(Clockwise from top) The Rajkanika palace, Shivendra Narayan Banjdeo with his wife, and a crocodile skull preserved in the palace museum. Telegraph pictures

Kendrapara, April 8: A remote picturesque rural corner of this district is poised to become a major hub for overseas tourists.

The scion of the erstwhile Kanika royal family has drawn up an ambitious plan to refurbish his bustling royal palace at Rajkanika and turn it into an ambient eco-tourism retreat.

“To promote eco-tourism and augment local economy by way of tourism, a plan to spruce up the majestic palace built in 1809 during the rule of my great-grandfather is being given final shape,” said Shibendu Narayan Bhanjadeo.

The palace, covering a sprawling area of 4,000 square feet, could become a unique eco-tourism spot because of its proximity to the Bhitarkanika wildlife sanctuary.

Over the years, the palace building has been unoccupied. The cost of annual maintenance of the sprawling building is quite high. That’s the reason behind the plan to turn it into a tourist resort.

Old palaces in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh have been renovated into heritage tourist projects. “These places have become major destinations for foreign tourists. There is no reason why this place can’t draw international tourists as well,” said Bhanjadeo.

The scion has also asked the state forest department to accord permission to have a deer park as the palace has vast meadows. “A trust has been founded for the purpose and we have sought Intach’s (Indian National Trust For Art and Cultural Heritage) technical expertise to renovate the palace.”

The plan is to provide accommodation to around 50 guests. In accordance with Intach’s instructions, the renovation will be carried out with emphasis on keeping the palace’s medieval character intact.

The palace has been wallowing in neglect for a long time. “The revenue generated from the proposed tourist complex will go a long way in meeting the conservation cost of the palace,” Bhanjadeo said.

The palace has been lying unoccupied for decades as the royal family shifted to Bhubaneswar since the abolition of the estate in the 1960s. The legacy of the zamindary is, however, conserved in a miniature museum within the palace. The most prized possession of the museum is the country’s largest skull of an estuarine crocodile.

Both the palace and museum have been through a series of vandalism and burglaries over the years. Burglars have even vandalised the preserved crocodile skull. Besides, priceless antiques and asthadhatu idols were stolen and smuggled from the palace.

“There are even instances of treasure hunts, with royal graves being dug up by burglars in the cemetery,” Bhanjadeo said.

A roughly 10-km ride from the palace would take one to Jaynagar ghat. From there a half-an-hour boat ride would take visitors to a virgin mangrove forest.