Gujarat, APSEZ ink pact for country's largest multi-modal logistics park

Nearly 1,500 acres park to attract investments worth Rs 50,000 crore in logistics, transport

The Gujarat government and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Friday for setting up India's largest multi-modal logistics park.

Spread over 1,450 acres at Virochan Nagar, close to the auto hub of Sanand, the park is expected to attract investments worth Rs 50,000 crore in the logistics and transport space.

The construction on the project will begin within six months post the necessary statutory approvals, while the completion is expected within three years by 2023.

The MoU was signed by M K Das, additional chief secretary to the chief minister and industries & mines department in Government of Gujarat and Karan Adani, chief executive officer of APSEZ in presence of the CM Vijay Rupani.

Rupani said that the park will not only be directly connected with the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) and all major ports in the country but also make businesses in the state more competitive globally. According to Rupani, the park will provide direct and indirect employment to more than 25,000 people.

According to a Government of Gujarat statement, the park will have textiles, bulk, e-commerce and BTS facilities spread across 3.8 million sq ft, bonded warehouses in 900,000 sq ft, grade-A palletized facilities in 400,000 sq ft and temperature and palletized facilities across 60,000 sq ft.

In addition, four twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) handling lines with a capacity of 330,000 metric tonne will be established in the container yard.

Further, a 400,000-metric-tonne car yard to handle nearly 30,000 cars, agri silos of 100,000 metric tonne, POL tank farm of 350,000 kilo litres and a cement silo of 100,000 metric tonnes are also set to come up in the park.

Elaborating on the park, Das stated that it will also provide a global platform to the local export and import market. "A Rail Freight Terminal will also be established. This will be directly connected to the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor," said Das, while adding that the park will have a dedicated Air Cargo Complex with a 4.6-km runway to make it capable of handling large carrier vehicles like airplanes.

Logistics infrastructure facilities at the park will include a nine million square feet warehouse zone aimed at providing an Air Freight Station with a capacity of 4.5 metric tonnes, a grade-A warehouse, and cold storage, among other things.

Meanwhile, the park will also boast of a shopping plaza or a business centre with a total retail footprint of over 300,000 sq ft, apart from a dedicated skill development centre aimed at ensuring availability of skilled manpower.