Public hearing on Gangavaram port expansion today

The Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board is conducting a public hearing tomorrow (May 12) on the expansion plans of Gangavaram port.

Gangavaram Port Limited, the country’s deepest and multi-purpose port, has proposed to construct four more berths and other facilities with an investment of Rs 995 crore. It now has five berths. During 2010-11, the port handled 14 million tonne cargo and is targeting to handle 16.5 million tonne this year. Post expansion, its handling capacity would increase to 41 million tonne. “The state government has an 11 per cent stake in the project and during the last two years, we paid the government about Rs 22 crore as concession fee apart from the lease amount for 1,000 acres," V Janardhana Rao, senior vice president of Gangavaram Port, told reporters.

The port has spent Rs 20 crore on pollution control measures and in the second phase of expansion, it plans to invest over Rs 50 crore in pollution control measures, he added. It had adopted the Environmental Management Plan consisting of mitigation measures, monitoring programme and institutional measures to minimise environmental impacts, he said.

However, non-governmental organisations like Forum for Better Visakha, Forum for Sustainable Development and a few fishing community association are strongly opposing the expansion. They allege that the new berths would increase the pollution levels significantly in the surrounding villages