Despite LDF in power, Kannur's Azheekkal port struggling to sail through
KANNUR: If announcements have the power to take a project to success, Azheekkal port would have gained international standards by now. Such was the flow of announcements made by various governments at regular intervals to keep the project alive in the media. Sadly, nothing materialised apart from the occasional news that something of great importance would happen at the port to transform the future of Kannur and Kerala.
Though earlier governments had faltered in keeping up the promises, people of Kannur expected something from the LDF government which came to power in the state in 2016. Especially when an MLA from Kannur constituency itself was made the minister of the department. But, after three-and-a-half years, the Left government too finds it tough to sail through the troubled waters of Azheekkal port.
When the LDF government came to power in 2016, there were 360 m of breakwater on the northern side and 900 m on the southern side, a wharf having 226-m length, a crane worth Rs 19 cr, a cutter section dredger of Rs 20 crore, a reach stalker, the cost of which is estimated at Rs 3 crore, and a ship channel apart from many other auxiliary facilities. But, even these facilities are lying in neglect, resulting in loss of crores of rupees spent on the project so far.
If one takes a look at the department's attitude towards the port since the present government came to power, it seems it is no better than the previous governments. In August 2016, Ports Minister Ramachandran Kadannappally had said that the depth of the navigation channel would be made 6 m and a cargo service would be started between Lakshadweep and Azheekkal port. He had also said that a cruise service would be started on the same route. But true to the tradition of Azheekkal port, those promises also remained on paper.
Again after two years, in 2018, the minister came up with the same topic and said that the work in connection with the project had begun and by September 2018, cargo service would be started between Lakshadweep and Azheekkal. But citing technical hassles, the dredging in the port got interrupted again. Though dredging had begun in 2019 following the intervention of the Chief Minister's office, still the channel doesn't have the required depth to enable big ships to conduct operations. Sources said that the sand dredged from the port is being deposited in Valapattanam river itself, causing loss to the tune of crores of rupees to the government.
"The dredging process has got delayed due to siltation of huge amount of sand in the channel during the flood. We have been working on it. The issue will be solved soon and we hope that the cargo service between Lakshadweep and Azheekkal would start around the first week of November," said Ashwani Prathap, Port Officer, Azheekkal. He also said that an official meeting is scheduled on November 1 between the Lakshadweep and Kerala officials.
Yet another problem which hinders the progress of the port is the bureaucratic maze which pulls back the project over the issue of formation of Maritime Board. An insider, on condition of anonymity, said that the employees and officers of the port are not cooperating with the board officials, as once the board becomes a reality, they would lose the status of government employees and the benefits that come along with it. And it is the bureaucratic maze, which caused the stopping of the services of two shipping companies - Trans Asia and Great Shipping Company. Before the formation of the board, the government had offered cargo subsidy for coastal movements.
Great Sea Shipping company had started its service in 2014 and was forced to stop the service due to the delayed release of incentives. Again, they restarted the service in February 2019, after the formation of the Board, but again had to end the services due to the same reason. Another reason cited by experts for the lack of progress of the port is the absence of 'return cargo' chances.
Shipping companies will always look for return cargo so that they could operate their services in a more profitable manner. For this, the government should take some initiatives to improve the road facilities between Kannur and Mysuru so that the products from the companies of Mysuru could be brought to Azheekkal port for export. If this could be materialised, the cargo which goes to Mangaluru port could be brought to Kannur. But, for this the government should have to take steps to improve road facilities.
It is pointed out that, it is high time that the government took some steps to bring back the port project development back on the rails. Azheekkal port, which is included in the Sagarmala project, needs funds to get moving, and the state government should take proactive steps to get the funds on time. Moreover, steps should be taken to improve relations between private companies and port authorities so that services are conducted smoothly and without official hassles.
As of now, crores of rupees have been going down the drain, without giving any results. Unless the chief minister intervenes to change the fortunes of the port, a prestigious project would end up as one of the most mismanaged projects in the history of the state.