Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has promised to begin work on the multi-purpose deepwater port at Vizhinjam during the tenure of his government.
Addressing the gathering after inaugurating a seminar on ‘District Development: Propaganda and Reality’ held as part of the birth anniversary celebrations of Pattom A. Thanu Pillai, he said the government was pursuing all the schemes planned for city development in a time-bound manner.
The Chief Minister said the prospects of the Vizhinjam port project had brightened after the preparation of the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) report. The government would begin work on the project before its term ended, he said.
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He said the government was also pursuing road works pertaining to the capital city, expansion of railway and airport. The government had recently held a meeting with Railway officials to develop the Kazhakuttom railway station, he said.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister for Ports K. Babu said the government did not perceive any hurdle in getting environment clearance for the deepwater port at Vizhinjam. The chances of getting the clearance of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) had improved after the Coast Guard and the Navy expressed their interest in establishing units at the proposed port, he said.
Defence Minister A.K. Antony had informed the State government about the interest evinced by the Coast Guard and Navy in setting up their units.
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Besides preparing the EIA report, the government had so far acquired 87 acres of land for the port project. It had provided compensation to 46 families whose land was acquired. The site-specific study was also conducted, he said.
On the allegation that the UDF government had changed the pattern to be adopted in developing the port, he said as planned earlier it would be developed on the Landlord Model, he said.