THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After several months of hue and cry, the tourism department has finally initiated efforts to revamp Shankhumukham Beach, the iconic and most visited local tourist spot in the capital. The beach has undergone massive destruction owing to sea advancement and recurring sea erosion making it out of bounds for the public.
Following the public outcry, the department has come up with a comprehensive revamp project to restore the beach to its old glory and make Shankhumukham a ‘model tourism destination’. According to officials, the beach would be thrown open to the public with upgraded facilities in April.
Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society (ULCCS), roped in by the department to execute three development projects at Shankhumukham, has launched the work on a war footing. The society is planning to complete the project worth Rs 20 crore by March. The project was launched back in 2019 but owing to sea erosion, the projects didn’t progress as planned.
In addition to this, the District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) has initiated efforts to add more attractions at the tourist spot including electronic toy rides and live events at the amphitheatre to entertain the visitors.
“Remote-controlled electronic riding toys would be introduced and would be made available on a rental basis. Mostly, families visit the spot and this would attract more children and youngsters to the beach,” an official added.
The DTPC has already initiated efforts to find a new entry to the beach as the visitors are unable to access it because of the ongoing construction activities. The council has decided to approach the district collector to take steps to make the beach accessible immediately. “Reconstruction of the Airport Road is ongoing and the road is expected to be ready by next month. Our plan is to throw open Shankhumukham once the road reopens. We want to transform Shankhumukham into a model tourism destination,” said the official. The DTPC is planning to also construct a new toilet block.
New waste management plan
In an effort to resolve the waste crisis and maintain Shankhumukham pristine and clean, DTPC is planning to introduce a new waste management plan. Recently, a stakeholders’ meeting was convened with representatives of Kudumbashree, local community, vendors and the ward councillor to take the plan to the next level. The DTPC is also in talks with Haritha Kerala Mission to involve them in the waste management.
Currently, six Kudumbashree workers are engaged in cleaning activities at the location. Shankhumukham ward councillor Serafin Freddy said the current waste management system is inadequate. “The waste is being dumped around and burnt. The workers are cleaning everyday but there is no proper system to scientifically dispose of the waste. After cleaning, they dump the waste in the open near the tourist amenities. The visitors have no access to the beach. There is no toilet facility. The children’s park has remained shut. It’s unfortunate that all these investments are going in vain,” said Freddy.
According to officials, three or four service providers have come forward showing interest in taking up waste management. “Earlier, DTPC had installed dustbins at several locations to prevent littering but after a few days, they went missing. Now, we are planning to install dustbins again and a Material Recovery Facility to facilitate segregation of collected waste. We are also planning to convert food waste into organic manure,” said a DTPC official.
Colour code for staff, vendors, food carts
Another major challenge before the tourism authorities is reorganising the food vending zones. As per the current data, More than 100 vendors were doing business at the beach. Following the destruction of the beach, the vendors had to move their business to other locations.
“The vendors put up their food carts wherever they find it convenient for them. We have to relocate them to demarcated locations to make the destination more attractive and appealing to the visitors. Many new vendors have encroached the destination which we cannot allow. There are four vending associations and we are in talks with them,” said the DTPC official.
Several shops have been constructed by the tourism department. “We will be allotting all those spaces to the eligible vendors. We are planning to provide a dress code for the vendors and colour code for the food carts and shops.” Some of the vendors own multiple shops and rent some of them out too. “We cannot allow such things and they are claiming that there are 120 vendors which is not true. We can only allow those who have been running business here for many years,” the official added.
Beach protection committee formed
A beach protection committee with representatives of all stakeholders would be formed to ensure the proper maintenance of the destination. “We need the cooperation of everyone. We had held meetings with the representatives of the vendors running food businesses at Shankhumukham. We are planning to sensitise them with the help of NGOs on the importance of proper waste management,” the official said. Six or seven dustbins would be installed soon. “We have already deployed an agency to revamp the children’s park. Solar lights would be installed with the cooperation of ANERT. We have already made the defunct water sprinklers functional to maintain the landscape,” the official said.
On a war footing
B20 crore project will be completed in March