Architectural treasures of Mahabalipuram attract tourists
by Jai Kumar
Mahabalipuram:
Architectural treasures and beautiful beaches of Mahabalipuram
are attracting tourists in large numbers. Mahabalipuram
town lies on the Coromandel Coast, which faces the Bay
of Bengal. The cave temples here, which are considered
architectural treasure houses, have recently become a
tourists' hot spot. The architectural beauty and uniqueness
of these temples situated just 60 kilometres away from
the state capital Chennai, has been declared as world
heritage sights by the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The visitors become
spellbound after witnessing these temples, especially
the 8th century shore temple, which overlooks the Bay
of Bengal.
Growing
tourism at places in and around Mahabalipuram has become
a source of employment to thousands of inhabitants. Commissioner
of Tamil Nadu State Tourism, R. Rajaram believes that
the foreigners find Tamil Nadu a safe destination to visit
and claims that the state tourism department has taken
a number of initiatives to create a tourism friendly culture
in the state. Also, Tamil Nadu is known for its hospitality
which makes the visitors feel comfortable and secure.
Rajaram said that the number of enquiries by foreign tourists
has increased after the recent terrorist attacks in other
major tourist destinations of the country including the
'Pink city' Jaipur, Bangalore, Mumbai, Guwahati and New
Delhi. However, according to the tourists, they are not
afraid to visit India after the terrorist strikes, but
are comfortable in the lap of natural beauty of Mahabalipuram.
"We are completely against any fundamentalism and terrorism
and so we feel compassionate towards Indian people. If
we have to go to Bombay, we will go. I mean it's a way
to show solidarity towards Indian people, its very important,"
said Joseph, a tourist from Brazil. Tourism contributes
more than 6 percent to India's GDP of $1 trillion, and
employs 53 million people directly or indirectly. Therefore,
any lapse in the tourist business affects the lives of
millions of families across the nation adversely.
-Feb
2, 2009
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