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Include Puducherry port in `Sagar Mala' project: Valsaraj

Special Correspondent

Minister wants Centre to declare Puducherry a `free port'

Puducherry: Puducherry Health and Labour Minister E.Valsaraj, who is also in-charge of `Ports,' wants the Puducherry port included for development in the `Sagar Mala' project and Puducherry declared a `free port.'

Concessional agreement

Addressing the 8th meeting of the Maritime States Development Council held at Kochi on Friday, Mr. Valsaraj sought budgetary support and expeditious statutory clearances for development of the ports in the Union Territory. He told the meeting that the Union Territory Administration had entered into a concessional agreement with a private developer for development of Puducherry port, which would take place in four phases and was likely to be completed by 2013. The project would have deep-water port, cargo berthing capacities, liquid cargo terminal and container berthing facilities.

The first phase of the port development would have the general cargo berth at a capacity of 6 lakh tonnes and in the second phase it would be able to handle 8 million tonnes of bulk coal and iron ore. The entire development project would be made at an estimated cost of Rs. 1,867 crore and the developer would pay 2.6 per cent per annum of the income as concession fees to the Puducherry Government besides the amount of lease of the land.

Similarly, the Karaikal port would be developed through private investment and it would be in three phases with berthing facilities for container and liquid cargo. It was expected to handle 9.7 million tonnes per annum. The first phase of the project was to cost Rs. 350 crore.

He told the meeting that with the clearance of the Union Shipping Minister, the administration had taken steps for development of the two ports through private-public partnership on `Build Operate and Transfer' basis.

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