MUMBAI: The state home (ports) department has allowed water sports to restart and issued standard operating procedures for water sports and ‘naukavihar’ activities on Wednesday.
Boats and vessels can operate at not more than 50{066dbc63777e5ed549f406789d72fdeebd77a32711d57f7b38ff2b35c4ba2a42} capacity, and 2-metre social distance has to be maintained by all occupants, the SOPs said. The SOPs are applicable to all water sports and ‘naukavihar’ activities registered with the Maharashtra Maritime Board. These include sports like jet-skiing, wind surfing, parasailing, canoeing, power boats, kayaking, barefoot skiing, water rafting, banana boating, water skiing, dinghy sailing, cable skiing, kite surfing, skurfing, stand- up paddle surfing, wakeboarding and skim boarding games played on various beaches.
Citizens who are more than 65 years old, persons with comorbidities, pregnant women and children below 10 years of age are advised to avoid or limit their water sports activities and to take extra precautions, the SOPs stated. All customers have to fill in self-declaration forms before taking part in water sports stating they do not have any Covid-related symptoms. Customers have been asked to carry their own sanitizers and wet wipes.
The state also issued a notification signed by chief secretary Sanjay Kumar stating that the tourism department would issue separate SOPs on entertainment and amusement parks.