Fort Kochi: Chinese President Xi Jinping has evinced interest in visiting the Chinese fishing nets, a salient feature of Fort Kochi.
An official Chinese delegation visiting Kochi has informed that Xi Jinping would visit Kochi in September.
The traditional fishing nets of China have been retained in Kochi for centuries. Considering these nets as a monument of Chinese tradition and history, the Chinese government has prepared a project to retain its lost glory, said the delegates.
As part of the project, a five-member delegation headed by administrative director of Chinese embassy, visited Fort Kochi on Thursday.
After interacting with the fishing net operators, they said the Chinese government would provide all possible assistance to safeguard the entire Chinese fishing nets in Fort Kochi in their original form. As earlier, the operators will continue to manage the nets, they said.
The wooden beam used in the nets will be retained. Owing to high operational cost, a few frames were recently replaced with iron pipes. Though the net operators approached the government for assistance for the maintenance, nothing moved. Accordingly, a few nets are on the verge of destruction.
Despite these fishing nets attracting a large number of tourists, the state tourism department failed to take any effective steps for their preservation.
The Chinese officials also have expressed interest in renovating the walkways in Fort Kochi and installing modern fish stalls.