The Hindu Business Line : Kanika Sands — creating a gulf between two States

What first appeared to be a bone of contention between two port organisations, the Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT) and Dhamra Port Company (DPC), has become a matter of controversy between two State governments, that of Orissa and West Bengal. And at the heart of the dispute is Kanika Sands — an uninhabited mangrove island. We have had two nations staking claim to one island. But having two States warring over an unoccupied island is perhaps a first.

Expressions of interest

It all started about two years ago when the KoPT invited Expressions of Interest for undertaking lighterage operations in Kanika Sands. The scheme was in national interest, particularly the entire eastern region and not merely to benefit Kolkata port, argued the KoPT authorities. Their stand was that the operations at Kanika Sands could supplement the current seasonal operation at the Sandheads, where the available draft being 50 metres large tankers discharge crude oil into smaller daughter vessels during the dry season. If a similar lighterage operation of bulk items was undertaken at Kanika Sands, the eastern region would be able to handle large-size vessels, both tankers and bulk carriers, as they could not be handled in any other port. Such a move would help the country make the most of a natural advantage, they maintained.

DPC, Orissa reservations

But not everybody was convinced of the rationale of the KoPT argument. Certainly not the management of DPC, a Tata Steel-L&T joint venture responsible for the implementation of a bulk cargo handling port project at Dhamra, which is located not far from Kanika Sands. How can there be another port operation in the vicinity, it wondered. A potential threat? Perhaps yes. The Orissa Government too shared DPC’s concern. How can Kolkata port undertake operations in an island located within the coastal limits of Orissa, it asked.

The matter went to the Centre. The Shipping Ministry constituted a committee comprising the Chief Secretaries of the two States and the Chairman of KoPT, among others, to resolve the issue. Not with much success, though.

Not a single meeting of the committee has been held so far. The reason: The Orissa Government strongly felt that there was no need for such a committee as there was nothing much to discuss. Kanika Sands was part of Orissa and, therefore, the State Government must be approached first for undertaking any operation in that island and the approval would be on the merit of the case. The subject was not negotiable and there could be no discussion on it; the matter was settled once for all. The dispute over sea boundaries, it was felt, could arise if Kanika Sands was adjacent to West Bengal. But that was not so. The island was far away from the Bengal coast, separated bymore than 100 km, it was pointed out.

Other aspects to issue

There are other questions too. Each State perhaps can claim certain economic rights over the portion of the sea along its coastline. Can Kandla port authorities start handling cargo on the Andhra Pradesh coast on their own? Perhaps not. For any such venture, they would first have to approach the Andhra Pradesh Government. However, no such thing was done by the KoPT before inviting EoIs, was the complaint.

Under the Indian Ports Act, the limits of major ports are fixed by the Union Government and those of minor ports by the State governments. Accordingly, the Orissa Government has delineated the limits of several small ports proposed in the State and Kanika Sands would come under the limit of Bahubal minor port to be developed by the State government.

The Orissa Government has other reasons to take a firm stand on the issue. It has signed a concession agreement with Dhamra port on the assumption that within a certain radius there would be no other commercial port operation till Dhamra port reached saturation point. Which means undertaking any cargo handling operation in Kanika Sands, which falls within the stipulated radius, would violate the provisions of the concession agreement.

For the Orissa Government, the debate over Kanika Sands is a closed chapter. Not so for the KoPT, it appears. While briefing newspersons recently, the KoPT chairman projected the creation of an additional 33 million tonnes of cargo handling capacity in the Eleventh Plan, indicating that a part of it would be on account of the proposed transloading/lighterage operation at Kanika Sands.

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