India's first artificial reef was commissioned in the waters off the coast of Kerala's Kovalam beach on Wednesday.

Tourism minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan unveiled the 110-metre long reef about 100m away from the shoreline. Geo-textile bags measuring about 30m in breadth and filled with sand were stacked on the seabed to build the 'soft reef'.

The submerged structure will break sea waves taller than 1m letting only low intensity ones to pass through, said Sheikh Pareeth, chief engineer with the Harbour Engineering Department, technical supervisor for the project.

"We have a three-fold purpose with the reef: to protect the sea shore threatened by erosion, improve the tourism potential of the area as the reef will lead to calm sea conditions off the Kovalam coast making it ideal for surfers. The structure will also improve fish breeding following the growth of underwater vegetation and create conditions similar to natural reefs," said Unnikrishnan, planning officer with the state tourism department.

"However, he added, "we will have to wait for some time, at least till the end of the monsoon, to see if the intended results have been achieved." With the reef in place, the tourism department is also hoping that tourist flow to Kovalam will no more be a seasonal affair. Funded by the Centre's Tsunami Rehabilitation Programme, the reef was constructed at a cost of Rs 7.5 crore by a New Zealand-based company. Work on the project started in December 2009.