The Kerala Maritime Board (KMB), the nodal agency for all maritime-related activities in Kerala, is pulling out all stops to woo investment for the development of port infrastructure in the State which has a 590-km long coastline with 17 minor and intermediate ports.
The State has the scope for developing coastal shipping as an alternative in order to divert goods traffic from congested roads. N.S. Pillai, who took over as chairman of the KMB, said the board will be taking a slew of measures to develop coastal shipping.
“Crew exchange will soon be a reality in the Kollam port as the work on setting up six Immigration Check Points (ICP) is expected to be completed in two weeks. Once the furnishing works are completed, the board will request the Customs to deploy the staff required for facilitating immigration activities,” said Mr. Pillai.
Though the Ministry of Home Affairs had instructed the State government to arrange the physical and electronic infrastructure required for the ICP in June 2020, the work got delayed due to various reasons.
Further, the board has plans to bring investment to develop the Beypore port. Dredging would be the main work the board is expected to take up soon at the port where ships are currently able to dock only during high tide. By taking up dredging works, this can be solved, said Mr. Pillai.
According to Kerala Exporters’ forum secretary Munshid Ali, the lack of planned dredging has resulted in forced idle time of ships at the port. Ships can make only a one-round voyage to Beypore from Kochi in a week and they idle for about 112 hours in a week. This can be addressed by taking up complete dredging in a time-bound manner. This will enable ships, especially mainline vessels, to make more voyages, said Mr. Ali.
The recent online investors’ meet had also explored the possibility of setting up a full-fledged ship breaking and repairing units at Beypore. The KMB also has plans to develop the Kerala Maritime Institute as a maritime university or a centre of other maritime universities to offer various courses in the field. Developing it as a centre of excellence will allow the State to impart training for its youth in Kerala itself, added Mr. Pillai.
