Govt sets sail for upgrade of 12 major ports

The government is working on a two-pronged strategy to upgrade 12 major ports to international standards during the 11th five-year Plan.

The first part of the strategy entails a financial plan for the ports, while the second aims at initiating capital dredging.

The financial plan is being prepared by the Planning Commission in tandem with the shipping ministry. According to ministry officials, though the amount to be invested is not yet finalised, the funds will come from private investors.

According to the officials, the total traffic at major ports is expected to touch 1,200 million tonnes by 2013-14.

Currently, these ports handle 573 million tonnes of traffic. In order to achieve this target during the next five years, the Planning Commission has suggested to the ministry that more berths should be provided.

The strategy's second part, financial planning to facilitate such changes, is also being prepared. Though the total Plan size is not finalised, sources say around Rs 60,000 crore will be needed for creating more berths at these ports.

Apart from this, the Planning Commission is in the process of finalising a comprehensive plan on capital dredging, as barring the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), none of the other major ports have channels with adequate depth.

Sources say the new plans being prepared by the Planning Commission can be included in the National Maritime Development Programme, which is under way for the past two years.