By — Shyamal Sinha
While development and promotion of tourism destinations and products is primarily undertaken by the concerned State Government (SG)/Union Territory Administration (UTA), Ministry of Tourism through its central sector schemes of ‘Swadesh Darshan (SD), ‘Swadesh Darshan 2.0 (SD2.0)’, ‘Challenge Based Destination Development (CBDD), a sub-scheme of Swadesh Darshan 2.0 scheme’ and ‘Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD)’ complements the efforts of tourism infrastructure development in the country including those in Coastal and Buddhist Destinations by extending financial assistance to the SGs/UTAs; on receipt of the project proposals from the concerned State Government/Union Territory Administration in synergy with the scheme guidelines, Government directions, availability of funds, inter-se priority etc. Projects sanctioned under these schemes cover multiple components related to the development of tourism infrastructure and visitor experiences, including last-mile connectivity, depending on the specific requirements of each project.
Government of India under its ‘Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) – Development of Iconic Tourist Centres to Global Scale’ scheme, has also sanctioned projects in the country with the primary objective to comprehensively develop iconic tourist centres in the country, branding and marketing them at global scale.
The Ministry of Tourism holistically promotes various tourism destinations and products of the country, which also covers Buddhist heritage in global markets including in Southeast Asian countries.
The details of the projects sanctioned under SD, SD2.0, CBDD, PRASHAD and SASCI schemes in the state of Andhra Pradesh including those in Buddhist and Coastal region is annexed.
This information was given by Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in a written reply in Lok Sabha on 2nd February 2026.
