DJ Venkatesh
Diglipur, Feb 05: The daily boat service started by the Administration between Port Blair and Rangat has turned out to be a damp squib, as the vessels to Rangat mostly remain empty, giving signal that perhaps the Administration has failed to read the pulse of people of these Islands and Tourists.
The boat between Port Blair and Ragat was started following the ban on movement of tourists on ATR. The vessels leave for Rangat from Port Blair everyday at 07.00 AM and reache Rangat at 12.30 AM.
As per the passenger data available with Andaman Sheekha on 26th Jan, 2013 there were only 16 passengers on the vessel on 27th Jan there were 10 , 28th Jan there were 41, on 2nd Feb there were only one, 3rd Feb there were five, 4th Feb-13 and on 5th Feb there were only five passengers on these vessels.
However, the capacity of the vessel is somewhere around 71 to 94. Apart from these vessels weekly three boats are already plying between Port Blair and Rangat via Neil and Havelock Islands. There is also one weekly direct vessel on Friday.
“It proves that neither local residents nor tourists want this ferry service. Since last two years DARTED (an NGO) and PRI members of Diglipur are demanding daily night boat service to and fro Diglipur but administration never bothered about our genuine demands,” president of DARTEN, Mr. Uttam Kumar Saha told Andaman Sheekha today.
He added that this is sad to note that the administration providing boat services to such Islands, where there is no such demand.
“In Port Blair-Diglipur Sector excess passengers without tickets are always waiting at the Diglipur Jetty. Sadly in Diglipur Sector there are only three ferries in a week and out of these, one vessel comes via Mayabunder,” he added.
If you are thinking these additional boat service was for resident public (who just do not exist, else how could their villages be brought under buffer zone), you are terribly mistaken. These service has been started to augment tourism sector.
But there is a way out of this. Request some of your tourists to request special boat service to Diglipur or anywhere. You would certainly get one.
Now don’t thank me for lighting up your “Dimag ki Batti” try to find some tourist who could come to our rescue.