JOIN USThe Union Ministry of Shipping has planned to create additional port capacity of 280 million tonnes, mainly through PPP route, in the fiscal 2014, said Shipping Minister G K Vasan.
Further, he said the main focus of the government in the port sector is to expand capacity, improve efficiency and increase draft. “Our approach through PPP route has been paying off and in 2012-13, we awarded 32 port projects with an estimated investment of Rs 6,700 crore. We will keep the same tempo in the years to come,” Vasan said, addressing the Grand Finale of the 50th National Maritime Day celebrations here. Since growth in traffic had far outstripped the growth in Indian tonnage, the country had no option but to depend on foreign flagships, Vasan said, adding, “We need to have adequate Indian control over maritime activities, in the context of our growing international trade and increasing energy demand.”
He also pointed out that the coastal shipping and inland waterways transport have not kept pace with the developments despite India having 7,500 km of coastline and more than 12,000 km of inland waterways.