Less than two weeks remain for the 2012-2013 tourism season to open and one luxury liner has already scheduled a stopover at Vizhinjam, but the infrastructure at the existing tiny port here still leaves much to be desired.
Though the Ports Department had announced plans to develop the two wharves here last year, nothing has come off it. Which means, this year too, visiting liners, even the smaller ones, must off-load passengers at sea.
The older of the two wharves here has a length of 10 metres and the second newer one 90 metres. The plan was to extend them by 25 and 100 metres respectively on either side, sources said. ‘’The old wharf has a depth of 4.5 metres and the new one, 6.5 metres. There are also plans to extend the old wharf by ten metres towards the front. The construction of the compound wall of the port has been completed. Its work was delayed owing to some local protests,’’ Port Department sources said.
Vizhinjam’s history as a port dates back to the days of the Ay kings. Today, it is scarcely a major port of call for luxury liners despite the proximity to a tourism hub of Kovalam’s prominence, but a handful always stop by en route to Colombo or Maldives from Kochi. Last year, only two ships called at Vizhinjam. This year, Clipper Odyssey has scheduled a visit on November 27, port officials said.
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