Govt focusing on modernisation of major ports: Gadkari

Underlining that the development of ports is important for increasing the GDP of the country, Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari has said the focus of the government is on modernisation of major ports and increasing their operational efficiency.

“With new initiatives the improvements have been registered in the performance of major ports with the volume of cargo handled increasing by 4.6% and revenue increasing by 8.7% in 2015,” Gadkari said.

The decline observed in the performance of Major Ports from 2008 to 2014 has reversed and have shown improvement in 2015.

The minister informed that the major ports will generate 200MW of green power which include 150MW solar power and 50 MW wind energy.

Emphasising on the best international practices, Gadkari said that his priorities include treatment of waste water at ports, use of bio-diesel to reduce air pollution and opening of modern hospitals and medical facilities at ports.

The initiatives undertaken to improve efficiency include:

• Delegation of more powers to major ports.
• Capital dredging to 18 meters through PPP mode in Mormugao Port.
• New scheme to assist ports to mitigate oil pollution; new scheme to set up coastal berths, passenger jetties etc.
• Establishment of Indian Port Rail Corporation to focus on last mile connectivity.
• Sagarmala project to promote port-led development, equipments and technology upgradation, mechanistion and initiatives for large vessel handling.