Ernakulam-Kakkanad boat service by year-end

KOCHI: The district administration is gearing up to start the Ernakulam-Kakkanad boat service by the end of the year. The service from Marine Drive would help reduce the hassles of commuters travelling to and from Kakkanad, district collector P I Sheik Pareeth said on Thursday.
Pareeth said the district administration had submitted the project report for administrative approval.
"The project report prepared by Kitco has been submitted to the state-level committee for approval and we expect to get sanction by the end of April. The government has given assurance that the project will be included in this year's plan fund," he said.
"Once it gets final approval, the Rs 12-crore waterway project will be implemented with the help of the irrigation department. We are currently planning to utilize the river management funds. For this, we need administrative sanction from the state government," Pareeth said.
According to the proposed plan, the boat will start from the boat jetty at Marine Drive and navigate through Chambakkara canal and Kadambrayar lake before ending the journey near the proposed SmartCity site and Infopark. Once implemented, it will become a pollution-free mode of transport, available at a reasonable rate.
The Ernakulam-Kakkanad boat service has been started by the district administration as part of the Ernakulam-Nedumbassery waterway. Ten years ago, the authorities had introduced a boat service on the same route on a trial basis, but later withdrew it. Once the project takes off, the authorities are planning to revive the old boat jetties on the route.
"Since many agencies including GIDA (Goshree Island Development Authority) and Kochi corporation are planning to introduce boat services, it will be easy for us to start and run this service. A
A project to connect all canals in the city through waterway is also on the anvil," the collector said.