Important Facts For Prelims
Vallarpadam Terminal
- 16 Jul 2020
- 3 min read
Why in News
Recently, the Ministry of Shipping reviewed the development of the country's first trans-shipment hub - Kochi International Container Trans-shipment Terminal (ICTT).
- ICTT is locally known as the Vallarpadam Terminal.
Key Points
- Trans-shipment Hub:
- It is a terminal at a port which handles containers, stores them temporarily and transfers them to other ships for the onward destination.
- It basically acts as a switching point for cargo carried by deep-sea vessels operating on trans-continental trade routes.
- Vallarpadam Terminal:
- It is a part of the Cochin Port in Kochi, Kerala. It is located on Vallarpadam Island.
- It was built with an investment of about Rs. 3,200 crore, shared by the government and the Dubai-government-owned entity (Dubai Ports World).
- It was opened in February 2011 and can handle cargo up to one million TEUs (Twenty-foot equivalent units) per annum.
- It is proposed to be a leading trans-shipment hub of South Asia. This is because of its:
- Proximity to International sea routes.
- Location with respect to all Indian feeder (secondary/smaller) ports.
- Proximity to key hinterland markets of India.
- Large infrastructure to manage large ships and capacity to scale it up as per requirement.
- Expected Benefits:
- It will cut India’s dependence on neighboring hub ports such as Colombo in Sri Lanka, Jebel Ali in Dubai and Port Klang in Malaysia to send and receive container cargo, thus saving time and cost for exporters and importers.
- It is in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat. It will ensure that Indian cargo trans-ship through an Indian Port.
- Further, the Indian ocean is one of the most critical maritime transportation links in the world.
- It will facilitate the setting up of port based industries and their allied facilities such as Container Freight Station, Island Container Depots, etc. in Kerala which will generate additional employment opportunities.
