THE longer time taken to move cargo out of government ports in India is forcing shippers to take their business to private ports, where efficiency is far greater, according to an unnamed senior official at the Shipping Ministry.
In the last four years, coal handling at government ports has fallen from 81 per cent to 47 per cent.
As a result, the Ministry of Shipping has enacted a plan aimed at boosting the efficiency of eight major ports, including Kolkata, Goa, Visakhapatnam, Kochi, Nhava Sheva (Jawaharlal Nehru port), Mumbai, Kandla, Chennai and Paradip.
The plan goes beyond the initiatives announced under the Sagarmala project, as it calls primarily for the speeding up of port operations and faster ship turn times, reported The Hindu of Chennai.
The official said the Shipping Ministry with port authorities are planning to spend INR10 billion (US154.2 million) on the first phase of development to equip the ports with new conveyors, cranes and other equipment to handle cargo faster.
In government ports, 8,000 to 10,000 tonnes of coal can be lifted from a cargo vessel per day but in private ports 25,000 tonnes can be move in that time. In such mechanised ports, the ship turn times are down from eight days to three.
Another official said that in state run ports such as Paradip, union deals provide that port management must load two coal wagons manually. Such arrangements eat into port efficiency, and talks are underway to rectify the problem.
PORTS
15 October 2015 - 20:17
India's Shipping Ministry to boost state port efficiency, cut turn times
THE longer time taken to move cargo out of government ports in India is forcing shippers to take their business to private ports, where efficiency is far greater, according to an unnamed senior official at the Shipping Ministry.
PORTS
15 October 2015 - 20:17
India’s Shipping Ministry to boost state port efficiency, cut turn times
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