Thursday, August 15, 2013

Seaplanes may take off during Onam in Kerala

Kochi: Seaplane service, which took a break after being launched with a bang, is set to fly back into the tourism map of Kerala. The amphibian crafts are expected to fly in the State’s air space and land at airports as well as water bodies in September. Preparations are on to resume the flights during Onam, the beginning of the festival season when hordes of tourists descend in Kerala.
The hibernation would be over soon, a senior official of Tourism Department told The Hindu. The fishermen’s objection to the project would be handled in a rational way with an expert committee being appointed to study the issue. The formation of the panel had been decided upon earlier, and a government order would be issued soon. A nod for it from the ministers in charge of Fisheries and Tourism was being awaited, he said.
The committee will study the impact of the seaplane operations on the livelihood of fisherfolk. The government is interested in allaying the fears of fishermen through the findings of a scientific study.
15/08/13 R Ramabhadran Pillai/The Hindu
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