Container Corporation of India (Concor) has acquired on lease a cold storage from Siliguri-Jalpaiguri Development Authority under the West Bengal Government.
Located at Bagdogra near Siliguri in northern part of West Bengal, the cold storage has the capacity of 20 tonnes.
The acquisition, together with a smaller transit cold storage near New Jalpaiguri railway station, it is hoped, will facilitate the despatch of perishables not only from northern part of West Bengal but also the north eastern states.
expressions of interest
Concor, which is exploring the market, is believed to have floated EoIs (expressions of interest) for entering into business partnerships with private firms.
“Siliguri being the gateway to hilly regions of northern West Bengal including Sikkim and Bhutan and north eastern region, we hope to get fruits and vegetables produced in the region such as pineapples in Meghalaya, ginger in Sikkim and cut-flowers and various other products in the other States”, according to a spokesman for Concor in the east.
“Some States in the region have already started showing interest in it”.
Singur storage
Meanwhile, Concor's Singur cold storage in Hooghly district in West Bengal too is all geared to start operation soon, it is pointed.
Built at a cost of Rs 4 crore, the cold storage will have a capacity of 1,500 tonnes, comprising three chambers of 500 tonnes each. “Singur being located in the prime potato growing area of the State, the cold storage will primarily target potato crop though other agro-products, including fruits and vegetables, too could be stored in it”, the spokesman says.
It might be noted that Concor of late has been paying a good deal of attention to development of cold chain. It would like to replicate throughout the country the story of Fresh & Healthy, a cold chain in Sonepat in Punjab which has proved to be a big success.
It is also entering into partnerships with Central Warehousing Corporation and others for developing cold chain infrastructure throughout the country.