PANAJI
The Minister for River Navigation Subhash Phaldesai stated that the government is looking at feasibility of operating water taxis in Goa which will benefit the locals as well as the tourists, assuring to look into their suggestions.
He was speaking after meeting with a delegation from the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) that had come with a request for immediate action and attention to enhance safety, efficiency and financial stability to the ferry services in the State and also scrap the nine unserviceable ferries.
Nine ferries have become obsolete and are no longer in a condition to provide safe and reliable service and are lying in the River Navigation yard in Betim.
These ferries should be scrapped at the earliest to free up operational costs and space. Also, the free space created can be converted to a parking area for private yachts/crafts which can generate revenue for the government, said a GCCI release.
Ferries operating with a single engine pose a significant safety risk, especially in case of engine failure mid-river and to ensure passenger safety and operational reliability, all single-engine ferries be phased out immediately, appealed GCCI and proposed new ferries to be introduced under a public-private-partnership (PPP) model, to reduce the financial burden on the government in procuring and maintaining ferries. The new ferries can be solar powered and the project proponent be given longer routes/multiple stops, advertisement rights and creatives to make it viable, said GCCI.
The existing River Navigation dockyard has been incurring losses and is unable to function optimally, pointed out GCCI and recommended that its operations be outsourced to a competent private entity with expertise in ship maintenance and repair. This will improve efficiency, reduce costs, enhance service quality and generate valuable revenue to the department, it suggested.
The team was led by the chairman of logistics committee Chandrakant Gawas along with Sanjay Amonkar, director general and Sanket Kaskar.
