Bhubaneswar: The state government will promote a blend of sports and tourism sector, which has a huge potential.

A sun-and-sand marathon will be organised at Konark, a major tourist spot of the state, while a sand art museum will be set up in Puri as part of tourist infrastructure.

Similarly, buoyed by its success in the conduct of Asian Athletic Championship in the city last year, the state government is hosting Men's Hockey World Cup at Kalinga Stadium this November.

The state has also entered into a partnership with the Hockey India to sponsor all national hockey teams for five years.

The effort to blend sports with tourism came to light in the annual budget by the state government for 2018-18 on Friday. Finance minister Sashi Bhusan Behera informed that a sum of Rs 15 crore had been provided for holding the sun-and-sand marathon at Konark.

Similarly, an initial allocation of Rs 2 crore has been made to set up the sand art museum in Puri.

The state government has proposed to allocate Rs 213 crore for promotion and development of the tourism sector in 2018-19.

The government is now focusing on tourism promotion after regular international flights have started operating between Bhubaneswar and the southeast Asian cities of Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.

It has also proposed to allocate Rs 100 crore to set up airstrips at Jharsuguda, Rourkela, Utkela and Jeypore to enhance air connectivity.

The government has proposed an allocation of Rs 125 crore to upgrade the public transport system of Bhubaneswar, which has been included in the Smart Cities Mission.

With focus on education and skill development, the government has proposed the largest allocation of Rs 19,678 crore for the twin sectors.