NELLORE: Construction works of a Rs 394.11-crore fishing harbour at Juvvaladinne in Bogole mandal of Nellore district have gained pace. The fishing harbour will sport a cold storage, auction rooms, retail shopping place and other 48 structures with a docking facility to accommodate 1,260 boats. The harbour will come up in nearly 77 acres of land.
Currently, there are 75 fish landing centres in Nellore district, including important centres like Iskapalli, Utukukuru, Mypadu, Pathapalem, Upputeru at Krishnapatnam, Tamminpatnam, Arkatpalem, Kothapatnam, Kondur, Dugarajapatnam and Pulinjerikuppam. However, fishermen in the coastal belt of the district have been facing continuous difficulties due to lack of basic facilities like foot bridges, jetties, anchorage, fish landing and chartered distribution points.
It may be recalled that, the Centre had deputed a team of officials on the possibilities of a mini harbour in August, 2014. A harbour was finalised at Juvvaladinne village of Bogole mandal under Kavali Assembly segment.As part of the efforts, experts from Water and Power Consultancy Services (India) Limited (WAPCOS), Central Institute of Coastal Engineering for Fishery (CICEF) and the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS) conducted surveys and submitted a report on the construction of the project. Following this, the works kickstarted in 2020.
Kavali MLA R Prathap Kumar Reddy said that the fishing harbour will generate more revenue for the fishermen. The State government is committed to the welfare of the fishermen, he added. Now, the contracting agency has speed up various works related to the fishing harbour. Construction of a 835 metre-long jetty on north side of the harbour and also a 635-metre-long on south side. Dredging and road construction works on the premises of the harbour are underway. “The works were expedited after an inspection by Central and State Fisheries department officials. We have set a target to complete the works in January next year,” said a senior official.