CHENNAI: The State will soon call for tenders for purchase of boats to ferry tourists to the Vivekananda Rock in Kanniyakumari. It is learnt that during a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary, a deadline was sought for inviting tender. Sources said it was decided to call for tenders for forming boat docking yards.
In 2017, an announcement was made to make Kanniyakumari a tourist hub and plans to expand and modernise the port was proposed cost of Rs 340 crore with modern berths, cruise vessels and tourist transit station facilities. Currently, the State is operating a boat cruise by Poompuhar Shipping Corporation to Vivekananda Rock and to Thiruvallur statue adjacent to rock.
A total of 30 lakh tourists visit the site every year. Since Kanyakumari Port has a dredged depth of just two metres, plans are on to dredge the entrance of this port and basin to six metres. Sources believe that this will raise cruise tourism by sea to Thiruvananthapuram, Rameswaram, Puducherry and Chennai.
There are also plans to construct additional passenger ferry jetty of 68 metres at a cost of Rs 20 crore and proposal to build a marine bridge linking the rock with Thiruvallur Statue.