The Hindu Business Line : Kerala submits proposal for shipyard at Poovar

At a glance
The Shipping Ministry wants a viable location for a shipyard on the West Coast.
The Mumbai Port Trust has been nominated as nodal agency to help set up a shipyard on the West Coast.

Our Bureau

Kochi, March 3 The Kerala Government has submitted a proposal before the Union Shipping Ministry to set up a world class shipyard at Poovar in Thiruvananthapuram district on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border.

The proposal was submitted based on the directive from the Ministry to submit a viable location for a shipyard on the West Coast, Mr M. Vijayakumar, State Minister for Ports, said. He said that the Ministry had asked the State to identify a suitable area that would provide a water front of 2.5 km in length and with a depth of at least 12 metres.

Suitable area

According to the Minister, it was only in the Vizhinjam-Poovar area could the prescribed depth be found. He said that the depth of the waters along this stretch varied from 12 metres to 22 metres in some places.

The Union Government had also informed that about 1,000 acres of suitable land should be identified for building the shipyard, he said, adding that a preliminary examination had shown that the land would be available in the area.

Mr Vijayakumar pointed out the area is easily accessible by rail, as the Kanyakumari-Thiruvananthapuram broad gauge railway line is passing less than 10 km away. Moreover, the upcoming port at Vizhinjam, which is about 10 km from the proposed site, can be used for the shipment of all the material required for the development and functioning of the shipyard.

New role

Meanwhile, it was pointed out that the Mumbai Port Trust has been nominated to function as the nodal agency, which will help set up an international size shipyard on the West Coast. It has been decided in the Ministry that the nodal agency may take a holistic approach in suggesting suitable locations for the shipyards. It has also been decided that consultants may be appointed by the agency to identify alternative sites.

A tender inviting offer for appointment of consultants was advertised by the Mumbai Port Trust last month.