The Trinamool Congress (TMC) will go on an overdrive to save Haldia port, under Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT), and ensure it doesn?t turn into a minor port.
Faced with rising maintenance costs over dredging and other issues, the Union shipping ministry was considering a proposal to turn Haldia into a barge port on ex-minister TR Baalu?s (DMK) orders. But things have changed with Mamata Banerjee loyalist Mukul Roy becoming the new minister of state for shipping. Days after taking charge, he has put Haldia on the fast track, already meeting experts, dock officials and locals on how to save the port.
?The Centre will give due attention to save the ports at Kolkata and Haldia,? Roy told FE. ?We are seriously trying to find out ways of preventing the country?s fourth largest port from turning into a barge port.?
Roy has asked Subhendu Adhikary, the new MP from Tamluk, under whose jurisdiction falls Haldia, to be in touch with KoPT authorities so that the issues of Kolkata and Haldia ports are properly addressed at the Centre.
Adhikary said now that the TMC is in power at the Centre and ?the shipping ministry is with us, we will by no means allow the KoPT to go to the dogs.
?Much of Bengal?s as well as eastern India?s economy depends on this port but the CPM-ruled state government here has not been active to save the existing dock systems under the KoPT,? Adhikary alleged. In fact, the Bengal government has been pushing for a private port at Kulpi and this would have diverted a chunk of the Kolkata Dock System?s container cargo to the new port. ?The problems of Kolkata and Haldia ports are complex and I understand there are various expert opinions about ways of saving the port,? Roy said.
But that he is serious about resolving the issue once and for all is apparent from the fact that he had asked KoPT authorities to prepare a status paper on the port immediately after assuming office and is currently scrutinising the report.
According to ministry officials, although the ministry has given the go-ahead to create barge infrastructure in Haldia, KoPT?s main arm handling 85% of its total cargo, there are legal implications that prevents turning KoPT from a major to a minor port. The 12 major ports came into being under the Major Port Trust Act of 1963.
Haldia handled 41.5 million tonne of cargo in 2008-09 as against 43.5 mt in 2007-08.Roy said KoPT has its own set of experts to recommend about various aspects related to the port?s functioning. ?I will first try to gather them all and then look into means of solving the problems,? Roy said.
While a group of experts have already pitched for two new dock systems at Shalukhali and Diamond Harbour (costing Rs 1,250 cr) depending on the high draughted Rangafala channel (8.5mts), another group of KoPT experts are betting on a new channel, just beside Auckland channel, detected through satellite imaging in November 2007.
There is a third opinion of cutting a silt bar named Balari through capital dredging estimated to cost around Rs 936 crore because this bar actually obstructs the flow of water to Auckland channel for which the entire port faces draught conditions. For this proposed capital dredging, KoPT would require 2,500 acre in Nandigram for offshore disposal of the silt, but land acquisition is posing a serious threat.
KoPT chairman Anup Chanda earlier told FE that of the three proposed ways to save the HDC, opening the new channel seems to be the most viable option.
Officials of the KoPT?s hydraulic study department said a track survey of the new channel has already been made to know the character of the riverbed and its water flow. It has been found that the channel is absolutely fit for navigation with all time depth availability of 6 metre and draught availability of 10-11 metre.
The hydraulic study department will make a presentation on the new channel to Roy, who is likely to visit Haldia this week.