Beaches remain busy on hartal days

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Though the two-day strike affected normal life in some parts of the city, almost all the beaches were crowded on Wednesday, the second day of the strike called by the Joint Trade Union Council. Both foreign and domestic tourists made a beehive to the beach giving an unexpected boost to the tourism sector and stakeholders. "After the New Year, the footfall of tourists has increased. The strike did not affect the arrival of tourists even as all shops and hotels remained open at Kovalam beach," said P Venu, a lifeguard working at Kovalam.

A large number of autorickshaws and cabs plied tourists to various locations in the city. "We did not expect a huge crowd at the beach. Though most of the shops near the hotel where we were staying remained closed, the shops near the beach were open and crowded," said Ziggy from Germany who was visiting India with six other German friends.    

There was also a good crowd at the Veli Tourist Village which was open to the public. The number of domestic tourists were higher. "The crowd was higher than the average working day. On any given day, we make Rs 700. However, on the days of the strike, we were able to collect Rs 1,500," said Shyju V, who owns three horses.