Ph 1 of Sagar Island seaport to start operations from 2017

Construction work on the Rs 8,000-crore Sagar Island seaport in West Bengal would begin in two years and the first phase operations would commence from 2017, according to RPS Kahlon, chairman, Kolkata port, and in charge chairman of Visakhapatnam port.

Once the port commence operations, cargo handling at the existing Kolkata port would be stopped and the place could be used as anchoring for barges, he told mediapersons on the sidelines of the two-day East Coast Maritime Business Summit that began here on Thursday.

Sagar Island port would have a 13-14-metre draft to accommodate up to 60 DWT capacity capsize vessels. In the first phase, eight berths would come up and the handling capacity would be at 40-50 million tonnes. Another eight berths would be set up in the second phase, he said.

The West Bengal government will have a 26 per cent stake in the proposed port while the Kolkata port will have the remaining 74 per cent stake. RITES has already submitted its feasibility report on the project and government would soon appoint a consultant to form a special purpose vehicle to operate the port, he said.

As part of this project, road and rail connectivity would be provided from island to shore over Muri Ganga. This project would be funded by private-public partnership, he said.