Ports in general contribute to regional development through social and economic benefits. Port throughputs have been steadily increasing and this has put pressure for capacity addition and efficient services. Several new ports developments have also been planned.
Globally, there is a massive redistribution of manufacturing to low cost destinations. Such redistribution brings development to the some of the most backward areas and this cannot happen without proper logistic support.
Growth in ship sizes and specialized vessels have been forcing ports to heavily invest in capital dredging and dedicated port terminals with a high degree of mechanisation. Gone are the days where ports used to enjoy monopolistic conditions. Ports have to compete to attract traffic with overlapping hinterland. The industry also demands lower port tariffs and improved services.
Port infrastructure development foster economic growth more so during the operational phase since they promote the commerce of the nation. Indirect and induced benefits of ports by far outweigh the direct benefits.
India is dotted with 12 major ports, 6 each on the east and west coast. There are also numerous non major ports. The Sagarmala Plan announced by the Government of India envisages not merely port development but port led development including ports, Coastal Economic Zones, rails, roads and waterways. Sagarmala will be modeled under four pillars of development namely port modernisation, port connectivity, port led industrialisation and coastal community development. One of the thrust areas will be reduction in logistic cost which will result in significant spin off benefits for industries.
Mormugao Port which is one of the oldest ports in the country has contributed to the economic growth of Goa and the region for the past 132 years.
Today the port has seven cargo handling berths handling a range of bulk and break bulk cargo including containers. The port strives to give value for money to its users by improving upon its handling efficiency. A great deal of focus is given to ship turn round time, berth productivity and other key parameters which are of interest to the trade. The deepening of the channel when completed will facilitate Cape size vessels to make direct calls at the port. Again the trade will benefit through reduced freight rates for Cape size vessels.
The port is alive to the concerns of the citizens namely pollution and congestion in the city due to port vehicular movement. Careful attention is given to eliminate pollution through a number of initiatives.
Pollution will be eliminated at source. Elaborate arrangements have been made for sprinkling systems, mobile and fixed fog cannons. A dedicating team has been put in place for this purpose.
The new dedicated flyover connecting the port to the National Highway-17B will be ready by October 2018. This will totally eliminate congestion in the Vasco city. The rail doubling of the Hospet-Vasco sector is expected to be completed by December 2021. This will facilitate more freight and passengers train movements to the hinterland areas.
Under coastal community development and as part of the port eco system sustenance, MPT has resolved the long pending demands of Khariwado fishermen paving the way for the construction of a modern fishing harbor at Vasco with the Govt of Goa’s active participation. Under Corporate Social responsibility MPT is managing three schools at Headland, Sada imparting quality education to the local public and children of port employees.
For this financial year, the cargo growth of MPT is more than 60%. MPT has now taken up the development of a modern iron ore terminal in place of the old berth No 9, under PPP model with an investment of Rs 1145 crore. In the tourism front, MPT already has a dedicated cruise berth. A modern cruise terminal has recently been inaugurated. Cruise vessel calls have registered more than 30% growth this year with 40 vessel calls for this year.
As a long term business development strategy, MPT is looking at various options including southern Maharashtra for establishing a satellite port, since MPT is constrained by land availability at the present location.
