The Hindu : Kerala News : Airport set to become cargo hub

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Monday, Oct 13, 2008
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Kerala

Kerala

Airport set to become cargo hub

A Correspondent

Nedumbassery: The Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) is all set to become a major hub of international cargo movements with the proposed Centre for Perishable Cargo (CPC) slated for commissioning in November.

The project, with a floor area of over 20,000 sq.ft., has facilities like temperature and humidity controls required for different types of perishable cargo including vegetables, fruits and flowers.

For non-vegetarian items, three separate cold storages with a total of capacity of 30 tonnes is also in the offing, that can also be used by airlines for preserving food items in case of flight delays or similar situations.

“Efforts are on to attract freighter craft and we are in consultation with passenger aircraft operators too.

A roundtable conference in this regard with the customer airlines will be held next month and we hope that with this CPC, the first of its kind in Kerala, we can become a major hub of international cargo movements”, said C.G. Krishnadas Nair, the managing director, Cochin airport.

“Initially, we plan to operate one freighter per week and even this can make a substantial difference. Later on, we will improvise on that to operate one freighter liner a day. The centre, also approved by the Kerala Horticulture Corporation, will certainly give a boost to the export of Kerala’s products”, he said.

Official records show that during last year, about one lakh bunches of banana was exported by the CIAL in association with the block panchayat. And this year too, efforts are on to keep the momentum by even doubling the exports and to augment the earnings by a much higher margin by using the additional CPC facility. Further, the brand name ‘CIAL’ is expected to provide the much-needed fillip to the local farming community to market their products more effectively abroad. “When the CPC becomes fully operational, we expect to reach consumers abroad, from the farmland to the kitchen of the consumer. Thus, the farmers may eventually obtain a better price by supplying items with their freshness intact.

Hence, this can be treated basically a farmer-friendly initiative”, says George Koshy, officer on special duty in the cargo wing.

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