Devoid of safety : Boating services throw caution to the wind

After the tragedy that struck a group of sightseers at the Tanda Dam in Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), tourists in Punjab, looking to explore the province’s boating scene, are growing increasingly wary of the inadequate safety equipment and precautionary measures.

The incident in Kohat, where a sightseeing boat overturned, claimed 52 lives and that has made tourists to the various lakes and rivers in Punjab cautious as well, given the lack of life jackets and lifeguards. In this regard, The Express Tribune, spoke to several tourists at spots which offer boating in Lahore, like the Ravi River, Jallo Park, Safari Park, Greater Iqbal Park, Jilani Park, and Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park.

Waqar Ahmed, who had just gotten off a motorboat tour with his family at the Ravi River, said that they inquired about life jackets before taking the tour but the management did not seem to have any adequate ones. “The few jackets that they had were missing buckles or completely torn, so it made little sense to wear those.” Ahmed, pointing to a sign board which stated that life jackets were mandatory, said that it was ironic that the management could not enforce their own rules.

On the other side of the city at Jallo Park, Muhammad Rafiq, who was visiting the park with his family for boating, had similar views. “We asked for jackets but the boating staff did not have any nor did they have any other safety equipment,” informed Rafiq. When pointed out that other visitors did not seem to care much about life jackets, Rafiq said, “if the crew does not allow anyone to ride the boat without a jacket, tourists will wear one but the crew is not bothered about safety at all.” Similarly, Samira Imran, who was out with her children for boating at the Greater Iqbal Park, said that the staff did not care much for safety.

“They gave us some old and dirty jackets, which seemed more like a formality rather than a concern for our wellbeing.” However, an employee at the boating service in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, when quizzed about their indifference to safety, said that it was the visitors’ fault. “Some visitors are iffy about wearing a jacket somebody else has just taken off but we cannot provide a new jacket to everyone. Whereas others simply decline to wear them because they feel that the jacket will ruin their clothes.” On the other hand, the boating crew at Jallo Park Lake, who spoke with The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity, conceded that the life jackets provided were old and inadequate “however, the contractor for the boating service is not concerned about their quality.”

When asked about the disregard for safety measures and lack of regulation by the department of boating at parks, the Director General (DG) of Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA), Zeeshan Javed, agreed that the issue warranted the department’s attention. “Whenever the PHA auctions boating contracts, we make it mandatory on the contractor to provide safety equipment like life jackets and hire divers or lifeguards. However, it is true that these rules are not enforced. We will look into it and increase public awareness about the issue,” assured Javed while talking to The Express Tribune.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 20^th, 2023.