Paradip Port

Paradip Port
Location
Country  India
Location Paradip, Odisha
Coordinates 20°15′55.44″N 86°40′34.62″E / 20.2654000°N 86.6762833°E[1]
Details
Opened 12 March 1966
Operated by Paradip Port Trust
Owned by Government of India
Available berths 14
Statistics
Annual cargo tonnage 57.01 million tons (2009-10)[2]
Website
paradipport.gov.in

Paradip Port (20°15′55.44″N 86°40′34.62″E / 20.2654000°N 86.6762833°E) is an artificial, deep-water port on the East coast of India in Jagatsinghpur district of Odisha. It is situated at confluence of the Mahanadi river and the Bay of Bengal. It is situated 210 nautical miles south of Kolkata and 260 nautical miles north of Visakhapatnam.

The port is administered by the Paradip Port Trust (PPT), an autonomous corporation wholly owned by the Government of India.[1]

History

The land on which the port was built was once a mangrove swamp, used large by local villagers for hunting, fishing and the collection of wood. In 1948 the Port (Technical) Committee of the Government of India determined an additional port was required between Visakhapatnam and Calcutta.

This need for another eastern port became particularly obvious following Partition when the Port of Dhaka was separated from India.[3]

In 1950 the Central Water & Power Commission proposed a Port at Paradip on Mahanadi river. The foundation stone for Paradip port was laid on 3 January 1962 by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister of India. The inscription on the black granite stone records a simple message in Oriya, English and Hindi: "Willed by the people, I commend you, to this another National Adventure". The State Government of Orissa started construction work on 15 March 1964, with the Central Government taking over management on 1 June 1965. The construction of Iron Ore Berth was completed and INS "INVESTIGATOR‟ had the privilege of maiden berthing in the port on 12 March 1966. The port was declared open by Mr. Peter Stambolić. The Port commenced operations with the export of a few thousand tons of iron ore, and has subsequently grown to the point of handling more than 50 million tonnes of cargo during the 1st decade of the 21st century.

Facilities

Paradip Port has 14 berths with a minimum draft of 13 metres (43 ft). It can accommodate vessels up to 70,000 DWT.[4]

The fully automated coal handling plant can handle up to 20 million tons of coal imports per annum. A single point mooring system handles Very Large Crude Carriers for Indian Oil.

As of 2010, the approach channel was being dredged to increase depth to at least 18.7 metres (61 ft) to enable the port to handle capesize vessels. A western dock with 6 additional berths is planned to be completed by 2014. Other extensive expansion projects are planned to increase the port's cargo handling capacity to over 133 million tons by 2015.[5]

The port operates an autonomous railway system, with its own railway station. It has an 82 kilometres (51 mi) of track length with over 25 sidings for handling cargo. The rail system connects to the East Coast Railway (ECoR) network of the Indian Railways over a 10 km route. NH 5A is a four-lane national highway connecting the port to Haridaspur near Cuttack, and to the rest of India's highway network.


References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "About Us". Paradip Port Trust. Retrieved 2011-09-27.
  2. ↑ "Brochure". Paradip Port Trust. Retrieved 2011-09-27.
  3. ↑ Nanda, Prabhat (April 2011). "The Port of Paradip : Mangrove Forest to a Major Port". Orissa Review: 68–78.
  4. ↑ "Home". Paradip Port Trust. Retrieved 2011-09-27.
  5. ↑ "Centre to pump Rs 3,141 cr into Paradip port". Business Standard. 2011-09-19. Retrieved 2011-09-27.