Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) Chairman and Managing Director Rajesh Tripathi has promised to complete channel dredging work undertaken by it in Puducherry by May.
After inspecting the progress of work, he advised the DCI officials on how to move forward. He also met the Chief Minister of Puducherry and other officials from the Port Department. The critical work of about 50 metres dredging is likely to be completed within a week to enable fishing boats to ply smoothly.
As per direction of the Port Authority, DCI and its staff are putting their best efforts to ensure that the 25m broad channel is first opened to the fishing and commercial traffic and then concentrate on the remaining part of the channel to bring them to the desired levels.
DCI is confident of completing work by May. It launched the work on January 13 to dredge the common entrance channel to the commercial and fishing harbours by dredging it approximately 600 m long, 100 m wide and 5 m deep. A total of three lakh cubic metres of sand is required to be dredged within 120 days. A new inland cutter suction dredger ID Ganga has been mobilised for this work.
