Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) has said that it expects the cargo handling capacity of its ports in the state to reach 323 million tonnes (mt) by this fiscal end.
“By the end of current fiscal year, the cargo handling capacity of the ports here is projected to be 323 mt. It is envisaged that by 2015-16, GMB ports will be handling more than 500 mt, and over 1,000 mt by 2020,” GMB Vice-Chairman and CEO, Mr Pankaj Kumar, said today.
“The proactive measures taken by the government have ensured that natural advantages are not wasted. This has helped Gujarat to become the number one maritime state in the country,” he said.
The consolidated cargo handling of GMB ports at the end of third quarter (April-December 2011) stood at 193.18 mt against 169.95 mt in the corresponding period a year ago, showing a growth of 13.66 per cent.
In the last one decade, the capacity of GMB run ports has more than doubled from 135 mt to 284 mt at the end of 2010-11, an official statement said.
Cargo traffic
Cargo traffic has increased in ports like Magdalla/Hazira, Bedi, Dahej, Sikka, Mundra etc. Traffic at Magdalla/Hazira port increased to 16.40 mt up to December 2011 versus 14.14 mt in the corresponding period a year ago, it said.
Due to fast paced developments, the cargo traffic at Dahej Port has jumped to 13.18 mt up to December 2011 compared with 10.34 mt in the same period a year ago. Likewise, cargo handled at Bedi port increased to 2.28 mt up to December 2011 versus 1.69 mt in the same period a year ago.
Private ports
Speaking about private ports, GMB stated that cargo handling at Mundra port grew to 34.60 mt up to December 2011 compared with 26.09 mt in the corresponding period a year ago. Container traffic at Mundra port surged to 14.13 mt up to December 2011 against 11.60 mt in the same period a year ago.
While, cargo traffic grew to 4.07 mt during the nine-month period (April-December 2011) at Pipavav Port versus 3.12 mt in the corresponding period a year ago.
GMB ports handled 231-mt traffic in 2010-11 which constitutes 26 per cent of the total national cargo handled. The traffic handled by GMB ports was up by over 12 per cent at 231 mt in 2010-11 versus 205.51 MT in 2009-10.