A designated traffic corridor for merchant vessels sailing along India’s western seafront will be ready in a fortnight as a possible remedy for the increasing incidence of mid-sea collisions involving commercial ships and fishing boats. Consultations are in the final stages for a concrete traffic separation scheme for the west coast, from the Gulf of Kutch and the Gulf of Khambhat (Gulf of Cambay) down through the coast of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, and Kerala till some distance beyond Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, according to K.P. Jaya Kumar, nautical adviser in-charge at the Directorate General of Shipping. It was in the wake of the recent surge in mid-sea collisions, especially along the Kerala coast which witnesses dense fishing activity, that the DG Shipping came up with a broad framework for a designated navigation corridor for merchant ships. The process is now under way to finalise the project to mark the corridor on the map which will be done in about 10 to 15 days, Capt. Kumar told The Hindu over telephone. Sources, meanwhile, suggested that the final draft would be issued and publicised in consonance with the provisions of international maritime regulations for merchant ships to follow. Officers of the Coast Guard said the proposed corridor is 20 nautical mile wide and about 15 nautical miles away from the coastline. But it will not be uniform all along, as the corridor will have to be positioned in such a manner that it doesn’t pass through dense fishing zones, Sanatan Jena, Coast Guard Commander for Kerala and Mahe, said. We cannot ruin the livelihood of fishermen. The Coast Guard is taking inputs from State Fisheries Departments to ensure that zones rich in fishing resources are kept out of the contours of the proposed corridor. But there’s a need to sensitise the fishing community not to wade into the corridor once it’s delineated, Mr. Jena said. Another senior Coast Guard officer said sustained campaigns were needed to make fishermen aware of marine fishing regulations. Specifically to Kerala, a good percentage of fishing boats are registered and colour-coding compliant. But there’s serious lapse in carrying life-saving equipment on board. Basic things like ensuring that the seagoing personnel on board know swimming or the fundamentals of communication go a long way in saving lives, said an officer on condition of anonymity.