Maharashtra plans to tap its 720 km-long coastline to build marinas at several locations, making it the second state in the country after Kerala to explore this possibility.
Talks are on to build marinas in coastal locations such as Mumbai, Mandawa, Shrivardhan, Ratnagiri, Guhagar, Ganapatipule, Malvan and Vengurla, to promote cruise tourism in the state, especially since the number of cruise liners here have been on a decline over the years.
A Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) official told TOI that discussions are on between the Maharashtra Maritime Board, MTDC, Mumbai Port Trust and officials from ministry of shipping on the same. "Cruise tourism in foreign countries is on the rise, while India has a long way to go before it develops this kind of tourism. For cruise tourism to flourish here, we need adequate immigration facilities, jetties, marina rules and regulations, among other things. Cruise liners too have been on a steady decline in the country. It is to address this issue that we are planning to build marinas at various sea destinations," he said.
The MTDC had earlier requested the ministry of tourism to prioritise the marina and jetty project as a revenue-generating project, which has been approved.
The official said that some projects will be constructed by MTDC while others will be built on public-private partnership (PPP) basis. "The project cost would vary between Rs 100 crore to Rs 800 crore for marinas across various locations in Maharashtra, with marinas built in Mumbai costing more. Much work will go into constructing these massive structures from dredging work to constructing jetties, dry and wet docks, approach roads, water supply, electricity and sewage systems as well as fire fighting arrangements for the marina," he said.
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