Kandla port tops in traffic handling

Kandla Port Trust (KPT) has topped the country's port sector in the first quarter of 2007-08 with a record handling of cargo and traffic. KPT was at the number 4 position for the last three years.

In a press release, KPT authorities claimed that during the first quarter of the present fiscal, the port reached the top position among Indian the major ports in terms of the traffic handled.

A throughput of 15.51 million metric tonnes (MMT) has been handled by KPT during the first quarter of fiscal 2007-08, as against 11.19 million metric tonnes handled by the port during the corresponding period of last fiscal, registering a growth of 38.58 per cent.

The port also surpassed the performance of 15.20 MMT during the first quarter of the present fiscal achieved by Vishakhapatnam Port Trust, which occupied the No.1 slot in the country for the past many years. The total tonnage handled by all major ports in the country during the first quarter of 2007-08 is 123.09 MMT, 12 per cent of which was contributed by KPT.

The release also said that there has been a considerable improvement in all productivity parameters during this quarter despite number of vessels increasing from 525 to 633.

KPT has also initiated a number of measures aimed at upgrading the infrastructure. The Board of Trustees recently approved some more new schemes.

These new schemes include construction of six-bulk storage sheds with a total covered area of 38,163 sq mts at Kandla at a cost of Rs 26 crore. KPT will purchase six harbour mobile cranes with a capacity ranging from 25 tonnes to 64 tonnes at a cost of Rs 38 crore.

KPT will also float a global tender for deepening and maintaining the navigational channel of the port to a minimum draft of 13.5 m at a cost of Rs 184 crore.