Udupi: The Karnataka’s first Sea Walkway was inaugurated near the picturesque Malpe Beach by Minister for Fisheries, Youth Empowerment and Sports, Pramod Madhwaraj, here on Republic Day.
The Malpe Development Committee had released Rs 53.5 lakh to the Nirmiti Kendra for the construction of the 500 metres sea walkway. It has 8.5 feet width. As many as 15 benches have been installed on the walkway for the people to sit and enjoy the sea breeze. The walkway has steel railings on either sides on laterite stone. It also has 30 ornamental lamps.
Tourists will be able to watch breathtaking views of three islands, St. Mary’s Island, Light-House Island and the Bhadargad Island (also called Dariyagad or Darya Bahadurgad Island). They will be able to watch dolphins at the sea walkway point in addition to the fishing boats going to catch fish during the mornings and evenings. Besides, it would be a good site for fish angling.
Speaking on the occasion, the minister said, "It's the second project in the country and first in the state. There's a similar project at Beypore Beach at Kozhikode, Kerala. People can sit here and relax. People can't take bikes on the walkway and if they do it, the bikes will be seized."
Malpe is known for having the second-largest boat anchoring harbour and it's a fast developing tourist spot. There's a beautiful St Mary's Island with columnar rock structure, which is found elsewhere only in Africa. It’s also known as Swachh Island.
"We're also developing a 1.5-km stretch of Padukere Beach. It's a virgin beach which will be developed to get blue flag recognition. Once it is identified with a blue tag, it will attract international tourists. We're developing roads and toilets. Soon, it'll be India's No. 1 beach and the foundation for the project has been laid," he said. He added, "I hope Malpe fishermen don't depend only on fishing. They should generate revenue through tourism too."
Comments
Add new comment