Ernakulam, Fort Kochi boat jetties in dire straits

KOCHI: Ernakulam and Fort Kochi boat jetties, the gateway for thousands of passengers to reach Ernakulam mainland and tourists to reach two major tourist destinations in West Kochi, are in shoddy condition due to poor maintenance.

Facing the scenic Vembanad lake, both jetties have become eyesore to the visitors due to lack of cleaning works in the buildings and compounds.Authorities concerned have also failed to ensure basic facilities for the passengers. Both the jetties lack proper seating facilities, drinking water and lighting.
Ernakulam boat jetty, constructed by the tourism department on the reclaimed land belonging to the state water transport department, has only around 15 benches and many of them have rusted. Window-panes facing the waterbody are broken and moist walls stimulate mold growth. The whole building needs to be renovated immediately to regain the old glory of the jetty.
The place becomes congested when passengers crowd to collect tickets.
Tourism department officials say they are helpless when it comes to maintenance of the building. "The Ernakulam boat jetty building is an unauthorized one as it was constructed violating CRZ rules. It got only U/A (unauthorized number). This poses as a hurdle in getting funds for maintenance works. Moreover, there is no cleaning staff, and the other staff at the jetty do the cleaning works," said a tourism department official.
"Compounding the problems, anti-social elements snap the power cables and break window-panes. We are preparing a report for repair and expansion of our office functioning in the building. Using a share from that, we could do some repair work. It seems no maintenance work on the building has been carried out since its construction, other than white wash," he added.
In the Fort Kochi boat jetty, only two benches are available near the counter. A piece of timber has been placed near the jetty for people to sit. The area, from the ticket counter towards the exit gate, lacks proper lighting.
Irrigation department officials said they are preparing an estimate for renovating both the jetties. "Fund shortage is a major obstacle," said an official.
Former mayor K J Sohan said urban poor in Kochi city are living in Mattancherry. "They don't have proper bus routes. All the basic facilities like general hospital, municipal office, treasury, colleges and courts are functioning in the mainland. Fort Kochi boat jetty is the easy transit point for them to access these facilities. Construction of a new boat jetty in Fort Kochi has been envisaged in the Smart City plan. But those concerned are not constructing the new jetty," he said.