ICTT(International container transshipment Terminal, Vallarpadam), Kochi
Geography
Vallarpadam is situated in kochi next to the Bolghatty Island and linked to Kochi by the Goshree bridges. It is about 3.5 kilometers in length .It has a population of 15000.
Vallarpadam and the nearby island 'Puthuvypeen' holds great development potential because of its proximity to the international east-west trade route between Asia and Europe.
Vallarpadam is a part of the existing Cochin port. The Cochin port became a major port under the Major Port Trust Act 1963 and now has crude handling facilitates, containerization of cargo and electronic data interchange facilities, which have put Cochin in the front as far as port development in the country is concerned. The Cochin port has unique geographical advantages as it is near to international sea trade routes which connects Europe and the Gulf to South East Asia and the Far East.
Vallarpadam Container Terminal Project (VCTP) will be a unique project in infrastructure, especially to boost containerization in India. VCTP was
inaugurated by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on February 16, 2005. While inaugurating VCTP, Dr. Manmohan Singh said, "The project would be a role model for private-public partnership, blending efficiently private sector managerial efficiency and marketing acumen with public sector capital and infrastructure planning."
The future
VCTP will be India's first ever International Container Trans-shipment Terminal (ICTT).India will be come to top post in maritime trading after the completion of this project.A detailed study of VCTP was done by Frederic R Harris, the Dutch Consultants and the total establishment cost of VCTP has been estimated at Rs. 2,118 cr. Dubai Ports International (DPI) has emerged as the successful bidder for developing and operating the project on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis for 30 years by quoting the highest revenue share of 33.30% to the Port Trust and the project is expected to be completed by 2009.
other facts
IN A bid to expedite a favourable decision from the Union Government for the proposed international container transhipment terminal at Vallarpadam, all interested groups in and around Kochi have decided to launch a `mass movement' for the speedy implementation of the project, which has been delayed for the past two decades.A meeting, on the initiative of the Kerala Chamber of Commerce and Industry, was held in Kochi recently to garner support from all sections against what they called the Shipping Ministry's neglect of the Kochi Port, which is closest to the East-West sea lane than any other port in India. Trade interests, trade unions, and leaders of political parties attended the meeting where it was pointed out that the Vallarpadam project remained in limbo, even after two studies by the Dutch consultants Frederick R Harris in 1990 and 1998 had established its feasibility.
It was noted that entrenched transnational interests and inadequate public support spiked two earlier attempts to set up the terminal.
The meeting also decided to support the Kochi port management's decision to upgrade the Rajiv Gandhi Container Terminal by retaining it under the Port Trust, and develop the Vallarpadam terminal by exploring otheroptions, including public-private partnership.
Meanwhile, the Combined Forum of Trade Unions at the port, under the banner Kochi Port Protection Committee, has decided to convene a meeting in New Delhi to make the Vallarpadam project a reality.
Informed sources at the Kochi port told Business Line that workers, trade interests and people of Kerala expect support from both the Central and State government to retain Kochi as a major port, which is possible only if it is allowed to set up an international container transhipment terminal (ICTT).
It is in this circumstance that a decision was taken to organise a meeting in New Delhi to get a speedy sanction for the project. The meeting, planned for December, will involve Union ministers, senior bureaucrats, trade union leaders and various trade bodies.
The need of the hour is to go in for a fresh initiative by exploring all options including the formation of a Special Purpose Vehicle with private public-private partnership on the lines of the Cochin International Airport Authority.
Political support in the form of necessary approvals by the Union Government is crucial to implement the decision of the port to develop a world-class container terminal at Kochi, the sources said.
In this context, the Kerala Government's plans to set up a transhipment terminal at Vizhinjam does not augur well for the Vallarpadam plan. The sources pointed out that the shipping industry as well as the bidders had raised fears of projection of Vizhinjam as a CTT by the State Government. As there is no scope for developing two CTTs so close to each other, the Kochi port has requested the State Government to avoid publicising Vizhinjam as a transhipment port at least till the bid by Vallarpadam is finalised.
Kochi's proximity to the East-West sea lane gives it an edge over other Indian ports. In the absence of a major container transhipment hub in India, about two-thirds of containers originating or destined to Indian ports are transhipped at Colombo.
Among the major projects that have been cleared are the Kochi Refineries (KRL) expansion programme (Rs 2,600 crore) and the National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) project (Rs 1,850 crore).Upon the completion of the Rs 2,100 crore project, ICTT will have facilities to handle three million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) and vessels up to a size of 8,000 TEU.
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