KOCHI: Kerala is in for a massive investment in its port infrastructure . The plan is to initially develop the Azheekal, Ponnani, Munambam and Kollam ports and then a chain of bunkering ports, followed by the minor ports to supplement traffic at the major ports like Kochi and the proposed Vizhinjam international port, said Director of Ports P I Sheik Pareeth.
Speaking at the valedictory session of the two-day Logistics Conclave organised by the CII-Kerala in Kochi on Tuesday, the Director of Ports said it was heartening that the Centre allotted `1,000 crore for port development in the State in the current year. “Another ambitious project by the State Government is the just-launched hydrofoil luxury passenger craft service between Kochi and Kozhikode. Also in the pipeline is plans to extend the project to the Kochi-Thiruvananthapuram route,” he said.
The two-day conclave was a tremendous successes in terms of participation and the quality of papers presented by the experts on various aspects of logistics and supply-chain management. The lively interactions helped the delegates who attended the programme get updated and enlightened on the problems and prospects of the vital industry.
Inaugurating the conclave on Monday, State Transport Minister A K Saseendran had assured the government’s support to set up state-of-the-art logistics hubs in the State. The sessions also discussed viable usage of unconventional and alternative modes of transportation and highlighted effective usage of waterways for cost-effective logistics, and their integration with the other modes of goods transportation.
Further, the development of Kerala’s logistics sector is expected to open up business opportunities significantly and create greater avenues for employment within the State. The conclave also discussed the effective use of information technology and the revolutionary changes in digital technology and e-commerce for the growth of the logistics industry.
‘”We take it as our responsibility to submit concrete proposals to the government in this regard, after conducting a scientific study on issues like traffic congestion and cost-effective logistics. “The CII is seized of the need for a scientific, modern and cost-effective logistics system to serve the manufacturing and trading community,” said CII-Kerala Logistics Panel chairman N A Mohammed kutty, who is also managing director of Falcon Infrastructure.
