Koderma, Feb. 26: Authorities of the Urwan tourist complex, which is still under the Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation, are a worried lot. The scenic beauty of Koderma has failed to draw tourists to the resort that registers on an average only twenty per cent occupancy throughout the year.

In January this year, the resort generated Rs 23,000 as against an expenditure of around Rs 63,000.

The resort has a cafeteria, Jhil Restaurant, which registered an income of Rs 1,60,000 against an expenditure of Rs 1,29,000. According to authorities, the bulk of the income comes from passengers of BSTDC buses that ply on the Ranchi-Patna route.

“The passengers of these buses are our main source of income,” said the cashier at the restaurant.

Ranjit Kumar Sinha, Urwan manager, told The Telegraph that the tourist complex does not have facilities like telephone, television with cable connection, geyser, and generator.

“We have to construct a proper approach road to the resort. The existing road is dotted with potholes and tourists have a tough time driving their vehicles on it. We also need a conference hall for our clients who visit the area on business-cum-pleasure.” “The resort needs a children’s park and swimming pool. We are trying to introduce boating facilities to attract tourists. We should also appoint hotel management graduates and have security guards for 24-hours,” he said.

The resort has 20 rooms, of which 16 are double-bed rooms. The resort depends on the Public Health Engineering Department for water supply. However, due to frequent power faults it has to go without water for days, sources said.

“Landscaping is needed to make the lawns and gardens look attractive. In the absence of STD booths in the vicinity of the resort, telephones with intercom facility are necessary. The state government is constructing a boundary wall around the resort,” said Sinha.

“After we revamp the resort, we will insert advertisements in all leading dailies of Jharkhand and other states too. We should also adopt an aggressive marketing strategy to ensure flow of tourists all year round,” he said. The Jharkhand State Tourism Corporation is scheduled to take over the resort from its Bihar counterpart. On this, Sinha said: “I have no idea about the state tourism corporation’s plans for the resort.”