The Kerala State Electricity Board’s (KSEB) attempt to start seaplane services has run into rough weather with the State deciding to refer the project for the consideration of the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA).
The KSEB had invited expression of interest (EoI) from aviation service providers to operate amphibious floatplanes connecting its reservoirs, and five companies had evinced interest in the project.
It then referred the proposal to the consideration of the Transport department. The KSEB was insisting that it would be the responsibility of the air service operator to secure the necessary permissions from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to start the service, besides setting up waterdromes in selected reservoirs in Wayanad and Idukki in the first phase. The role of the KSEB will be of a facilitator and it will charge a certain amount for renting out its reservoirs.
A senior Transport department officer said though the investors were interested in the project, they were a bit wary of investing in the project at their own risk, especially since they needed to secure the necessary permissions from various regulatory bodies under the Ministry of Civil Aviation. They feared that if there was a protest similar to the one in the past, it would upset their plans. So they were asking whether it would be possible for the State government to secure the necessary permissions. So the department had decided to refer the project details to the Ministry of Civil Aviation. If the Centre was interested in developing waterdromes as part of its regional connectivity scheme, it could explore the possibility of starting seaplane services from here by providing necessary regulatory and infrastructure support, the officer said.
Earlier, the Tourism department had aborted its plans to start seaplane services from waterbodies in the State following protests from the fishing community. The project was shelved after investing around ₹14 crore for developing infrastructure facilities, including waterdromes.
The KSEB’s plan is likely to take off only if the State government takes initiative by securing the necessary permission and developing the infrastructure in public-private partnership mode.
