Bhubaneswar: Tourism got a major boost on Tuesday with the Naveen Patnaik government launching 34 wayside amenity centres across the state to cater to visitors' demands.

The centres, modelled on the lines of those along major highways in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, are located on the way to tourist spots such as Kapilas and the Anshupa lake. They have been set up along national highways, state highways and prominent roads.

Dedicating five of these centres to the people from the state secretariat through videoconferencing on Tuesday, Naveen said: "They have been developed keeping the comfort of the travellers in mind. They will be big help for tourists, women and differently-abled travellers."

The chief minister exuded confidence about launching similar facilities at all tourist and major spots in the state in the near future.

The five centres inaugurated on Tuesday are located at Kapilas (Dhenkanal), Odagaon (Nayagarh), Dhama (Sambalpur), Jatmundei Chhak near Anshupa lake (Cuttack) and Duburi near Kalinga Nagar industrial complex in Jajpur district. The first four are popular tourist spots. Ministers, MPs and MLAs inaugurated the other 29 centres in their respective areas.

The Telegraph had published a special report on September 3, 2016, when these centres were planned.

Amenities such as parking space for cars and buses, cafeteria, washrooms, drinking water, essential shops and snacks bars are available at each of these wayside centres. On an average Rs 1.10 crore has been spent on each centre.