KOCHI: Kerala police have been put on high alert following information that there are hundreds of foreign tourists in the state the details of whom are not available with neither the Bureau Of Immigration (BoI) nor the state police. There are nearly 6,000 unclassified and unlicenced homestays operating in the state while the number of registered homestays is around 700. Officials say many foreign tourists fearing deportation to their home country where Coronavirus epidemic is high might have taken refuge in homestays situated in remote corners of the state.
The BoI has made it clear that they only have details of the tourists who have reached Kerala through international airports and seaports. As many tourists travel interstate after reaching major international airports in the country, many of them would have reached Kerala via road and rail. State Police Chief Loknath Behera told TNIE that the police have started procedures to track the tourists who have reached the state through road and rail. Police stations in the state have been directed to collect the details of all homestays and possible destinations where foreign tourists could stay.
Kerala Homestay and Tourism Society director M P Sivadathan said there are thousands of unlicenced homestays operating in the state even without the know-how of the respective local bodies. “We have asked all members of our body to report the details of foreigners residing at their homestays to the nearest police station,” he said and added that a rigid approval system to classify a homestay was forcing people to operate without a licence. “To accommodate a foreign tourist, one needs to submit ten different documents. Once it is registered, the premises will be listed as commercial and a residential property’s benefits will be lifted. This is forcing people to remain silent about hosting tourists,” he said.