Andhra to develop Tirupati as global wedding destination

The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to develop the famous pilgrim town of Tirupati as a global wedding destination, along with its existing religious tourism ecosystem, special chief secretary (revenue) Mukesh Kumar Meena said on Wednesday.India NewsSpeaking to the media after a stakeholders’ conference on the Tirupati Economic Region (TER), Meena, who is also chief executive officer of TER, said the government was planning to promote wedding as a major economic activity in the temple town, by bringing accommodation, transport, catering, decoration, event management, photography, traditional arts, entertainment and other services at a single destination.He said the objective was to create facilities catering to people across economic segments, rather than limiting the concept of a wedding destination to premium or luxury events.“A combination of premium, mid-range and budget-level venues and accommodation could enable families from different sections to organise weddings in Tirupati according to their requirements and affordability,” he said.Meena said wedding tourism should be developed as an integrated economic activity rather than merely creating venues for marriage functions. Families and guests attending weddings could be encouraged to stay in Tirupati for two or three days by offering accommodation and tourism packages.“The wedding experience can also be linked with the spiritual and cultural attractions of the region. Guests can combine the Tirumala visit with visits to heritage, cultural and nature-based tourist destinations in Tirupati, Chittoor, Nellore and surrounding areas, creating wider tourism circuits,” he said.The official said a well-organised wedding destination would create opportunities for hotels, convention centres, banquet halls, catering services, decorators, transport operators, photographers, videographers, florists, event managers, artisans, textile and jewellery businesses and other service providers.Meena said the development of Tirupati as a wedding destination would require adequate accommodation, parking, public transport and connectivity. There was a need to increase the availability of quality budget hotels so that visitors from all sections could stay in the city.“The city should also ensure adequate water supply, power, sanitation, waste management and traffic management so that increased visitor activity did not put pressure on existing civic infrastructure,” he said.Meena said the TER development plan would initially identify potential areas district-wise and subsequently at the sub-zone level. Between 50 and 100 potential projects would be identified over the next four months and taken up for detailed planning.“Central and State government resources as well as the public-private partnership (PPP) model would be explored for mobilising investments. Expert teams would also be involved in assessing projects and ensuring that they produced clearly identifiable outcomes,” he said.The broader objective was to transform the Tirupati Economic Region, comprising Tirupati, Chittoor and Nellore districts, into an ₹80-lakh-crore economy by 2047 by integrating industries, tourism, agriculture, logistics and the services sector, he added.