The Kerala government has pledged a coordinated effort to restore the Kochi International Marina after a vlog by sailing enthusiast Amrutha documented the neglected state of India's only international marina, with Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan thanking her for highlighting the matter and saying he would direct the departments concerned to assess the feasibility of her suggestions.

Source: The Hindu via India Morning

The marina sits on Bolgatty Island, next to the Kerala Tourism Development Corporation's Bolgatty Palace Hotel and Island Resort, and was commissioned in 2010 with funding from the Union Tourism Ministry. In her vlog, Amrutha, who once sailed from the marina to Djibouti, showed swathes of water hyacinth beside its vacant ramps and said people do not see the potential the site has.

Source: Mirror Now

Rs 2.50 crorerenovation completed earlier this year: decks replaced, seven piles rebuilt
Rs 2 croresanctioned in August to renovate the adjacent 24-room marina house
2010year the Bolgatty Island marina was commissioned

What Amrutha proposed

Amrutha suggested the marina needs an active cafe, plenty of sailboats and possibly a sailing school, so a community of sailors can grow around it. After meeting the Chief Minister, she said Kerala is blessed with extensive coastlines and backwaters, but many residents lack the opportunity to engage with sailing, and hoped government support would make the sport more accessible to the next generation.

A senior Kerala Tourism official said the facility is not entirely without investment: a Rs 2.50-crore renovation completed earlier this year replaced wooden decks and reconstructed seven piles supporting the floating pontoons used for yacht berthing, and another Rs 2 crore was sanctioned in August to renovate the adjacent 24-room marina house. Officials acknowledged challenges including a shortage of funds for marketing, and suggested the local sailing community and the private sector could help revive the marina's standing.