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Sassoon Docks, one of Mumbai’s oldest docks built in 1875, is poised to get a new look. Constructed on the reclaimed land in South Mumbai’s Colaba area, Sassoon is readying itself for not just the necessary infrastructure that will modernise fishing activities carried out here, but also for the much-needed boost for it to become an attractive tourist spot.
In this regard, Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for shipping, road transport and highways, on Saturday approved Rs 25.50 crore towards the redevelopment plan drawn up by the Mumbai Port Trust.
The proposed facelift is to match the strict standards of European Union where a variety of fish are exported from Sassoon Docks.
Constructed by David Sassoon, a Baghdadi Jew and the leader of the Jewish community of the then Bombay, this dock is one of the few in the city open to the public. Originally, the Sassoon family who built the dock were traders of cotton and so the dock was used to unload the commodity. However, after the decline of the Indian cotton industry, fishing became the main activity and since then, the dock has employed thousands from the Koli community, perhaps the oldest residents of the original Mumbai island.
Sassoon Docks is South Mumbai’s main fish loading and trading centre. The activity here starts as early as 5:00 am when the loading and unloading of the catch is done. It is the only port in Mumbai which operates 24x7 spread over three hectares.
According to the redevelopment plan, fishing activities will be restricted only to the new Sassoon dock area, while the old dock area will be used for outfitting of fishing boats and associated services. Currently, all activities are being carried out at the old dock area itself. Apart from this, as part of the plan, the existing open fish auction hall at the new dock area will be converted into a modern fish handling and auction hall. An ice plant and an ice crusher shed at the dock is also on the cards, as are rest rooms, a dormitory, a restaurant and a radio communication tower.
Currently, there are about 1,500 fishing vessels that use the 10-12 feet deep draught at the dock. Upon modernisation, however, a draught of 15 feet will be available as dredging is also part of the scope of work of this project.
Damodar Tandel, President, Akhil Maharashtra Machhimar Kruti Samiti, recalls that Sassoon Docks is quite close to his heart since his childhood. “My father, grandfather and myself used to go for fishing in small boats and used to auction our catch at the Sassoon Docks. I started fish trading in 1971 so did other members of the fishing community from Colaba and adjoining areas. From 300 trawlers in 1971, there are now 1,500 trawlers operating in Sassoon Docks and about 1,500 fisher folks are using the facility. Moreover, 150,000 persons from Colaba are dependent for their livelihood. It clocks a daily turnover Rs 2 crore of which fish catch worth Rs 1 crore is exported to various countries, while the balance is auctioned for domestic market.”
Welcoming Gadkari’s modernisation proposal, Tandel said there are other ports in Mumbai, which can be developed into tourist spots or marina. “Sassoon Docks deserves immediate modernisation for the benefit of fishing community, especially when they face huge challenge due to depleting fish population.”
The Mumbai Port Trust has already appointed Central Institute of Coastal Engineering for Fishery, Bangalore as the project management consultant to prepare a detailed technical report for this redevelopment plan. A timeline regarding the entire redevelopment plan was, however, not provided.
“Do not just look at the fishing activity for domestic trade purpose, but also start looking at this business from the export point of view,” Gadkari urged addressing the owners of the ships and members of the fishermen community who were present at the inauguration ceremony of the modernisation and development work at Sassoon. “There is a lot of potential in this (fishing) business if you look at it from the export perspective. This (exports of marine products) can bring in much higher financial stability to you and even the country will earn dollars,” Gadkari added.
Gadkari noted that 49 percent of the capital investment in the tourism industry is used to generate employment. “So, a boost for this dock from the tourism perspective will increase employment for the youngsters, which is the ultimate aim of the government.”
The redevelopment plan also envisages a Marine Food Park, sea food restaurant and an art gallery, which would be set up at a later stage. Pradeep Nakhva, president of Karanja Machhimar Society, hopes the face-lift will really transform Sassoon dock into a modern facility at the global level.
DEEPLY ANCHORED
- Sassoon Docks, one of Mumbai’s oldest docks built in 1875, is poised to get a new look
- Sassoon is readying itself for not just the necessary infrastructure that will modernise fishing activities carried out here
- The proposed face-lift is to match the strict standards of European Union where a variety of fish are exported from Sassoon Docks
- Originally, the Sassoon family who built the dock were traders of cotton and so the dock was used to unload the commodity
- Sassoon Docks is South Mumbai’s main fish loading and trading centre
