THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With complaints galore about the safety and security of tourists visiting Varkala, the tourism department has finally decided to beef up security measures at the destination, which is the most-visited tourism destination in Thiruvananthapuram. As part of the effort to scale up security measures, the tourism department has decided to reintroduce Safety ID cards for all stakeholders, including vendors, hoteliers, workers and other establishments, offering services to tourists.
To ensure the proper upkeep of the destination, the authorities have decided to form tourism clubs. On Saturday a team led by district development officer visited the destination and evaluated the situation on the ground at Varkala and a meeting was held with the stakeholders to discuss the issues at the tourist spot. District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) secretary Sharon Veetil told TNIE that police patrolling would be increased immediately at Varkala.
“We have decided to form committees having members from the industry for regular monitoring and reporting of issues. Waste management is a real issue and strict action will be taken against the violators if they don’t ensure proper disposal of waste,” said Sharon. He said that students will be recruited from nearby colleges to form tourism clubs.
“Earlier, the department used to issue ID cards and we are going to reintroduce the system. We need to collect data to provide safety IDs. The tourism club will help the committees effectively monitor the destination. We want to do it with the active involvement of stakeholders. There are unlisted homestays, accommodation units and people running businesses at the destination without proper licences. We want to bring all of them to a legal platform. All these will be done step by step,” said Sharon.
The department is also planning to set up a tourism police unit with women police officials to ensure round-the-clock security at the destination. “The district collector will give an official letter to the home department in this regard. We are also planning long-term and the municipality has promised to make the toilet facility at the helipad operational within a month. The toilet complex at the beach would be reopened within three months,” said an official.
A decision has also been taken to increase the number of lifeguards at Varkala. Currently, there are 15 lifeguards and the plan is to increase it to 30. The department is also planning to develop other beaches close to Varkala to decongest the destination.
