Kerala open to setting up motor racetrack

Thiruvananthapuram, April 26 (IANS) The Kerala government can consider opening a motor racing track in the state if it helped pull in tourists, Tourism Minister A.P. Anil Kumar said ahead of his meeting with F1 driver Narain Karthikeyan here Thursday.

"We are meeting later in the day and if he suggests that a racetrack in our state will boost tourism activities, we will definitely look into it," Kumar told IANS.

"We are always positive in our outlook. We have no issues in considering new proposals, which will take Kerala tourism to greater heights. For this, we have to think out of the box. We will neither say no nor yes straightaway. All aspects will be looked into. Only then will we comment," he said.

The number of foreign tourists arriving in Kerala rose from 6.5 lakh in 2010 to 7.3 lakh in 2011.

During this period, the number of domestic tourists also grew from 85 lakh to 93 lakh. The state's foreign exchange earnings also rose by 11.18 per cent to touch Rs 4,221 crore, while its earnings went up 9.4 percent to Rs 19,037 crore.