PANJIM: Two months after the villagers of Betul were up in arms against handing over land to the Defence Ministry for the DefExpo, the Central government wants another 150 to 200 acres of land for expansion of Mormugao Port Trust in the village.
Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Saturday said his ministry has made such a proposal to the chief minister.
“There are constraints rights now in terms of space at MPT and we have proposed to Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekarji to (allot) around 150 to 200 acres of land in Bali, near Betul for a satellite port to MPT,” Gadkari said at a press conference on Saturday.
Gadkari said this will generate employment and the State government will be considered a partner in the project. “The port will handle bauxite and iron ore and maybe coal if necessary,” he said.
He said he has already had a meeting with the chief minister and the chief secretary in this regard and they have agreed to look into it. “MPT already has 75 acres of land in the area and another 150 to 200 will be needed for expansion,” he added.
Gadkari further said that this is for the first time that all 12 ports and three organisations of shipping have posted a net profit of Rs 600 cr. “It is a big achievement and we are expecting to achieve additional Rs 2000 cr profit next year,” he said.
