP will act as a catalyst in increasing India's GDP, Mr. Prasad said that an investment of over Rs. 45 lakh crore or 5.1 trillion dollars in the PPP sector needs to be done within the duration of the 12th five year plan. Inadequate supply of infrastructure is hampering India's economic growth and greater PPP investment to develop infrastructure would do well for India, he said.
N Yogish Bhat, Deputy Speaker, Karnataka Legislative Assembly, Sampath Kumar Shetty of Land Links, Mangalore, Dr. Devraj K, Principal, SDM College of Business Management, Mangalore, were among those present.
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