Cabinet clears Rs 76,200 cr for development of Maha's greenfield major port

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the development of a Rs 76,200 crore all-weather greenfield deep draft major Port at Vadhavan in Maharashtra, according to an official statement.

The statement said the project will be constructed by Vadhavan Port Project Limited (VPPL), an SPV formed by Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) and Maharashtra Maritime Board (MMB), with a shareholding of 74 per cent and 26 per cent, respectively.

The port will be one of the top 10 ports in the world, the statement said.

The project will create employment opportunities for 12 lakh people, I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said in a press briefing.

The port will comprise nine container terminals, each 1,000 metres long, four multipurpose berths, including the coastal berth, four liquid cargo berths, a Ro-Ro berth, and a Coast Guard berth.
 

Varanasi airport expansion

The Union Cabinet approved a Rs 2,869.65 crore proposal for the expansion of Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport at Varanasi.

The development of the airport at Varanasi, which is the Lok Sabha constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, includes the construction of new terminal building, extension of apron and runway, parallel taxi track and other allied works, informed I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw after the Cabinet meeting.

The proposal of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), with an estimated financial outgo of Rs 2,869.65 crore, is aimed at enhancing the passenger handling capacity of the airport to 9.9 million passengers per annum (MPPA) from the existing 3.9 MPPA.