Close on the heels of the boat tragedy at Tanur in Malappuram which claimed 22 lives, the Kerala government has decided to form special squads for periodic inspections of vessels to ensure that all the vessels in the State are operated in compliance with the rules. The decision was taken at a meeting convened by the Ports department here on Wednesday to discuss the urgent steps needed to be taken in the inland waterway sector of the State.
There is already a mandatory requirement to display registration details, the number of passengers to be allowed onboard and other information on each vessel. In view of the accident, steps would be taken to display all these details on the exterior of each vessel in a way that these are visible to the public, the meeting decided.
It also decided to explore the possibility of forming vigilance committees in consultation with the Local Self-Governments department, including representatives from the local bodies in areas where boat services are operated.
Though the Central government has formulated a new policy to bring uniformity in the rules and regulations governing inland waterways in 2021, they have not framed any rules so far. On the other hand, the State had framed the Inland Water Transport Act in 2010 and accordingly, the State has clear rules for building, surveying, and registration of boats. So the State can take action based on the existing rules until the new rules to be formulated by the Centre come into effect, the meeting noted.
