Gujarat Maritime Cluster

• 13 Nov 2020

Why in News

The Gujarat Maritime Cluster is coming up in the GIFT (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) City at Gandhinagar to address logistics of ports and seaways.

Key Points

• Maritime Cluster:
  
  • It is conceived as a dedicated ecosystem of Ports, Maritime Shipping and Logistics services providers.
  • It will host an array of maritime, shipping industry players and service providers, along with relevant Government regulatory agencies, in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), Gandhinagar – India’s first International Financial Services Centre.
  • The Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB), has been trying to develop such a cluster through its subsidiary Gujarat Ports Infrastructure and Development Company Ltd (GPIDCL).
  • While the project was conceptualised back in 2007, it received in-principle approval from the state government in 2015.
• Benefits of the project:
  
  • Attract Maritime Investments:
    
    • The project will try to bring back businesses that have migrated over the years to foreign locations due to the absence of the right ecosystem in the country.
    • Large corporates like the Aditya Birla Group and Tata Group tap clusters in Dubai and Singapore for their maritime needs.
  • Economies of Scale:
    
    • Gujarat has a lot of ports and handles 40% of the country’s cargo, but it has not targeted the entire value-chain as a result investors look abroad for the same.
  • Dispute Resolution:
    
    • An Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) Centre will be set up under the aegis of the Gujarat Maritime University, which will come up at the maritime cluster. A centre such as this does not currently exist in India.
    • Will help resolve cases revolving around bunker disputes, ship sales, shipbuilding and repairs, commodities.
    • It will provide an option to Indian players seeking to avoid availing the services of international alternate dispute resolution hubs which entail huge costs, time, and travel.
  • The cluster is also expected to house the office of the Director General of Shipping.

Way Forward

• The concept of maritime clusters is new to India, but these clusters have been driving some of the most competitive ports of the world like Rotterdam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Oslo, Shanghai, and London.
• Thus India must ensure a significant footprint in global supply chains of the world with the help of such innovative Ideas.

Source:IE