3 days ago
Vizag's floating restaurant project hits roadblock over CRZ clearance
Visakhapatnam: The much-hyped tourism project, which aims to convert an abandoned cargo ship into a floating restaurant under public private partnership (PPP) mode near Tenneti Park in Vizag city, remains stalled as the required CRZ (coastal regulation zone) clearance has not yet been granted.
The Bangladesh cargo vessel MV Maa has been stranded at Tenneti Park beach in Vizag city since October 13, 2020. Following the incident, the vessel's owner did not reclaim the ship, citing elevated salvage costs, leaving the vessel abandoned on the shore.
Vizag-based firm Gill Marines purchased the abandoned ship from the insurers PNI Club (North of England) at a cost of Rs 1.25 crore. Then tourism minister M Srinivasa Rao, in Dec 2021, declared that the abandoned vessel would be developed into a key tourism attraction in Vizag city, with the target date for completion set as July 2022.
In March 2023, the Andhra Pradesh govt formalised an agreement with Shore and Ship Resort Pvt Ltd (SSRPL), represented by Surender Singh Gill, managing director of SSRPL, during the global investors' summit in Vizag for the development of the project. According to the MoU, SSRPL will set up a shore and ship resort, collaborating to facilitate investment in Andhra Pradesh and stimulate economic development. SSRPL intends to invest around Rs 30 crore in the project, which is projected to create jobs to around 200 individuals.
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Surender Singh Gill, managing director of SSRPL, told TOI that apart from obtaining a few permissions, progress has been minimal. Speaking about the ongoing expenditure to protect the vessel from corrosion, he expressed hope that the project may soon receive CRZ clearance, particularly as officials from the Andhra Pradesh tourism department could accelerate the process and help move the project forward.
The floating restaurant project near Tenneti Park in Vizag must still obtain CRZ clearance before any further work can proceed. GVB Jagadeesh, regional director of AP tourism development corporation, stated that a central team is expected to visit Vizag city to assess the proposed floating restaurant project in the coming days.
