NEW DELHI, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- The former French colony of Pondicherry, now the southern Indian state of Puducherry, is building a replica of Paris' famous Eiffel Tower at Yanam in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, 840 kms from the downtown of the city, in a bid to strengthen its French connection, according to a media report.

    Yanam is an enclave administratively belonging to Pondicherry on the southeast coast of India facing the Bay of Bengal, 840 kms from the downtown of Pondicherry. It was also a French colony before.

    The 250 million rupee (5 million U.S. dollars) replica, which will stand 333 feet, will include a restaurant, a viewing gallery with four telescopes and an elevator going up to a height of 50 meter to give visitors an aerial view of the surrounding landscape, is being erected under an ambitious project initiated by the Puducherry government jointly with business giants, The Times of India reported.

    The Indian Eiffel Tower will offer a panoramic view of Godavari, Bay of Bengal, the ruined Dutch port, the seaside town of Kakinada, high-tech gas plants established by Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and lush green coconut groves of Konaseema belt.

    Puducherry Revenue Minister Malladi Krishna Rao, who represents Yanam constituency, told the newspaper that work was on in full swing and the replica will be ready before the year-end.

    Hyderabad-based architectural firm Team One India is designing the project while Nagarjuna Constructions will execute the construction.

    "The soil in this part of the country is loose and major constructions require pile foundation. We designed a 67-meter pile foundation for the project, which is the deepest foundation in the country. We also designed the pedestal on which the tower will be erected. In the next phase we will erect the columns and finally design the tower with steel and other rust-resistant material," Team One India chief architect Gopisetti Sridhar said.