Kovalam, state's best surfing destination, Newsbytes, Newsletter, India

KERALA TOURISM NEWSLETTER

ISSUE: 202

JUNE 2010

Kovalam, state's best surfing destination

An artificial submerged reef and a walkway were recently inaugurated at Kovalam by Mr. Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Minister for Tourism. The reef was built as part of the tsunami rehabilitation project. In his inaugural speech, the minister said that the government will give priority to the development of beach destinations in Kerala as a part of promoting beach tourism. The tourism industry in Kerala possesses great potential to generate employment and revenue. The government has sanctioned various new projects as a part of the efforts to attract more domestic and foreign tourists to the state, the minister added.

The reef has been installed in an area that lies between the light house and the Edakkal rocks off the Light House beach in Kovalam. The presence of the reef would aid in developing Kovalam into an ideal destination for water sports like surfing, aquaplaning, scuba-diving, boating, snorkeling and waterskiing. The reef would also help the beaches at Kovalam to get stabilized and make them wider in due course by eliminating the offshore wave power. The reef was installed at a cost of Rs.78.7 million and the walkway at an expense of Rs.26.5 million.