Odisha to Expand Adventure Tourism with Water Sports Projects in Five Districts

Bhubaneswar: Five districts in Odisha, Sambalpur, Sundargarh, Jagatsinghpur, Ganjam and Puri could soon become popular spots for water sports. The tourism department has already chosen a few locations in these areas and is currently checking if they are safe and suitable for water sports. This inspection is expected to finish by the end of this month.

An official said the department has received several applications for water adventure activities in the five districts through the Go Adventure portal. In a letter to the district collectors, he said the proposed locations will be checked for technical feasibility under the Odisha Adventure Tourism Guidelines, 2025.

The verification team will include a water sports expert from the National Institute of Water Sports, officials from the tourism department’s Adventure Tourism Technical Cell and members of the concerned district-level committees. Field inspections of the proposed sites are currently underway.

The district-level committees formed under the Odisha Adventure Tourism Guidelines, 2025, are responsible for finding, mapping and technically examining sites suitable for adventure tourism activities.

The official has asked the district-level committees to submit feasibility reports, including safety assessments, to the state-level technical committee for review and approval.The state government launched the Go Adventure portal in February this year to help with the registration, verification and licensing of adventure tourism projects.

Besides water sports, the tourism department is also planning aero-based adventure tourism at different places across Odisha. It has asked the Aero Club of India to study the feasibility of such activities at Chandipur and Udaypur-Talasari in Balasore district, Puri beach and Satpada, Deomali and Talamali in Koraput district, and the Lower Balijatra Ground in Cuttack.