Exotic is a word regularly used by tourists to describe the beauty of Kovalam. But now, gradually, the exotic nature of the internationally popular beaches at Kovalam and the breathtaking view from the nearby Vizhinjam, are acquiring dark shades.
The entire beach is still in a state of shock after the first alarm over the five persons who went missing on Saturday was raised. However, hotel owners and shopkeepers say that they are slowly getting used to such alarms, with several tourists ignoring the warnings. Even as a search by the Coast Guard and Marine Enforcement was on for four of the five, with one body being retrieved, a Sunday crowd was seen enjoying on the beach, unmindful of the depressed group of people sitting near one corner of the Eve’s beach. The number of lives lost here, in fact, is on an alarming rise, with death striking the scenic locales with shocking frequency over the past one year. This year began with a double tragedy, when a young duo — Sajini, 19, of Nedumangad and her friend Unni, 21, of Pattom, were swept off the rocks at Azhimala, near Kovalam, as they reached the rocks there to celebrate New Year. While Sajini’s body was found soon after the accident, Unni’s body was retrieved a day later. The death of Vinod Kumar Linga, a software engineer from Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh, after he slipped off the rocks near the bollard pull test facility at Vizhinjam, followed on May 9.
Yet to be traced
Among similar incidents, that of Praveen Gopakumar, grandson of the State Assembly’s first Speaker R. Shankara Narayana Thampi, is one that still haunts the city. Praveen, 31, was reported missing on the night of June 7, not too far away from the spot where tragedy struck again on Saturday, after he stepped out into the sea around 10.30 p.m. He is yet to be traced.
The police said more than 15 people, excluding the above-mentioned, had lost their lives in the past one year after being washed away by the waves near Kovalam and Vizhinjam, with several jagged rocks adjoining the beach making it a high risk area.
