Comments
Jaganmohan Reddy-led Andhra Pradesh government has initiated the first step to build a Rs 10,000 crore greenfield port at Ramayapatnam in the state’s Prakasam district as a non-major port, a location which the Central government is also “examining” to develop as a major port.
The state government, through RITES Ltd, has filed an application with the expert appraisal committee (EAC) attached to ministry of environment forest and climate change, to set the ball rolling on the terms of reference for environment and coastal regulation zone clearances for the project.
“The government of Andhra Pradesh is proposing to develop a green field port at Ramayapatnam in Andhra Pradesh to meet the ever-increasing cargo demand in the state. It is proposed to be developed as a non-major state port at Ramayapatnam along Andhra coast,” according to the application filed with the EAC.
Also read: Andhra Pradesh ports steering growth
“It is planned to develop the port as all-weather port with world class terminal facilities well suited to meet the present and future needs of the trade,” RITES wrote in the application, a copy of which has been reviewed by BusinessLine .
On Monday, shipping minister Mansukh Mandaviya told Parliament that the Central government has set up a committee to examine the development of a new major port at Ramayapatnam and is looking into the draft report submitted by the said panel.
Ramayapatnam will now be the focus of a bargain between the centre and the state government on developing the new port to replace the site earlier identified at Dugarajapatnam in Nellore district as part of a deal when the state was sliced into two.
Citing viability concerns, the Centre dropped Dugarajapatnam as a preferred location. The new port was to be set up as a central government-owned port/major port under the Companies Act with equity participation of 74 per cent from the central government through Visakhapatnam Port Trust and 26 per cent from the Andhra Pradesh government.
“The development of a new port at Dugarajapatnam was examined by NITI Aayog, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Finance and Government of Andhra Pradesh and it has been concluded that the project will not be viable due to strong competition from nearby ports of Krishnapatnam, Ennore and Chennai,” a shipping ministry official said.
By taking the lead to secure environment and CRZ clearances for the Ramayapatnam site, the state government has signalled its intentions to build the new port as a private port through the public private partnership (PPP) mode without the backing of the Centre, the shipping ministry official. Ends/
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.