By Ashraf Padanna
By Ashraf Padanna
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A United Arab Emirates company has won the contract to build India’s first marina in Kerala’s port city of Kochi.
Gulf Marinas is based in Sharjah’s Hamriyah Free Zone.
On Saturday, Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan laid the foundation for the marina to be built between Kochi’s Bolgatty Island and Marine Drive, with a capacity to house 50 luxury yachts at a time. It will be the world’s only marina with a golf course.
“The first phase of the project will be completed in less than a year at a cost Rs80mn, half which will be provided by the federal government,†Cheriyan Phillip, chairman of the state-owned Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC), which is building the marina, said.
The KTDC has floated a subsidiary, Tourists Resorts Kerala Limited, to implement the project. The consultants were picked up through a competitive bidding process.
There will be two-dozen state-of-the-art rooms and recreation facilities built along with the marina to accommodate seafarers who make Kochi a stopover between the Middle East and the Far East.
Currently, at least 60 yachts call at the Kerala port city during the tourist season and remain berthed there for periods ranging from two weeks to six months despite poor berthing facilities.
The marina will accommodate fuel stations, restaurants, health clubs and a car-parking area and a boardwalk — a wooden structure protruding into the backwaters. The marina is expected to provide job opportunities to hundreds of people who are skilled in repairing boats and communication equipment such as GPS, sonar and VHF radio sets.
Currently, there are no intermediate berthing facilities for the yachts leaving Dubai until they reach their destinations in the Far East. Situated just 11 nautical miles away from the international maritime route, Kochi has one of he best natural ports in Asia where Dubai Ports World is building an international container transshipment terminal. The Cochin Port Trust is also building a cruise terminal on nearby Willington Island.
The construction of a two-lane road connecting the Bolghatty Palace and Goshree Island is already underway. The KTDC plans to complete the first phase before the Volvo Ocean Race in December.
“One completed, Kochi would emerge as the gateway of India’s tourism. Since tourists who travel by the sea are on the rise, the Kochi marina will boost the tourism prospects of the state,†Philip said.
Most of the yachters arriving in Kochi, many of them aged couple, have been from European countries such as the UK, Finland and Norway apart from New Zealand and Australia.
“Kerala has already become a high-quality destination like the Maldives, where hotels are priced very high, and not Goa and Sri Lanka where cheaper hotel rooms are available. The marina would give further boost to this segment,†Philip said.
The Kerala Tourism authorities feel the Kochi marina could well become what Florida is to the US where lifestyle tourists converge. The idea is to make them fly down to Kochi, take a cruise in yachts berthed here and fly back to their city, Philip said.
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