Kerala opening its gates for global trade
THE opening of the Vizhinjam Deepwater Multipurpose Seaport and recognition of Kerala as the easiest place to get necessary permission and permits to start a new business, or in other words, opening its doors to new investors, will make Kerala very attractive to investors and global traders.
Gautam Adani, whose company operates the first deep-sea automated port, which is a future global transportation hub, said, “We sail towards a stronger, bolder India. This is a triumph of vision, resilience, and partnership.” Adani said during the dedication ceremony, “Today, at Vizhinjam, history, destiny and possibility came together as a 30-year-old dream of Kerala became India’s gateway to the world.”
Vizhinjam harbour is going to change the way international movement of goods to and from Asia is going to be done. Deepwater seaport enables large containers to come to the port, take out containers and distribute them to smaller containers to take to other parts of the world. It is like the postal distribution center, where loads of mail come from all over and are then sorted out to be taken to other post offices for distribution. Same way, big container ships will bring a large number of containers, which are all unloaded at Vizhinjam, sorted out the containers for each country or specific port and reload them into smaller containers. This is one of the major businesses in Dubai Port.
There are about 1700 ports in Asia, which include coastal, river and lake, but very few deepest ports. The major ones in Asia are listed below
1. Port of Shanghai, China, the biggest and largest, covers 3619 sq. kilometers, deepest point 57.4 feet
2. Port of Kaohsiung, Taiwan – 27.8 km long – maximum 50 feet deep
3. Port of Hong Kong – 278 sq. km. maximum 55 feet
4. Port of Tanjing Priol or Jakarta, Indonesia – 6 sq. km, 46 feet
5. Port of Tanjing Pelepas, Malaysia – 62 sq. km, 62 feet
6. Saigon Port, Vietnam -2.6 sq km, 36 feet
7. Jawaharlal Port, Mumbai – 44 feet
8. Port of Singapore -30 feet
9. Port of Nagoya, Japan – 40 feet
10. Busan Port, South Korea - 30 feet
11. Port of Manila – 36 feet
12. Vizhinjam Port, Kerala – 3 km long, 60 feet
Vizhinjam port will be fully opened only by 2028. It is 74 feet high and can handle most of the world’s largest container ships.
Vizhinjam port is a major achievement of the current Kerala government and also of the central government. People of Kerala should be proud also that it happened with a lot of opposition from political and environmental groups. Prime Minister Modi, after inaugurating the Vizhinjam port, said,
“On one hand, there is this big sea with so many opportunities and on the other hand, there is the beauty of nature; in between there is this Vizhinjam International Deepwater Multipurpose seaport, which is a symbol of new-age development”.
Vizhinjam is designed to cater to container transshipment, besides multipurpose and break-bulk cargo. It is the largest ever state investment in any part of the country, with two-thirds of the cost borne by the Government of Kerala, which reflects the strong commitment to development, according to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Vizhinnjam port is located just 10 nautical miles from the busy international shipping route connecting Europe, the Persian Gulf and the Far East, and therefore enjoys inherent locational advantages that position it for success as a global transportation hub, as is written on its website.
Vizhinjam seaport will play a very important role in the development and progress of Kerala. The policies of the Kerala government to open up investments in Tourism and Technology will open the gates of Kerala for new investors. Kerala has thus opened its gates for global trade, tourism and investment. Let us hope for a more prosperous Kerala.
