John Wilbert &Vikramaditya
Port Blair, March 19: Tourists visiting the Baratang Islands in Andaman are facing enormous hardship due to the lack of basic amenities at the Passenger Waiting Hall at Nilambur Jetty in Baratang Island.
The Passenger Waiting Hall is an important place for visitors in the Baratang tourism circuit. The waiting hall is old and lacks proper facilities, leaving visitors, especially women, children and the elderly, in a difficult situation. The old PMB waiting hall neither has any drinking water facility nor a baby care room. Even there is no basic facility to provide basic information to tourists regarding movement of vehicle ferries and ATR buses.
Baratang Island is known for its breath-taking limestone caves, Mud Volcano and Parrot Island, and receives over 500 tourists on a daily basis during the season. The local economy of Baratang Island is heavily dependent on tourism. However, due to the lack of basic facilities, tourists and visitors face many problems, which harms the reputation of the island as a tourist destination.
Talking to Andaman Sheekha Daily, the Zilla Parishad Member of Baratang Island, Mr R Alager Swamy, has demanded the renovation and upgradation of the old PMB waiting hall in Nilambur at Baratang Islands into a fully air-conditioned hall with all basic facilities. Mr Swamy has requested the Andaman administration and Port Management Board to upgrade the waiting hall by providing all necessary amenities like purified drinking water, washroom facilities, ramps and rails for divyangs, CCTV cameras for enhanced security, a beautifully crafted Baby Care Room, a small cafeteria with TV screens displaying departure timing of ferry and ATR bus, and more.
The lack of basic amenities at the Passenger Waiting Hall is a significant concern for tourists and visitors, and it is high time that the authorities take prompt action to address this issue. The upgrade of the waiting hall will enhance the experience of visitors and boost the tourism sector of the island.
