KOCHI: The much-awaited renovation of Vypeen, Fort Kochi and Mattancherry boat jetties will be a reality soon. A meeting convened by Irrigation Minister K Krishnankutty and Transport Minister A K Saseendran, in which MLAs from the district - K J Maxi from Fort Kochi, S Sharma from Vypeen, M Swaraj from Tripunithura and Anglo-Indian representative John Fernandez participated - has made remarkable headway in the matter.
It has been decided the Irrigation Department will renovate the three boat jetties which fall under the State Water Transport Department (SWTD). The department will also dredge the channel near Mattancherry jetty to kickstart the boat service which was discontinued long back due to the presence of silt in large quantity.
"Fort Kochi and Mattancherry boat jetties will be renovated to tap the tourism prospects of the region. With the arrival of water metro, the water transport in the region will witness a flurry of changes. We are planning to build a floating jetty in Kamalakkadav. The meeting has also decided to initiate the dredging along the Mattanchery route to remove silt which has been hindering transport for a long time," said K J Maxi MLA.
The introduction of new catamaran boats is also expected to enhance the quality of the service. "We are building seven catamaran boats to elevate the water transport in Ernakulam and two of them will be launched in Ernakulam - Fort Kochi route within three months. The boats which follow the guidelines of Indian Register of Shipping will reduce the rush in the West Kochi area," said Transport Minister A K Saseendran.
According to K J Maxi MLA, they have requested to start the renovation work as soon as possible. "The work will start once the ongoing session of the Kerala Legislative Assembly is over. The dredging will be expected to complete in two months whereas the renovation will be over in six months," added Maxi.
The SWTD is also planning to revamp Vyttila-Chittethukara route by extending the service till Infopark. "The department is aiming to dredge the two-kilometre stretch from Chittethukara to Infopark to increase the depth. A new boat jetty and other basic facilities will be built in the stretch. Once these works are over, we will be able to extend the service till Infopark," said Shaji V Nair, director, SWTD
Following the request from M Swaraj MLA, the director promised to consider a stop for Vega 120 service at Kumbalam.