The ferry service between Versova and Madh Island which was shut for the past three months due to the pandemic, resumed on Tuesday, but with a rider. It will now ply for few specific hours in the morning and evening, and the only passengers allowed to avail of it are people working in the essential services sector such as government employees, doctors, nurses, BEST drivers, etc.

'Only convenient mode'
Speaking to mid-day, 45-year-old Ajay Saple, manager of the Vesave Macchimar Sahakari Society Ltd, which is in charge of the ferry service, said that they had resumed services after receiving instructions from the Maritime Board earlier this week. "There are a lot of people who need to travel from Madh Island to Mumbai city. Most of these people work as doctors and nurses at hospitals like Kokilaben and Cooper, and then have to travel back all the way to Madh Island where they live. The ferry is the only convenient and economical mode of transport for them. Others work in the BMC or are BEST drivers. These people have to travel sometimes on an emergency basis. We are operating only for such people who work in the essential services sector and not for other citizens."