The Ministry of
Shipping has decided to develop Jawaharlal Nehru Port as a hub
port in India’s West Coast, capable of receiving large size
vessels to facilitate direct sailing of export containers to
their destinations, or to receive import containers destined
for India directly without transshipment at any foreign port.
Jawaharlal Nehru Port fulfils several requirements of a hub
port, such as concentration of traffic, proximity to international
routes and markets, longer waterfront, better road/rail connectivity,
large back up area and supporting hinterland. Certain customs
procedures which were seen as hurdle in transshipment have also
been simplified.
Development
of the port, which includes its maintenance as a hub port, is
a continuous process. Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust has identified
the following major schemes in this regard: -
- Re-development of the existing
Bulk Terminal into Container Terminal involving an investment
of about Rs. 900 crores on Built Operate & Transfer (BOT)
basis which is expected to yield additional container handling
capacity of about 14 million tonnes per annum.
- Deepening and Widening of Approach
Channel to the Port at an estimated cost of Rs. 700 crores
which involves deepening its draft so as to handle ships upto
laden draught of -14 Mtrs. and certain widening of entrance
channel at pockets.
Development of
the port as a hub port is likely to result in savings in transshipment
costs for containerized cargo, which, at present, is predominantly
transshipped through hub ports in the neighbouring countries
at high costs to Indian trade, savings in ship waiting costs
and augmentation in foreign trade besides the benefits which
may accrue on accounts of the economies of larger vessel size.
This was stated by Shri Dilipkumar Mansukhlal Gandhi, Minister
of State for Shipping in a written reply to Prof. Ummareddy
Venkateswarlu in Lok Sabha today.
