Kochi stay safe · Kochi travel safety advice
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Kochi travel safety advice
Kochi travel safety advice
Kochi is one of the safest cities in India with excellent police coverage. Common sense is of course required when being alone at night.
Late night life is just emerging in Kochi and mostly dominated by men. There were few reported cases of eve-teasing and attempted-molestation of ladies during late nights.
Kochi is infamous for mosquitoes, due to presence of large waterbodies across the city. Make sure any room you book, has mosquito repellants or at least a mosquito net. Its always better to have any anti-mosquito creams or spice oil extracts like lemongrass oil to ward off mosquito bites.
Be wary of Private Line bus and KSRTC bus drivers on the roads. Pedestrians live a hard life especially during peak hours in Kochi. There are many cases of road accidents and hit-run cases involving private buses and pedestrians, thus earning them the nickname, Red Killers. Take extra care, while crossing the roads. If difficult to cross then do so only at major signal junctions or seek assistance of local traffic policeman.
Kochi lacks good pedestrian walkways, as most of them are in dilapidated condition, creating multi-level walks ways. Some of them are broken or laid with unsuitable materials like polished tiles which can make you skid and slip during rains. Though a masterplan to relay the entire pedestrian walkways are ready, the construction is yet start. In some places large piles of gravel and sand has been deposited on these walkways as part of reconstruction work and this may causes obstacles. Beware of walking on these walkways, especially during night. Most of the Kochinites perfer to jaywalk which is possibly safer at some times.
Due to poor alignment of drains a few roads do flood during rainfall. Its better to avoid such roads while raining. When the these roads are flooded it may be difficult to distinguish whether you are walking on road or walkway, which sometimes can land you inside drainage holes.
Public smoking bans are strictly enforced in the city more so than in other regions. The High Court of Kerala has decreed a public smoking ban across the state. Smoking on the roadside, in shopping complexes, restaurants, and parks is illegal and police can charge Rs 500-1,000 for breaches. No shop that sells loose cigars or tobacco is allowed to provide lighters. Provision of lighters to customers may lead to a Rs 150 fine being imposed upon both the supplier and the purchaser.
Prostitution is illegal in Kochi, as elsewhere in Kerala and India. However there is every good chance, you will likely encounter street prostitutes and their agents, who may try to lure you. Beware of such offers, as many of such prostitutes are affected by HIV. Being illegal, they have no access to medical controls or treatments. As it is a criminal offence to commit adultery, regular police raids occur in local cheap hotels to catch prostitutes and their clients. LGBT intercourses are technically illegal, however the recently Supreme court verdict allows to practice them freely, something many local police may not be aware of. If suspicious of any such activity, they may arrest and charge on grounds of "immorality" and "unlawful sex", which may result you to go face the never-ending Indian judiciary system, though you may not be jailed dependant upon the considerations of the Supreme court.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Kochi
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Kochi - updated May 2024
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Kochi Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.