Vuda setting up country's first ship museum

Visakhapatnam Urban Development Authority (Vuda), in collaboration with Indian Navy's Eastern Naval Command, is setting up India's first ship museum in the port city. The museum is likely to cost Rs 4.3 crore and will be ready by March 2006.

Vuda is setting up the ship museum at Teneti Park abutting the Rama Krishna beach on the lines of 'INS Kursura submarine museum' that was set up by the Indian Navy in August 2002 and was later handed over to Vuda for maintenance. Vuda has been earning anywhere between Rs 45 lakh and Rs 50 lakh annually from the submarine museum.

The Indian Navy has offered one decommissioned ship "� INS Anjadip "� free of cost to Vuda for setting up the ship museum.

"This museum will be the first-of-its-kind in India. A similar project is under consideration on the west coast of Mumbai," D Vara Prasad, vice-chairman of Vuda, told Business Standard.

"We have estimated the project cost to be around Rs 4.3 crore and have therefore proposed private participation on a long-term lease (BOT) basis," Prasad said.

"In this regard, Expression of Interest (EoI) will be called for from reputed and experienced developers in the related field, with technical assistance from Vizag-based National Ship Design and Research Centre (NSDRC)," he added. The project will be completed by March 2006.

"Every year about 1.5 lakh tourists visit the submarine museum at Rama Krishna beach. we are, therefore, expecting a similar response for the ship museum as well," Prasad said.

"Vuda has entrusted the technical and financial study for positioning of the INS Anjadip to NSDRC that is likely to submit its report within 15 days," he added. The state-owned NSDRC had carried out a similar study for INS Kursura submarine three years back.