The ambitious National Maritime Development Programme (NMDP) of the ministry of shipping, flagged off in 2005 with an objective to improve port infrastructure and capacity in the country, is bound to fall short of the targets set, by a significant margin.
As many as 387 projects were to be implemented at a cost of Rs 90,000 crore across major ports by FY2011-12, but as on December 31, 2009 only 70 projects have been implemented at a total investment of Rs 16,440 crore. Between January and March this year, two more projects worth Rs 170 crore were completed and four projects worth Rs 600 crore were approved and are currently under implementation.
With such a slow implentation of projects, Indian ports, that are already operating at 90% of their capacity and have an average turnaround time of 3.87 days compared to just 10 hours for Hong Kong, will continue to face difficulties in efficiently handling cargo. ?The delays are largely due to slower approvals and a change in government at the centre. At the time of listing of these projects no one really enquired about the viability of these projects,? said a senior official from one of the major ports in India. These projects are related to port development (construction of jetties and berths), procurement, replacement or upgrades of port equipment, deepening of channels to improve draught, and projects related to port connectivity, amongst others. ?Several projects being implemented are behind schedule, largely due to the slow response to the model concession agreement (MCA) and delays in approvals, as well as tendering and contract procedures,? said V Sushi Shyamal, partner, transaction advisory services, Ernst & Young.
With NMDP already on a slow track, the ministry of shipping is now planning to implement the new perspective plan (NPP) for the country?s maritime sector up to the year 2020, for which it has constituted a sub-group as well as a core working group. The NPP will include a policy framework to enhance the capacity and productivity of India?s maritime sector. This will include supplementary projects for port development from other infrastructure agencies such as NHAI, the county?s road, railway and inland waterways, dredging mechanisation and modernisation plans for both major and non-major ports.
However, the country will reach a port capacity of about one billion tonne by the end of FY11 if major and non-major ports in India are taken together.
?After participation of the private sector, the projects have been steady. As on August this year, 24 private public partnership (PPP) projects with an investment of about Rs 6,480 crore have become operational at major ports and 16 PPP (public private partnership) projects entailing an investment of about Rs 10,370 crore were under implementation,? a senior port official said.
Under PPP, the MoS plans to launch 24 capacity expansion projects at major ports entailing an investment of about Rs 16,480 crore by FY11. Also, with avid interest from small and medium business (SMBs) towards investing in non-major ports, 24 greenfield port projects are expected to be commissioned between 2016 and 2025.