First ship berths carrying cranes from China arrive at Vizhinjam port

The first ship that arrived at Vizhinjam port here carrying cranes from China was given a water salute by the tug boats which pulled the vessel into the Rs 7,700 crore deep-water international port on Thursday, official sources said.

The mammoth container handling cranes onboard the vessel would be transferred to the port on Sunday, October 15, in an official event that would be attended by Union Minister for Ports Sarbananda Sonowal and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the sources said.

The vessel -- Zhen Hua 15 -- which began its journey from China at the end of August was scheduled to dock at Vizhinjam on October 4, but its journey got delayed due to bad weather conditions along its route.

On reaching Indian coastal waters, it first went to Mundra port in Gujarat to offload some cranes there and then proceeded towards Vizhinjam, the sources said.

It docked at Vizhinjam port at around 11.20 am, they said.

The Kerala government last month had said that three more ships would be coming in October and November to the port which is expected to be commissioned by May next year.

The government had also said that 75 per cent of the breakwater construction is also complete.

The Vizhinjam port is being constructed under the public-private partnership model. Adani Group is the private partner in the development of Vizhinjam port, which is going to be one of the largest ports in the world once commissioned.

The project, which was scheduled to be commissioned in 2019, got delayed due to several issues related to land acquisition.

Vizhinjam had witnessed violent protests as fishermen in the area opposed the project, alleging that the port could adversely affect their livelihood. There are also environmental concerns surrounding the construction and operation of the port.