The Hindu Business Line : Task Force to check congestion at JNPT, Nhava Sheva terminals

THE Standing Committee for Promotion of Exports, headed by the Additional Secretary to the Commerce Ministry, Mr G.K. Pillai, has decided to set up a high-level Task Force to go into the contentious issue of congestion that has been dogging the JNPT container terminal and the P&O-run Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal (NSICT) for the last several months now.

The decision was taken after some representatives of the trade, led by the Western India Shippers Association (WISA), raised the issue of congestion at Jawaharlal Nehru port at the recent SCOPE meeting in Mumbai. It was pointed out that the congestion problem had severely affected the exporters and importers.

Informed sources told Business Line that the Task Force, which will comprise members from the Ministries of Shipping and Commerce, JNPT, NSICT, shippers bodies, Concor, Railways and other related agencies, will have to submit its report within a month. The Task Force is also expected to come out with short-term and long-term solutions to pre-empt the congestion problem in the future.

Mr S.R.L. Narsimham, secretary of WISA, felt that the scope for Task Force report should also include the Vision 2020 of JNPT, which envisaged a projected throughput of 7.3 million TEUs by 2019-2020 by building the fourth and fifth container terminals. "The report should consider the projected backend linkages, like storage areas, road/rail linkages, cargo evacuation requirements and availability of adequate rakes to clear the boxes out of the port," he told Business Line.

Following another suggestion, SCOPE suggested that the Customs should immediately issue orders for allowing shipping lines to remove the import containers lying inside the port for transportation by road against their existing bonds without insisting on bank guarantees. Further, it was suggested that Concor should prepare a "crash programme" to remove the imported containers inside the port within a month.

Another suggestion that was put forth by WISA at the meeting envisages constitution of a legal authority on the lines of the Federal Maritime Commission of the USA. "The existing concession agreements do not provide for any intervention by the Government, especially in the matter of labour disputes and other operational issues," Mr Narsimham said.

The representatives of the Shipping Ministry at the meeting requested the trade to send suitable suggestions regarding the accountability of the service providers for consideration while finalising the draft Maritime Policy.

According to sources, the authorities at the meeting accepted another suggestion made by the trade that digital signature certificate issued by any of the licensed agencies will be accepted by all the concerned departments where on-line filing of applications and documents are required. Suitable clarifications will be issued to the Government in this regard soon, the sources said.