The Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the proposed seaport in the southwestern tip of Tamil Nadu that entails an investment of over Rs.27,500 crore will be ready in two to three months, said Union Minister Pon. Radhakrishnan.
“The work on preparing the DPR is on. The pre-feasibility report was done by Spanish firm Typsa group and it suggests growth prospects for southern districts. The port will have the capacity to handle eight million twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) of container per annum,” Mr. Radhakrishnan, Union Minister of State for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping told The Hindu .
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday gave its nod for development of the port at Enayam. A special purpose vehicle will be created for this purpose in which Chennai Port, Kamarajar Port and V.O. Chidambaranar Port will be chipping in by way of equities.
It is one of the major projects to be announced under the ambitious Sagarmala initiative, which calls for enhancing the capacities of major and minor ports as well as developing infrastructure along the coastline.
“The port will be developed in three phases, with the investment in the first phase being Rs.6,575 crore, followed by Rs.11,536 crore and Rs.9,457 crore respectively. The equity investment of the three ports is yet to be finalised,” he said.
“It will promote good growth of all the districts in and around Madurai. We expect industries from Coimbatore, Tirupur and Karur districts to use Colachel Port, instead of Cochin Port, V.O.C Port and Chennai Port. There is no development at Nanguneri Special Economic Zone (SEZ), which was proposed by the Vajpayee government. With the rollout of this project, it would also take off. We expect this port to offer direct employment to 2,000 people and indirect employment to over 50,000 people,” he said.
On the opposition to this mega project, he said that it was ‘politically motivated’ to get votes in the Assembly polls. “Any development project will face obstacles. We will try to complete this project by explaining about the benefits to all.”
It will have capacity to handle eight million twenty foot equivalent units of container per annum
