Port Blair: The uninhabited Aves Island of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, also known as Coconut Island, will soon be open for tourists. The union territory administration has decided to open the uninhabited island in the North and Middle Andaman district for travellers, officials said. The Aves is known for its lush green coconut plantation. Presently, it is not open to tourists and is an uninhabited Island with no accommodation facilities. The administration has proposed a five-star eco-tourism resort on Aves Island in public-private partnership mode.

Aves Island is very close to Mayabunder town. The presence of various natural features (live and dead coral flat beds, coconut plantation, forest) and the pristine beach at Aves Island with a coastline of 2 km, makes it an ideal destination for campers, they said. Trekking within the island through the coconut plantations and small jungle trail takes the tourists to the lighthouse on the southern point.

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A land parcel of 2.75 hectares is owned by the local administration, which will be handover to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Limited (ANIIDCO) on a lease basis for the development of the project under Public-Private Partnership mode and on a Design-Build-Finance-Operate-Transfer (DBFOT) basis, they said.

With an investment of nearly Rs 36 core, the five-star eco-tourism resort at Aves Island will have 50 rooms where the concessionaire can undertake various activities like a shopping area for local souvenirs, scuba diving, game fishing, forest trekking, nature camping, wellness centre, etc. ANIIDCO Managing Director Nandini Paliwal told PTI, "The Investor Conference organised by ANIIDCO in Delhi, on December 4 for tourism and hospitality projects in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, has received a very encouraging response from leading hospitality players.

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"We are confident that with the active collaboration of the private sector, the projects proposed to be implemented in PPP mode will succeed in bringing world-class sustainable tourism infrastructure and put Andaman and Nicobar Islands on the global tourism circuit. It will contribute to the socio-economic development of the islands and its people." To bring the Andaman and Nicobar Islands on the global tourist map, the administration has also prepared a Project Information Memorandum (PIM), under the banner of "Development of Eco-Tourism Projects in the Andaman Islands 2023 for the holistic development of 14 more tourist places, which includes Lalaji Bay beach at Long Island, Ross-Smith Island, Shaheed Dweep spread across North Andaman, Middle Andaman, and South Andaman.

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