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Mony K. Mathew

Thiruvananthapuram, June 8 The proposals for the development of Beypore and Azhikkal ports in Kerala, which had suffered many hiccups and were kept aside after first mooted more than a decade ago, have got a fresh lease of life with the State Cabinet approving the appointment of consultants for the projects.

The Cabinet has given the go-ahead for the appointment of Consulting Engineers Private Ltd as the consultant for Beypore port and Deloitte India Ltd for the Azhikkal port. The ports are proposed to be developed through public-private partnership (PPP). Both the development proposals have seen ups and downs over the years and at one stage even developers had been identified for implementing the projects. In the case of Beypore port, a company called Mobil-Peevees had commenced preliminary works before it pulled out for various reasons.

The development of Beypore port, the second biggest port in Kerala after Kochi, is reckoned as important for the economic development of the State, especially of the Malabar area. It is an estuarine port and currently handles 1 lakh tonnes of cargo annually and its nearest competitors are Kochi and Mangalore ports.

The hinterland of Beypore port comprises Kozhikode, Wayanad, Malappuarm, Kannur and Palakkad districts in the State as also major cities like Mysore, Bangalore and Coimbatore in the neighbouring States. At present, the port has two wharves and other facilities such as storage sheds and cranes.

The Azhikkal port, near Kannur, has been identified by the Centre for developing coastal shipping under National Maritime Development Programme (NMDP). A detailed report on the project had earlier been prepared by ICICI-Kinfra and the consultant will be required to review the report and effect suitable changes to integrate the port with NMDP. The port is to be developed in modules in a phased manner to include berths for containers, general cargo and petroleum carriers.

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