Inspection begins on houseboats in Alappuzha post Kerala boat tragedy

Six days after the tragic boat accident at Tanur of Kerala’s Malappuram that claimed 22 lives, authorities have started the inspection of houseboats near famed tourist destinations at Alappuzha. Since Thursday, May 11, the local port officer along with the Tourism Police have been going around the boat jetty at Alappuzha where the houseboats are parked. At Alappuzha, where there are around nearly 1,000 houseboats, around 30 houseboats have been examined in the past two days.

Speaking to IANS, Tomy Pullikattil, who owns a dozen houseboats and has been in the business for more than two decades, said the inspections are going on. "The present round of inspection was expected and there are many areas that are looked into. If a flaw is found in any aspect, the license will not be renewed. There are certain areas when things get tough, like 'Shranku' (driver of the houseboat). This is a profession which runs in the family, the father is one and hence, the son also gets trained and here at times, problems are there when it comes to meeting guidelines," said Tomy adding that there is no doubt of any compromise on safety and security.

After around 30 houseboats were inspected, a good number of them have all the required papers, while those whose papers have expired and told to make corrections, will have to rectify it quickly and a fine also will be levied.

The Kerala High Court, which suo-moto registered a public interest litigation after the tragic boat tragedy, pointed out that with tourism a major industry in Kerala, there should be no dearth of shirking responsibilities when it comes to maintaining safety protocols.