Centre extends Paradip's limits

Nominal fee could bring additional revenue to the major port

The government has extended the water limits of the Paradip Port Trust, a major port in Odisha to Kanika Sands- a cluster of islands located off the Odisha coast around 70 nautical miles from Paradip for setting up of the transloading facility under the directions of the Supreme Court.

The port trust is planning to invite bids from private parties to operate the transloader – which will transfer shipment from one mode of transportation to another.

While the move is primarily aimed to help Kolkata Port in cargo handling during the monsoon months, the Paradip port would get some revenue from the facility, too, though the exact quantum of business would depend on the capacity and bid quotations.

Earlier in May, the Supreme Court had given a nod to this arrangement to put an end to the dispute between the Kolkata Port and the Odisha government over territorial waters. “We are not expecting much revenue but just helping out our brother port. We would get some royalty from the facility since it is in our waters,” said S S Mishra, chairman, Paradip Port trust.

The Kolkata Port was carrying such transloading activity for eight months in Sand Heads in the Bay of Bengal within its own water limits (40kms from Haldia) due to excessive siltation which reduced the draft.

From May to September, it was relocating to Kanika Sands since the waters turn choppy during that period and the transloader has to be sheltered and removed from Sand Heads. However, with Paradip Port now the official operator the facility will be available all the year round.

The Adani group owned Dhamra port in Odisha had raised objection to the transloading operations being carried out in the high seas by the Kolkata Port on grounds that it was within its port limits.

“Our objection was to the comprehensive extension of Kolkata port limits by more than 100 km to the south in such a manner that the entry to Dhamra Port was falling in Kolkata port limits. That notification has been repealed. This will not affect Dhamra Port,” said Santosh Mohapatra, chief executive officer, Dhamra Port.

However maritime experts feel that Dhamra’s concern were two-fold and besides the threat to its water-limits there was also an apprehension of losing cargo. “Even Dhamra can use the transloading facility if it wants as per new arrangement. But they have enough capacity of their own,” a senior official said.

With the new solution now accepted by all the involved parties, the Paradip Port would be authorized to carry out transloading operations at the berth on Kanika Sands and also carry out conservation work for a nominal charge.

The Odisha government would also initiate steps to re-notify the port limits of the Bahabalpur Port – a non-major port which comes under the state’s jurisdiction so that the transloading facility (transloading is the process of transferring a shipment from one mode of transportation to another) can function without any further hurdle.

The state government had signed an exclusivity agreement with the Dhamra port, according to which no port facility could be created within 25 km. The law ministry had said on this matter that all coastal waters belong to the central government and a state government has no jurisdiction over the water that surrounds its land.