VISAKHAPATNAM: Due to a series of adverse conditions, the state-of-the-art container handling berth facility with 450-metre quay length of Visakhapatnam Container Terminal with the country’s deepest draft, has been facing hard times to increase its throughput. The traders rely on the terminal to import the reasonably cheaper Chinese goods, leaving the Indian market in great loss. Not only the container terminal handlers, the other cargo importers are also facing troubles with China’s competitive price tags. Meanwhile, due to the adverse impact of railway route rationalisation scheme and also the difficulty in attaining the last point mileage, the number of container handling wings in the VCTPL has come down drastically.
Visakhapatnam is ideally located in the centre of East Coast of India to serve as a transshipment hub and it has been recognised even by the maritime agenda 2010-2020. With the Central government’s look East policy, Visakhapatnam is a place to serve as an ideal gateway for the cargo handling from the East, Southeast and Pacific regions. However, during the past two years the business, mostly from the central India, has dropped due to the increase in railway freight rates.
The Indian Railway in the name of route rationalisation scheme has diverted its route from Raipur. Earlier, the cargo transport from central parts and northern part of India to Visakhapatnam Port via Raipur was cheaper. After the rationalisation scheme, there was an increase of over Rs 5,000 on each container and trade moved to Jawaharlal Nehru Port and other ports.
“In fact, the movement of cargo via the East coast should ideally be incentivised, but now it is completely reverse. Which trader will bear Rs 5,000 per container additionally? Because of the railway’s route rationalisation, the business originating from the central and northern parts of the country took a nosedive. The traders have already moved to the alternative routes like Krishnapatnam and Chennai ports,” a senior official of the Visakhapatnam Port said. Several representations were submitted to all the key officials and also at the Ministry level, but nothing happened, the official lamented.
Meanwhile, another major problem to the container terminal is the last point mileage. As the heavy vehicles carrying containers have to ply to the container terminal via narrow and busiest city roads, the operators are facing troubles to lift the containers at the right time. The containers reach Gnanapuram without much trouble as the VPT laid special road connectivity from the Seelanagar Junction on the highway. However, the container traffic faces serious trouble to reach the container terminal, which is adjacent to the Visakhapatnam Fishing Harbour, from Gnanapuram Junction. During the past two years, the road network was badly hit for many reasons.
“It is a hell to reach the container terminal from Gnanapuram Junction. Driving a heavy vehicle on the narrow roads, bends and amid busy traffic is giving creeps to the drivers. Due to the poor road connectivity, we are taking over five hours time from the Gnanapuram to Container Terminal,” OBR Singh, a trailer driver lamented.
In fact, the VPT has proposed to extend the road connectivity from Gnanapuram to the Port operations, including the container terminal. However, as there are a number of houses and religious constructions, the VPT dropped the idea as the land acquisition would become a big issue. “When Ajay Kallam as chairman of VPT, gave a golden offer to the Kotaveedhi residents to give land to land behind the existing Port stadium where one sq.yard of land costs about Rs 30,000. In fact, the land price in Kotaveedhi is hardly Rs 4,000 to 5,000 and there are no takers. But some of the public representatives brain washed the Kotaveedhi residents. With the issue turning controversial, Ajay Kallam dropped the proposal,” a senior official of Visakhapatnam revealed the troubles of the management to take up some development works.
Container Throughput from VCTPL
2013-14 - 2,62,091 TEUs
2014-15 - 2,48,163 TEUs
2015 April to Sept 31: 1,30,000 TEUs