Govt sets up panel to expedite setting up Rs 15.8K cr ports

An empowered committee of secretaries has been set up to expedite setting up two new major ports in the country, Parliament was informed today.
These two ports are proposed at West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh, entailing an investment of Rs 15,820 crore.
"Steps have been taken for speedy implementation of projects...Empowered committee of secretaries to resolve implementation related matter has been constituted," Shipping Minister G K Vasan told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply.
Vasan said techno-economic feasibility study has already been conducted while limits for port in Andhra Pradesh Dugarajapatnam has been notified.
Transaction advisor for West Bengal port to be set up at Sagar has been appointed, he said.

Vasan said, "Application for land acquisition has been made and the process for obtaining environmental clearance for Dugarajapatnam has been initiated."

The government last year had given nod to set up these ports.
The new port in West Bengal, which will have a capacity of 54 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), requires an investment of around Rs 7,820 crore.
The Andhra Pradesh port, whose projected capacity is around 50 MTPA, will entail an investment of about Rs 8,000 crore.
The new ports will be notified as Major Ports under the Indian Ports Act, 1908. Major ports come under the central government, while minor ports are operated by state governments as well as by the private sector.

There are at present 12 major ports -- Kolkata-Halida, Paradip, Visakhapatnam, Ennore, Chennai, V O Chidambaranar (formerly Tuticorin), Kochi, New Mangalore, Mormugao, Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru (JNPT) and Kandla.
The new major ports are likely to be set up on public-private partnership (PPP) mode and and will cater to increased imports of coal and oil besides boosting the local economy and generating jobs.