CM inaugurates Pongal exhibition at Island Grounds

“The first thing that comes to my mind during Pongal is the exhibition conducted in the Island grounds. Apart from the entertainment aspects, the exhibition will have various other components such as stalls creating awareness on various government schemes,” said Palaniswami, in his address.

As many as 28 stalls of various government departments, 16 stalls of state public departments, two stalls of central government departments, four stalls of others state governments and 60 private stalls have been set up in the expo.

The theme for the exhibition is “Tourism and the Digital Transformation”.

Some of the major attractions include the model of Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world constructed in Dubai, an aquarium apart from the regular entertainment features such as giant wheel.

Dance, drama and cultural programmes would be held on all the days in the evening. Palaniswami said Tamil Nadu continues to be the top state in the country in attracting tourists.

“Tamil Nadu  attracted the most number of tourists in 2014, 2015 and 2016. In 2017, the state had attracted 34.5 crore domestic tourists and 48.60 lakh foreign tourists,” said Palaniswami.

To further increase the tourist inflow and to develop tourism department, the State government has allotted Rs 46.58 crore.

While Rs 99.91 crore has been allotted to improve facilities in various beaches, Rs 218 crore has been allotted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for the development of tourism in the State. “The State has bagged several awards for its tourism sector. Tamil Nadu is also the leading state in pilgrimage and heritage tourism,” said Palaniswami.