Over three months after the cabinet committee announced relaxation in cabotage rules for Vallarpadam transshipment terminal, Kochi port has not been notified of the regulation yet.
Dubai Port World operated International container transshipment terminal in Kochi, is country’s first such facility inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in February 2011. The company has put in over Rs 3,000 crore in the first phase of the project. The total investment in the public private partnership project will go up to Rs 6,200 crore by the end of third phase in 2016.
Kochi port is yet to receive a formal order from Directorate General Shipping authorizing the port to bring the cabinet order into effect. As a result not a single mainline vessel has docked at the terminal for transshipment activity.
Cabotage relaxations aside, the dredging work at the port is also far from over. Between June 2011 and 2012, ICTT handled around 300,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) of cargo as against the estimated 750,000 TEUs. So far is only reaping the benefit of a congested Jawaharlal Nehru Port and Chennai Port Trust. It has not, however, been able to serve the main purpose of facilitating of mother container vessels. But there has been only 30 per cent utilisation of the terminal's capacity of over 1 million TEUs which is expected to go up to 4 million TEUs by 2016.
Shipping lines fix their networks or the sea-routes for vessel deployment six months in advance. According to senior officials, company has not been able to approach shipping lines which have shown interest in bringing the vessels at Kochi because of lack of clarity in cabotage rules.
Earlier G K Vasan, shipping minister had said, “Relaxation of cabotage law may attract mainline foreign vessels at Vallarpadam transhipment terminal, thereby enhance their earning.”
Indian National Shipowners’ Association (INSA) has been opposing the relaxation of cabotage. “We continue to reiterate our position but there is nothing we can do now. The governments in China, Brazil and Australia are going for policies that restrict foreign flag vessels. This policy will not help the country,” said Anil Devli, chief executive officer, INSA.
According to Section 407 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958, no ship other than an Indian vessel or a ship chartered by a citizen of India shall engage in the coasting trade of India, except under a licence granted by the Directorate General of Shipping. However, the norms have been relaxed for mainline vessels coming at Vallarpadam’s transshipment terminal.
