Another heartbreaking boat disaster in Kerala
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The pain, shock and anguish caused by the pleasure boat disaster in the estuary near Thoovaltheeram, Tanur in Kerala on last Sunday may not easily vanish from the mind of Keralites. 22 lives including 11 members of a family were lost in Poorupuzha when the boat carrying twice as many people as it could accommodate capsized. Many escaped by a hair's breadth. What compounds the grief is the fact that this is an emergency that can happen at any time in small and big tourist and entertainment centres all over Kerala, where Malayalee families including expatriates choose to spend some time happily with their loved ones amidst the hustle and bustle of life. The preliminary conclusions are that the Tanur disaster was caused by the excess load of passengers crammed into the boat, that it was an improvised fishing vessel converted into a passenger boat, and that the usual mandatory precautions like life-jackets were missing. The state government has announced a judicial inquiry into the accident. It is expected that the investigation will be completed and the report released without delay. But is there any reason to expect that the recommendations put forward by the Commission of Inquiry will be implemented? Going by past experiences, one cannot easily presume so.
Since 2000 alone several boat disasters have happened in Kerala such as the Kumarakam boat disaster (2002) with 29 deaths, Thattekad with 18 deaths (2007), Thekkady with 45 deaths (2009), Punnamadakkayal with four deaths (2013), Fort Kochi with 11 deaths (2015) and Beypore accident with two deaths (2017). Investigations were conducted by Justice Narayana Kurup Commission on Kumarakom tragedy, Justice Pareed Pillay Commission on Thattekkad disaster and by E Moiteenkunju Commisson Thekkady mishap. A number of recommendations were submitted, including that boats should not be loaded beyond their capacity, that the mandatory life jackets should be strictly complied with, and it should be ensured that periodic maintenance are carried out. However, Tanur tells that Kerala is yet to learn any lesson from it and that failures are repeated day by day.
The pleasure-houseboat industry has been flourishing in recent years along the lush waters of Kerala, which attract most the domestic and foreign tourists to the state. Boats are used not only for pleasure trips and celebratory parties, but also as floating venues for gatherings and even educational conferences. Hundreds of families are making a living of this industry too. Apart from these, the authorities are not unaware of the fact that there are many unlicensed, expired and unfit tourist vessels plying Kerala's waterways, but they pretend not to know it. This cannot be let go on any more. In the background of such a terrible tragedy, the government must intervene urgently to save the lives of passengers and crew and ensure the sustainability of this industry and the larger tourism sector without waiting for another disaster to happen.
The hazards are not limited to pleasure boats. Several passenger boats of the Water Transport Department carry twice as many passengers as they can handle and run daily services in the morning and evening. When there is a vigilance in installation of cameras all over the roads to detect violations, isn't there the same need in the water transport sector as well? As eminent disaster management expert Muralee Thummarukudi had pointed out long ago, pleasure boats do not even have the same safety briefing as they provide in airplanes. Many houseboats do not have fire prevention systems either. At least from now on, human life should be respected at its true value.
'Madhyamam' joins the prayers of those who lost their loved ones in the Tanur disaster. Along with this, we salute with all due respect the local residents including the fishermen and the police and firemen who ignored all the risks and constraints and plunged into rescue operations as soon as they heard the news of the accident.
