Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government is considering starting service ships to transport Keralites settled in the Middle East who wish to return home during the coming holiday season.
The government is weighing the option since these expatriates face difficulties in returning home due to unavailability of sufficient seats on aeroplanes and exorbitant air fares around this time of the year.
July, August and September are peak holiday months for more than two million Kerala natives who live in the Middle East. This year, the harvest festival of Onam falls in August.
However, various airlines operating in the region exploit this rush of passengers and raise air fares.
Thus, returning home during festival season every year becomes difficult for an average Kerala worker.
State Transport Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan said that there was a proposal to operate ships from the Middle East, particularly after the government managed to evacuate Indians from Yemen by sea route after trouble broke out in that country recently.
“Yes, we have an option. But we have to find out if our people are interested in travelling by ships. We will look into the matter, and if people are willing to travel by the sea route, we will certainly do the needful,” Radhakrishnan said.
A former Indian Navy captain and INS Mumbai ex-chief engineer, Ramesh Babu said that the option of starting ships on the route was viable.
“The Kerala government can either contact the Lakshadweep administration since ships available with it are not operated during monsoons, or it can get ships from Shipping Corporation of India,” Babu said.
“One can reach Kerala from any Middle East destination by sea within two days and a one-way ticket costs only around Rs. 5,000 (Dh287). And it comes with three-star luxury,” he added.
With the Kerala assembly session beginning next week, the issue is likely to crop up for discussion in the house.
