According to official sources here, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has secured an assurance from Shipping Minister G K Vasan on this matter during their meeting in New Delhi yesterday.
The Cabotage law, as it exists now, poses restrictions on foreign vessels carrying cargo to Indian ports after receiving them from mother ships that arrive at container terminals.
There had been complaints that the Vallapradam ICTT could not utilise its full potential due to this restriction and the state had been pressing for relaxation to make the project viable and profitable.
Vallarpadam ICTT, inaugurated 18 months back, is touted as a major project of Kerala.
Kerala is also keen to have the cabotage law relaxed as it would boost the prospects of the proposed Rs 4,000 crore Vizhinjam Transshipment Project in South Kerala.
The state government had last week decided to float fresh tenders for choosing an operator for the project after earlier bid with a consortium led by a leading infrastructure company running into rought weather.
