Major ports improve performance

The 12 major ports in the country have recorded an improvement in their performance, in terms of key indicators such as average turnaround time, average pre-berthing detention and average output per ship per berth-day, over the past few years, minister of state for shipping Pon Radhakrishnan informed the Lok Sabha on Thursday.

The 12 major ports include the ports of Visakhapatnam, Kandla, Chennai, Navi Mumbai (JNPT), Mumbai, Paradip, Mormugao, Kolkata, Mangalore, Tuticorin, Kochi and Ennore (corporate).

These major ports recorded an improvement in average turnaround time to 2.25 days during the 2013-14 financial year from 2.58 days in 2012-13 and 2.61 days in 2011-12.

Average pre-berthing detention time at ports nearly halved to 6.94 hours in 2013-14 from 12.29 hours in 2012-13 and 11.13 hours in 2011-12, the minister informed.

Average output per ship per berth-day stood at 12,509 tonnes in 2013-14   against 11,750 tonnes in 2012-13  and 11,112 tonnes in 2011-12.

The government, he said, has taken a number of measures to improve efficiency of major ports which include:

Construction of new berths and terminals to enhance port capacity to minimise pre-berthing detention time and reduce turnaround time of vessels calling on the ports;

Modernising berths with state-of-the-art loading/unloading equipment to improve operational efficiency;

Deepening of channels and berths so that ports can accommodate larger vessels; and

Improving rail/road connectivity of ports for speedy evacuation of cargo.

The minister said the Maritime Agenda 2010-2020 has set an ambitious target of achieving 43 million gross owned and controlled tonnage under Indian flag by the year 2020, so as to increase India's share in total freight traffic.

The Indian National Shipowners Association has estimated the total sea freight being paid by India at about $50 billion in financial year 2014. Around 90 per cent of the India's export-import trade is carried on board foreign flag vessels, he pointed out.

The ministry of shipping has impressed upon user departments/public sector undertakings, including oil marketing companies, to provide cargo support to Indian shipping companies through long-term contracts, the minister added.