Ferries owned by the State Water Transport Department (SWTD) will continue to operate in Kochi even as a fleet of 78 modern ferries of the Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) are slated to be operated on 16 routes over a span of four years.
The department had drawn flak for the shabby use of its ferries, frequent trip cancellations, and red tape in decision making.
SWTD Director Shaji V. Nair said the agency’s fleet in Kochi would be modernised by utilising the Rs.20 crore allotted by the State government following the Fort Kochi boat accident in August 2015. Orders have been placed with two Aroor-based private firms for building two partially air-conditioned catamaran-type ferries that are capable of transporting up to 120 people each. They will operate on the Ernakulam-Vaikom and Kumarakom-Alappuzha-Kottayam routes.
A dozen more similar but non-AC ferries built by competent firms will replace the existing fleet of ageing ferries. “The government has given administrative sanction for the work, and we will invite tenders shortly,” Mr. Nair said.
He added that the repair of ferries was set to get faster, since a dry dock and slipway had been readied in Alappuzha.
Fibre ferries unused
For the record, as many as 10 fibre ferries built for the SWTD by the Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC) over a decade ago at a cost of Rs.4 crore are idling at the Ernakulam Boat Jetty after getting embroiled in a dispute between the two agencies over safety aspects.
West Kochi Passengers’ Association secretary Padmanabha Mallya said public funds had gone waste despite acute shortage of ferries between Ernakulam, Wellingdon Island, West Kochi, and Vypeen.
“Most ferries in operation are rusted and in bad shape. Boat jetties too are in a deplorable condition,” Mr. Mallya said.
