Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has initiated a major move to expand water-based adventure tourism across the state by identifying and verifying suitable locations in five districts for adventure sports and water tourism projects.

According to an official communication issued by the Tourism Department, the state has accelerated the process for operationalising water-based adventure tourism projects by utilising Odisha’s vast natural water resources and scenic locations.

As per the Odisha Adventure Tourism Guidelines, 2025, the Tourism Department has received fresh applications through the ‘Go Adventure’ portal for setting up water adventure activities at various locations in the state. Tourism Director Deepankar Mahapatra has directed joint physical verification and technical assessment of the proposed sites before granting approvals.

The Tourism Department has requested Collectors and District Magistrates of Puri, Ganjam, Jagatsinghpur, Sambalpur and Sundargarh districts to extend necessary support to the visiting technical teams during the inspection process.

A joint team comprising a technical expert from the National Institute of Water Sports (NIWS), Goa, representatives from the Adventure Tourism Technical Cell of the Tourism Department and members of the concerned District Level Committees (DLCs) will conduct field visits and inspections between May 4 and May 20.

Several prominent tourist destinations and water bodies have been shortlisted for verification. In Puri district, inspections will be carried out at Chandrabhaga beach, Nua Nai river and multiple locations along Puri beach. The team will also visit Pitamahal Dam in Rourkela of Sundargarh district and Hirakud reservoir in Sambalpur district.

In Ganjam district, the proposed sites include areas near Swosti Chilika Resort at Chilika Lake, Tampara Lake and Gopalpur beach. The Paradip region in Jagatsinghpur district has also been included in the inspection schedule.

The official letter stated that the technical verification aims to assess the feasibility and safety of the proposed adventure tourism activities before granting operational approval.

As per the inspection schedule attached with the letter, the team will verify proposals from multiple private operators, including watersports centres at Puri beach, Chandrabhaga, Tampara Lake, Gopalpur beach, Hirakud Dam and Paradip.

Following the field inspections, the District Level Committees will submit their reports to the State Level Technical Committee (SLTC), which will take the final decision on approval and operationalisation of the projects.