Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) has drawn up plans to increase its capacity to handle container traffic of 10 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) by 2016-17 from 4 million TEUs, said Union Shipping Minister G. K. Vasan.
“The port needs to keep on evolving in the face of prevailing economic uncertainties as well as future expansion of trade if it wants to remain a cut above the rest,” Mr. Vasan said at a function organised to mark the silver jubilee of JNPT in Mumbai.
The Minister of State for Shipping, Milind Deora, said reforming the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) would create a level playing field and enable port capacity to be increased at a quicker pace with significantly improved efficiency and quality levels.
JNPT was commissioned in 1989 to decongest Mumbai city and the Mumbai Port Trust. Today, JNPT handles more than 60 per cent of India’s container cargo. During the current fiscal, the government has announced plans to award 30 port projects to increase capacity by 282 mtpa with a total investment of Rs.25,000 crore.
