The tourist potential of Aurangabad, known for the world-famous Ajanta and Ellora Caves and other monuments, can be developed on a bigger screen if the airport here expands to accommodate international flights, industry stakeholders said.

A separate authority is also required for the development of tourism here in Maharashtra, they said during a program on Saturday. Historic monuments under the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) reopened a few days ago after about two months when the state government eased restrictions caused by the coronavirus.

Sunit Kothari, a member of the Aviation Committee of the Aurangabad Tourism Development Foundation (ATDF), called for the city airport to be expanded and nodded for international flights to land here to boost the tourism industry. This will help boost the overall economy of Aurangabad and neighboring counties in the Marathwada region, he said.

The Maharashtra government must also cut sales tax on jet fuel to attract more flights, he said. He also said that the birthplace of Sant Dnyaneshwar, a bird sanctuary in Jayakwadi and a wildlife sanctuary in the Gautala area must also be made known to visitors here. ASI County Superintendent in Aurangabad, Milan Kumar Chauley, said the encroachments on various monuments here should be removed.

Officials assigned to tourism development should have a tourism background, he said. Local Shiv Sena MLC Ambadas Danve said Aurangabad needed a separate agency to focus on tourism development. “If a proposal for the establishment of a tourism conclave comes up, I will pursue it with the state government,” he said.

“This area has a connection with ‘Ramayana’ and we have places that are connected with that time. There are small monuments that we also have to present so that tourists can stay here longer, ”he added.

This story was posted through a news agency feed with no changes to the text. Only the heading was changed.

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