BHUBANESWAR: The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has accorded administrative approval for sanction of Rs 50.3 crore for developing all-weather RO-PAX (roll-on/roll-off passenger) jetty and allied infrastructure to connect Kaninali in Bhadrak and Talachua in Kendrapara district under the Sagarmala initiative. The State government will provide another 50 per cent (pc) cost of the project.
Official sources said the total capital cost of the project is Rs 110.6 crore which includes construction of RO-PAX jetty at Kaninali and Talachua and utility infrastructure such as parking area development, navigational aids and dredging. This project will reduce travel time for passengers from 6 hours by road to 1 hour by waterway.
The development of the existing ghat with all-weather RO-PAX jetty is being carried out with intent of accommodating boats and other vessels as well as those having capacity to carry 10 light motor vehicles, 20 motorcycles along with 60 passengers at a time, simultaneously ensuring safety of all passengers and vehicles.
The project will facilitate indirect employment opportunities to locals around Dhamra river and reduce road distance of 200 km from Talachua to Dhamra. People of Talachua and nearby villages largely depend upon Dhamra port for their livelihood, which is around 4 km from Kaninali ghat. Locals depend upon passenger ferries at ghats of Kaninali and Talachua to cross the river, a stretch of 7 km.
At present, a number of passenger vehicles move through private boats without safety and passengers face difficulty in embarking and disembarking from launches on an everyday basis. The project will enhance the safety of passengers and vehicles with the state-of-the-art utility infrastructure, the officials said.
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for giving special attention to the development of Odisha, said the project will increase the commercial and business activities and uplift the socio-economic status of the surrounding region. The project will solve the connectivity issue between Bhadrak and Kendrapara by reducing the travel time, he added.