Saturday, Sep 18, 2004
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Kochi
By Our Staff Reporter
KOCHI, SEPT. 17. The tourism initiatives of the Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC) as part of its diversification plans are laudable, the Transport Minister, N. Shaktan, has said. Inaugurating the navigation training centre of the KSINC here today, he said that "the Corporation can work wonders in the tourism sector, where there is vast untapped potential. The sector offers jobs to huge numbers of educated unemployed in the State. The Goshree bridges has decreased the relevance of water transport to the islands and this has prompted the KSINC to look for greener pastures". Passenger ferries were exempted from the recent fare hike, with the aim of helping the common man, Mr. Shaktan added.
Training for crew
The MD of KSINC, K. N. Satheesh, said that there are many institutes for training ship crew. But not many give training to the crew of inland vessels. This prompted the Corporation to start the navigation training centre. The KSINC's foray into tourism got an impetus with the former Tourism Minister, K. V. Thomas, handing over Sagara Rani, a huge boat which was owned by the KSINC. The boat has become a tourist draw in Kochi, after being repaired at the KSINC's yard, he said. Delivering the presidential address, the MLA, K. V. Thomas, said that untrained crews had caused many boat accidents in the past. Many tourist boats which operate in the Kochi backwaters do not have trained drivers and crew. The KSINC could train them too. The Sagara Rani was made to be operated to Alappuzha, but was too tall to pass beneath the bridges which dot the Kochi backwaters, he said. The MLA, K. Babu, requested the Minister to ply more buses through the bypass, since buses which plied within the city took a long time in reaching their destination. The former MLA, P. Raju said that the KSINC needed diversification to sustain itself. "The Corporation's employees and workers played a vital role in making it a profitable venture. There is a need to start long-distance boat services, since they reach the destination faster than buses. Boats are comfortable to travel and are not caught in traffic jams. The rickety boats should be changed and new boats introduced," he said.
Good alternative
The president of the KSINC Employees' Association, Anilkumar, said that inland navigation is a good alternative to travelling through congested roads. "The KSINC owes its success to a management which is humane to workers' problems. A vast majority of buses ply through the same route in Kochi and this has to change. There are many major routes where buses do not ply. A new bus stand is required in the NH bypass," he said.
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