In 1998, when I left the state in search of work, Kovalam was booming, with its picturesque beaches attracting tourists from around the world. Vizhinjam, on the other hand, is a quaint fishing village with little in the way of its future potential. Twenty-six years later, in 2024, the coastal twins have swapped fortunes. Vizhinjam is on the verge of transformation, with a mega port project – one of the country’s only natural deep-water ports, 20 nautical miles from international routes – and a commitment of Rs 10,000 crore to turn it into a A major hub and gateway to international trade. Meanwhile, Kovalam has fallen into decline and its once-famous coastline is showing signs of neglect.
In 1998, Kovalan, a student volunteer I met, captured what foreign tourists were looking for in Kerala: beaches that looked natural and unspoilt. There are more trinket shops and fewer cheap hotels masquerading as homestays. As a result of attempts at beautification, the waterfront is now dilapidated, the beaches are unkempt and the local auto union has boycotted ride-sharing services. Local tourists arriving in SUVs and tour buses have largely replaced the international visitors that once defined the atmosphere here.
This quiet stretch of beach in Covelong got off to a good start in the 1930s when the Travancore royal family built a castle as a retreat. Soon foreign tourists, especially from Europe, England and the United States, discovered this cozy corner and made it famous. A tree-lined highway leads from the state capital to the beach, making the drive fun. Today, the charm has been lost. The highway has now been widened into a modern monstrosity of four lanes. All the trees have been cut down. Cars whizzing past at speeds of over 120 to 140 kilometers per hour would almost miss the small sign board with the word ‘Kovalam’ written on it. The junction has now been reduced to just another spot on the Thiruvananthapuram-Kanyakumari highway where speeding motorists are wary of people jumping across the road or the occasional car or bus crossing , onto the narrow tea shop-lined road that leads to the beach. But for this highway, it was built with little regard for Kovalam, often almost clogging the entry and exit points, but not much has been changed to be in line with its international reputation.
This year’s tourist season starts slowly in October, according to travel and tourism operators. Around 65,000 foreign tourists visited Kovalam in 2023, an improvement over the previous year but still lower than the pre-Covid numbers as Fort Kochi and Varkala emerged as strong rivals.
“The Kovalam Art and Craft Village in Vellar is the best thing that has happened in the last 25 years. Since coastal zone regulations prohibit construction 200m from the high tide line, only one five-star resort has been set up, thereby hampering the construction of more The attempt at a multi-star beach view hotel, KTDC has added a conference hall to its property, Royal Castle has been leased out to a hotelier,” witnessed Dileep Kumar of Imperial Hotels and Resorts. The development of this place over the years.
“It is now turning into a year-round domestic tourist destination,” said MK Ajith Kumar of the India Travel Forum. “Last week, I saw some foreign tourists outnumbering domestic tourists. , which included Sabarimala pilgrims in several vehicles with a stopover.
However, the future does not look promising. The state government’s grand plan to regenerate Kovalam has stalled. “These master plans looked good in the architect’s presentation,” Kumar said. This delayed routine maintenance, provision of toilets and parking spaces. The only major parking lot near the beach is on private land. The worst part is that whenever there is heavy rain in the state capital, the government has no clue about how to deal with the huge amount of plastic waste that is discharged into the sea from Kalamana river, Parvathy Puthanar and Amayizhanjanthode and washed up on the beaches.
In contrast, Vizhinjam is filled with the promise of a bright future. In July, when I was walking on the crowded road leading to the fishing port, I saw six blue cranes standing tall like giant sentinels from a distance, raising their blue and yellow striped arms, as if to the giant crane that was about to set sail. Container ship salute. Younger residents see opportunities beyond traditional fishing, while some fishermen told me they worry about their small boats sharing water with large container ships. Their fears may need to be assuaged because some 70 ships have moved in and offloaded nearly 200,000 containers since July, which is unprecedented during the trial.
adani vizinjam port Chief executive Pradeep Jayaraman was optimistic about improving port performance, despite the risk of ships diverting around Africa due to conflicts in the Middle East. “We are in a good location and ships do not need to take detours.” After proving the transshipment business, Jayaraman hopes to handle import and export cargo. This means there are ample opportunities to set up cargo processing units, container trucking operations and employment opportunities. The state government is gearing up to set up an economic zone and a development triangle stretching to Kollon and Punalur, a sign that trade can be a stronger driver than tourism.
While Vizhinjam is on autopilot, a concerted effort is needed to revive Kovalam, which has become a shadow of its former self.
