At a time when the Telangana stir was at its peak, contrary to popular perception, there was a spurt in the number of foreign tourists to the city, in particular, to the heritage sites. According to the Department of Tourism, the number of foreign tourists to the top heritage sites in the city has doubled when compared to the last year.
S Prabhakar, District Tourism Officer for Hyderabad and Rangareddy districts, said the T-strike had not impacted foreign tourists’ visits. In the month of September when the Sakala Janula Samme hit transport services and even power supply, not just foreign tourists but locals too thronged the Salarjung Museum, Charminar and the Golconda Fort. “The strike would have given tourists ample time to visit the great heritage sites in the city,” observed an official.
According to the stats available, 1,437 foreigners visited Salarjung Museum in September this year compared to 550 last year. And, 2,240 foreigners visited the Golconda Fort against 1,122 last year. The Charminar attracted 1,397 foreigners compared to 818 last September. The Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation has recently launched a series of programs to attract more tourists like a helicopter city tour (which is not yet operational), open top bus tour and city tour for transit passengers. [Express News Service]