Kochi: Taking cue from the tragedy of ferry MV Bharat which met with an accident near Fort Kochi on August 26 the Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL) has decided to put in place “protocols for effective regulation of ferry operations” before they start the ambitious water metro project in 2017.
In the initial stage, KMRL will put forward suggestions to unify the rules and regulations for operating boats. The agency will then take up the task of drafting protocols to strengthen existing rules and regulations associated with design, inspec tion and testing of boats, issu ing licence, safety of passengers and crew and a mechanism to settle insurance claims of pas sengers.
“We will give our suggestions and draft protocol to the state government on operat ing the water transport system The government will have to take it up from there,” said KMRL managing director Elias George. He said the Metro agen cy would introduce a fleet of 78 fuel-efficient and air-condi tioned ferries.
Rear admiral (retired) B R Menon, who attended a discus sion on KMRL’s water transport project, said it “would not be possible to successfully operate water transport without having stringent regulations”.
