The latest accident in the Muthalapozhi fishing harbour channel, which claimed four lives, appears to have evoked some knee-jerk reactions. The Kerala government has convened an urgent meeting of various stakeholders, including the Vizhinjam port developer Adani Group, which has signed an agreement with the Harbour Engineering department for dredging the navigation channel of the harbour till 2024.
But a close look at the causes of the accidents and the steps taken so far by government agencies will reveal that successive governments were not keen on analysing the actual issues and adopting the best methodologies to prevent fatal accidents. Since 2006, 69 people have lost lives in accidents in the harbour channel.
