Vijayawada: Joy boat rides back on River Krishna

Vijayawada: After a long gap, the tourists in general and denizens in particular are happy that the joy boat rides which they have been deprived of for the last several months are back in action on the river with the opening of the boating control rooms by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday.

It may be recalled that the boating operations throughout the state were stopped after the boat mishap in River Godavari at Kacchuluru last year in which several dozens of people drowned.

A senior officer from the Revenue department would be in command of the boat rides at the control room in addition to a liaison officer from Irrigation department, system operator from the Tourism department, security personnel from the police department.

There would also be an NDRF team to supervise the safety of the boat riders.

While inaugurating the control rooms, the chief minister directed the district collector to spare at least one hour a week to oversee the boat maintenance.

Minister for Endowments Velampalli Srinivasa Rao appealed to the people to enjoy the boat rides along with their family members. He said that all precautionary measures have been taken for the safety of the boat riders.

Collector A Md Imtiaz said that nine boats including three speed boats, three single rider boats were introduced for the time being. He appealed to the people to observe Covid-19 norms like wearing masks and using sanitisers before riding the boats.