Authorities have issued stop memos to over a dozen houseboats and motorboats in Alappuzha in the past two months after they were found operating flouting norms.
The Kerala Maritime Board (KMB) and Tourism police have been jointly conducting inspections on vessels including houseboats and shikhara boats in the Alappuzha backwaters for the past several months. It intensified checks in recent times in the wake of the Tanur boat tragedy.
The boats impounded during the period include 13 houseboats and seven motorboats. The vessels of operators who failed to produce relevant documents were shifted to the detention yard at Aryad.
According to officials, several vessels inspected in recent times were found to be operating flouting norms without mandatory licences, registration, insurance and pollution certificates, employing unlicenced crew and carrying passengers beyond the maximum permitted limit.
Apart from issuing stop memos, the KMB slapped a fine of ₹7.20 lakh on operators of 61 vessels for violating rules. Earlier this week, the authorities seized a motorboat without any mandatory certificates. Of the total 15 vessels inspected, including 11 houseboats, only three had all the certificates. The KMB slapped a fine of ₹1.10 lakh on the operators of 11 boats for violations.
According to the KMB, the licencing authority, there are 1,621 mechanically propelled boats, including houseboats, motorboats, shikhara boats, speedboats and ferry boats registered with the Alappuzha Port Registry, covering Alappuzha and Kottayam districts.
It has been estimated that the number of houseboats in the backwaters of Alappuzha stands over 1,000, while only around 800 vessels are registered with the registry. The rest are operating in violation of norms. In the case of registered houseboats, some have not renewed their registration or undergone mandatory resurvey, but continue to operate.
