Madikeri: Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Dr. Richard Vincent D’Souza emphasised on the need to promote environment friendly tourism in the district which he said, provided the ideal climate for the growth of this sector.

He was chairing a meet on sanctioning tourism projects in the district during 2015-2020.

He called upon all the stake holders to promote tourism without causing damage to the environment and take adequate measures for waste disposal. He said the government under the new policy, provided financial assistance to eligible organisations and called upon those to avail the benefits. At the same time, he instructed the tourism department officials to take precautions during inspection prior to the approval of the project.

Zilla Panchayath Chief Executive Officer Charulatha Somal felt prior inspection should be made mandatory before approving tourism projects with innumerable home stays and resorts mushrooming in the district.

Assistant director of Tourism in the district, C Jagannath gave details about nine proposals pending before the department for approval and confirmed sanctioning of projects by sticking to the guidelines mentioned in the state tourism policy. The stamp duty, registration fee, land conversion fee, interest free loan, subsidy, entry tax and luxury taxes will be applicable as per the norms mentioned in the policy, he added.