Chennai: Now two beaches in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry have joined with eight other beaches of the country to receive the prestigious "Blue flag" certification -- an international eco-level tag given for beaches. The Kovalam beach in Chennai and Eden beach in Puducherry have been awarded the flags.
In a tweet, Union Minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change said, “Happy to announce India now has 10 International Blue Flag beaches with the addition of Kovalam & Eden beaches this year and recertification for 8 beaches which got the tag in 2020. Another milestone in our journey towards a clean and green India led by PM Shri Narendra Modi Ji.”
Along with the two beaches, eight other beaches received recertification this year. The eight beaches that received the flag in 2020 and recertified are Shivrajpur beach in Gujarat, Kasarkod and Padubidri beach in Karnataka, Rushikonda beach in Andhra Pradesh, Ghoghla beach in Diu, Kappad beach in Kerala, Golden beach in Odisha and Radhanagar beach in Andaman and Nicobar.
The Blue Flag certification is given by a Denmark based NGO for environment education under several factions including quality, environment and safety.
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Earlier, Tamil Nadu Environment Minister Siva V Meyyanathan in the state Assembly allocated Rs 100 crore for the next five years with an aim to get the Blue Flag certification for 10 beaches in Tamil Nadu and to promote eco-tourism and create pollution-free beaches.
The nine beaches along with Marina in Chennai are Manalmekudi and Kottaipattinam in Pudukkottai district, Kushi in Ramanathapuram, Silver beach in Cuddalore, Neelankarai in Chengalpet, Kameshwaram and Neithal Nagar in Nagapattinam, Naravakkam in Villupuram and Kayalpattinam in Thoothukudi with Rs 10 crore allocated for each beach from the Rs 100 crore fund.