The Hindu Business Line : NMPT marshals rail infrastructure

Apart from upgrading the railway lines within its premises to be able to handle the expected higher cargo volumes, the Mangalore port is also providing land on lease to some of its users to lay their own lines from the port to their plants.

IN EXPECTATION of the completion of the Hassan-Mangalore rail line by December, the New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT) has begun upgrading the railway infrastructure on the port premises to meet the growing transport needs.. New Mangalore Port — which has been witnessing rapid growth in cargo handling volumes the past few years — expects an increase in the rail-bound cargo with the commissioning of the Hassan-Mangalore rail line.

In this regard, the NMPT plans to make full use of 80 acres of land at the railway marshalling yard on its premises. The infrastructure at the yard is being upgraded at the cost of Rs 6 crore and includes five rail lines and three platforms; three of the lines will be used for cargo transportation from and to the port and two as engine escape lines.

Much of the work on upgrading the railway infrastructure has been completed and port officials hope to complete the remaining work by end-December.

NMPT's move assumes significance at a time when the port is handling bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal and fertilisers. The port handled 3.58 million tonnes of iron ore fines and lumps in the first half of this fiscal against 2.13 million tonnes in the corresponding previous period. Much of the iron ore was brought in by road from mines in the Bellary-Hospet region. After the commissioning of the Hassan-Mangalore rail line, the iron ore cargo volumes are likely to go up, as transportation by railway is cheaper than by road.

The New Mangalore Port, which has constructed a deep-draught multi-purpose berth to handle the increasing volumes of bulk cargo, is setting up a mechanised iron-ore handling facility at the berth at an estimated cost of Rs 103 crore. Iron-ore for this facility will have to be transported from the marshalling yard.

The port is handling cargoes such as edible oil, wooden logs and fertilisers through the yard and hopes to handle around three million tonnes through the rail lines at the marshalling yard.

Apart from upgrading its rail lines, the NMPT is also providing land on lease to some of the users to lay their own lines at the marshalling yard. Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd (KIOCL), one of the major exporters of iron ore pellets, plans to set up its own rail lines at the marshalling yard.

According to KIOCL sources, the company has been allotted around 47,500 sq m of land on a five-year lease in the marshalling yard to lay rail lines for its use. The company wants to commission four lines at a cost of Rs 9.75 crore. Of the four, two will be unloading lines, one overflow and the last an engine escape line. Initial work, such as land-levelling, has begun.

It may be mentioned here that the Supreme Court has directed KIOCL not to mine at Kudremukh in Chikmagalur district of Karnataka after December 31, 2005. According to sources, the company has entered into an agreement with National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) to bring ore from the latter's mines in the Bellary region. KIOCL used the closed conveyor system to transport ore from Kudremukh to New Mangalore and the railway network to carry ore from the Bellary region to New Mangalore.

In such a situation, rail lines at the marshalling yard will help the company unload ore at the port. Sources say that the company wants to handle around four million tonnes of iron ore a year through its agreement with NMDC.

It is also said that Nagarjuna Power Corporation Ltd (NPCL) has sought land on lease at the yard to lay rail lines to transport coal from the port to its plant at Padubidri — around 50 km from Mangalore — in Udupi district.

NPCL officials say that the receipt of coal by ships and transporting it from New Mangalore Port to the plant at Padubidri will be critical for the project.

Premier Consultants and RITES (Rail India Technical and Economic Services), which studied various alternative routes, have finalised a system by which the coal will be received at the port and transported to the plant by the railway system.

The fully operational NPCL plant will guarantee the port three million tonnes of coal cargo every year.

The company, according to the officials, has also requested the port authorities to allot a dedicated jetty for coal handling.

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