Boating Tragedy

20th February 2007

A pleasure cruise, in the Bhoothathankettu reservoir near the Thattekkad bird sanctuary in Ernakulam district, turned into a nightmare for the 106 children and staff members of the St.Antony's School, Elavoor (Angamaly), when one of the three boats capsized at around 6 p.m., drowning 15 hapless students and three lady teachers.

A shell-shocked Kerala watched in horror as the channels beamed heartrending scenes of the disaster. Rescue efforts were hampered by the encircling darkness and absence of emergency lights.

It is intriguing how the school party were allowed to continue the cruise beyond the prescribed deadline of 6 p.m, and that too in three makeshift fiber ‘boats’. The boat owner cum driver is reportedly absconding.

Typically, the Kerala Government, in all its collective wisdom, has announced that guidelines will soon be issued to schools for conducting excursions. Once again, a case of acting after the inevitable has happened, instead of preventing it!

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Updates

Boat licensing in God's country - a bad joke!
28th February, 2007

In Kerala, as many as four government departments are authorized to inspect and grant license to water transport vehicles. Make any sense? Fishing boats are the lookout of the Fisheries department, while vehicles using the inland waterways are the responsibility of the Irrigation department. All these vehicles require licensing from the Harbour department as well. And, apart from all these, the Motor Vehicles Dept. also grants licence. Quite predictably, there exists no system for following up or monitoring the performances of these vehicles. None of these departments check whether these boats renew their licences as prescribed, or whether they continue to be water worthy. Even while the importance of water transport in this tourist state is on the increase, safety in this department remains the last priority for the authorities. Indications are that almost 90 % of the vehicles are plying without proper licence, and these include government vehicles used in the tourism sector!

Though water disasters are not uncommon in Kerala, with its waterways and long coastline, safety measures are almost non existent in this area. The lack of rescue expertise in the Police, Fire service and Marine enforcement departments, almost always leave the Navy and Coastguard as the last resorts. And we know what transpired when the Navy was approached during the Thattekkad mishap. They waited more than an hour for the ‘official’ vehicle to load their equipment and take them to the accident site. Later, they ‘clarified’ that it was a search operation which they conducted, not a rescue operation ( so the delay was not relevant ). That clarification would have meant a lot to the bereaved parents, I am sure!




Forensic report
01st March 2007

Forensic reports revealed that monstrous overloading led to the boat disaster, which took 18 precious lives, in the Bhoothathaankettu reservoir on 20th February.
Squeezing in 60 people( mostly children ) into the boat with a capacity of 6 – yes, six- led to the boat tilting and taking in water from the sides. The overturning was hastened when the children panicked at the sight of the leak and rushed to one side of the boat, points out the report by the Forensic Asst.Director. The boat was made of low quality material, and lifeboats were conspicuous by their absence. But…yes, it carried a licence - how, and why, is left entirely to the readers’ imagination!

Houseboat industry faces crisis
5th March 2007

After 15 merry years of uncontrolled growth, the houseboat industry in Alappuzha, in Kerala, which attracts tourists in large numbers and provides jobs to the unemployed youth of Kuttanad, now finds itself confronting some unpleasant truths.

Though a good number of houseboats plying in this area are well maintained and operated, there are several others without valid licence or licensed crew. The Thattekad boat disaster (though it did not involve a houseboat) has brought this unsavoury aspect into sharp focus. Altough there have been no major accidents involving houseboats as yet, incidents have been reported,of late,of ill-maintained houseboats sinking while carrying tourists. Needless to say, Kerala can ill afford another boating tragedy.

Emergence of the houseboat industry as a profitable business have attracted big business groups to this field, and a large number of professionally managed houseboats, excelling star hotels in quality, have been launched.

Unfortunately, several unscrupulous elements also entered the fray, trying to make easy money by deceiving the gullible tourist.They are aided by unlicensed tour guides, who pounce upon the unsuspecting tourists at the railway and bus stations.

At present, about 350 houseboats operate in Kuttanad, and more than 20 'new' boats are launched every year. Predictably, the functioning of the District Tourism Promotion Council is not geared towards controlling the unhealthy practices in the houseboat tourism sector. And the tourism police, with inadequate staff and facilities, are ill equipped for the task. Absence of tariff regulation leads to fleecing of the tourists by cut-throat houseboat owners during the peak season.

A recent inspection- which is not a regular affair, by any means-revealed that around 40% of the houseboats inspected did not comply with the stipulations. Fines were duly imposed, but you can bet that they will be back on their merry waterway in due course, with no significant improvements. That is Kerala for you, tourism or no tourism!

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