Union Shipping Minister G.K. Vasan on Tuesday slammed Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal for taking to the streets demanding action against police officials who refused to carry out a raid on an alleged drug and prostitution racket in South Delhi.
Addressing reporters on the sidelines of a function to mark the signing of an MoU between the Ennore Port and Ford India on export of cars, Mr. Vasan said the manner of the protests were not only unbecoming of a Chief Minister but also served to set a wrong precedent.
Asked whether the Congress (I) would now reconsider its support to the AAP in the Delhi Government, Mr. Vasan said "that was for the high command to decide".
On the deferred talks between fishermen associations of India and Sri Lanka, Mr. Vasan urged everyone to put politics aside and work for a constructive outcome.
The Minister also said school children would soon be allowed to visit the 12 major ports in the country following the success of a pilot project in Mumbai. He also directed Port officials in Chennai to consider allowing guided tours for school children free of cost.
Referring to the recently unveiled land policy guidelines for major ports, aimed at helping them leverage land assets for earning revenue, Mr. Vasan said he expected all the 12 major ports to register substantial profits through this move in two years.
For the port sector, the Maritime Agenda which was the vision document of the Shipping Ministry, envisaged capacity creation to handle around 3,200 million tonnes and attract investments to the tune of Rs. 2,87,000 crore by 2020, Mr. Vasan said.
