Tourism Investors’ Summit Lists Prospects For Tirupati As Anchor Hub

Tirupati:A summit of regional tourism investors, held in Tirupati on Friday, resolved to develop the temple city as an anchor hub for both national and international tourism.

The event brought together policymakers, officials, industry representatives and investors to explore opportunities and chart the future course of the state’s tourism sector.

Addressing the gathering, tourism minister Kandula Durgesh said the government’s priority was to strengthen tourism through policy reforms and attract large-scale private investment. He underlined the industrial status granted to tourism, the provisions of the tourism policy 2024–29, and revised land allocation norms aimed at creating a favourable investment climate.

“The fact that we attracted nearly `12,000 crore investments in one year shows the confidence investors have in this government,” he claimed.

Tourism special chief secretary Ajay Jain and state tourism development corporation MD and AP Tourism Authority CEO Amrapali Kata presented details of investment opportunities covering MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) tourism, caravan tourism, houseboats, home-stays, adventure activities and integrated tour packages.

They also explained that Tirupati was being promoted as a hub for conferences, exhibitions and destination weddings.

Durgesh interacted with investors and home-stay operators, assuring them of land support, incentives and single-window clearances.

The minister stressed that Tirupati’s potential extended beyond temple visits and included nearby attractions such as Chandragiri fort, Talakona waterfalls, Sri Venkateswara zoological park and the Nelapattu bird sanctuary.

He said extending pilgrim stays from one day to multiple days would enhance both growth and employment. Anchor hubs are also being planned in Visakhapatnam, Araku Valley, Rajahmundry, Amaravati, Srisailam, and Gandikota.

Durgesh said that the state investment promotion board had approved hospitality projects worth `3,482 crore, which would add 2,698 hotel rooms and create employment for 11,645 youths.

Projects worth Rs 10,280 crore have already been grounded, accounting for 1,466 rooms.

Leading hospitality groups such as Atmosphere, Novotel, Marriott, Oberoi, Lemon Tree, and Mahindra have signed MoUs to set up hotels and resorts in the Tirupati region.

The minister said plans were under way for caravan tourism, eco-tourism in the Seshachalam forests, trekking, water sports and an experience centre in the red sanders forests. A new home-stay policy targeting 10,000 units would soon be placed before the cabinet, supported by a dedicated portal to encourage traditional and heritage stays, especially for foreign tourists, he informed.

APTDC MD Amrapali Kata explained the guidelines for investors, including stamp duty reimbursement, land conversion charges, quality certification, power charges, and GST.

The summit was attended also by MLAs Arani Srinivasulu and N Vijayashree, District collector Venkateswar, tour operators’ association president Vijay Mohan, CII representative Damodara Naidu, senior officials and several prospective investors.

Stakeholders recommended developing the Tirupati Circuit covering Tirupati, Srikalahasthi, Ontimitta, and Kanipakam, along with forming a regional coordination committee to ease approvals. They suggested leveraging TTD funds for tourism product development, promoting MICE tourism, and setting up caravan parks under the upcoming Caravan Tourism Policy. Other proposals included targeting tourist markets in Chennai and Bengaluru beyond spiritual tourism, launching strategic hoarding campaigns in Tirupati and nearby districts, and encouraging offline tickets for Tirumala darshan to increase tourists’ stay in Tirupati.