The Hindu : Karnataka News : Tourism potential of Hassan yet to be tapped

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Sep 27, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka

Tourism potential of Hassan yet to be tapped

By Our Staff Correspondent

The Chennakeshava Temple at Belur in Hassan district. — Photo: K. Gopinathan

HASSAN, SEPT. 26. World Tourism Day on Monday may become an occasion for the district administration and the Department of Tourism to ponder why the tourism potential of the district has not been fully tapped.

The district, which was part of the region ruled by the Hoysalas, has many monuments of that period.

It is also known for the famous statue of Gommateshwara.

Though the district is well connected by a national highway and is 180 km from Bangalore, little has been made to promote tourism. According to an estimate, 2.50 lakh tourists visited the district in 2003.

Inadequate facilities

Tourists complain of inadequate facilities in the district, especially at Belur and Halebeed, which are known for architectural splendour.

Lack of direct public transport from Bangalore to Belur is a major problem. The roads are bad and traffic snarls are a common feature in many places in the district. There is little good to be said about Hotel Mayura Velapuri which is managed by the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation, they say.

Apathy

The famous monuments are crying for attention. The Channakeshava Temple at Belur and the Hoysaleshwara Temple at Halebeed have become victims of official apathy. Miscreants have damaged many monuments. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which has been entrusted with the responsibility of preserving the temples at Belur and Halebeed, has done little in that direction, according to the people of Belur. But the ASI attributes this to the shortage of staff faced by it.

Rigid rules

Officials of Department of Tourism blame the rigid rules of the ASI for the poor infrastructure at Halebeed and Belur.

A senior official says that though the department has sent many proposals seeking better infrastructure, the ASI ignored them. The officials stressed the need for a comprehensive plan for the development of Halebeed and Belur.

Proposal

A recent proposal of the State Government to include Belur and Halebeed in the list of World Heritage Sites has been welcomed by the people of the district.

Apart from the temples at Belur and Halebeed, there are monuments of architectural value that have gone unnoticed due to "official apathy".

The Keshava and Someshwara temples at Harnahalli near Arsikere are in bad condition. The 900-year-old Lakshminarasimha Temple at Nuggehalli in Channarayapatna taluk does not figure in the tourist map. The Nageshwara and Channakeshava temples at Mosale village and the Channakeshava (Allanatha) Temple at Kondajji near Hassan too are in similar condition.

Besides, there are three more temples constructed by the Hoysalas at Koravangala in Dudda hobli.

Of them, the Naakeshvara and Govindeshwara temples are in ruins. The Bucheshvara Temple is in good condition.

Major attraction

The Hoysala temples at Doddagaddavalli and Adagur can be made major tourist attractions if the authorities take steps in that direction, according to the people of the two villages. Tourists complain that it is difficult to reach the Bisile Forest, which is known for its scenic beauty.

`Recovering'

The Assistant Director of Tourism, Aadilakshmi, told The Hindu that the tourism industry, which suffered owing to the Cauvery agitation last year, was recovering with a 20 per cent increase in the tourist influx this year.

A Rs. 26.34-crore proposal has been sent to the Government for the development some Hoysala temples and tourist places, including, Ramanathapura, Shanthigrama, Sriramadevarakatte and the Gorur Dam. The Department of Tourism will promote Shravanabelgola as a tourist destination during Mahamastakabhisheka in 2006. A proposal for the development of Shravanabelagola will be sent to the Government soon, she says.

A senior official of the department says that there was a proposal to develop the Gorur Dam on the lines of the Brindavan Gardens at a cost of Rs. 60 crores some time ago.

A sum of Rs. 60 lakhs was released to a private company to prepare a plan. However, the proposal did not materialise for some reasons, he says.

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