Kerala Should be the Beacon for India’s Maritime Surge: Experts at Kerala-EU Blue Economy Conclave

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:

Kerala should position itself as India’s smartest and sustainable maritime state to tap the advantages as India is poised for a sea of change in its maritime development plans, observed experts during a panel discussion at the Kerala-European Union Blue Economy Conclave, Blue Tides, at Kovalam on Friday.

Panelists at the session on Harbour Infrastructures, Ports, Logistics, shipping and Connectivity Investments, highlighted the advantages of Kerala.

The foreign delegates at the sessions said the state has immense potential as India charts a new course on Blue Economy sector.

Finnish ambassador to India Kimmo Lahdevrita, who had visited the Vizhinjam port on Thursday, said the only deep sea port in India is going to be a big player in the field. “Vizhinjam Port has achieved handling of one million containers in a year already and that is very impressive,” said the ambassador.

He said Finland can offer collaboration in areas like 5G networks for harbours, which Nokia has implemented in his country.

The ambassador of Romania, Sena Latif, said the visit to the port was an eye opener and the modern IT systems reminded her of video game screens. There will be a lot of interest in Indian ports from companies in her country as they have years of experience of sustainable port system, connectivity and research eco system that involves universities and port authorities.

Dr A Kowsigan, Secretary, Ports, Government of Kerala, said the visit by 19 ambassadors to Vizhinjam has shown the capacity of the state and with rail and road connectivity shaping up fast, the port offers a lot of investment opportunities for international players.

“The rail connectivity and road connectivity are fast coming up and Vizhinjam port’s capacity will be close to 4.5 million TEUs by the end of 2028. So there is a lot of scope for international investors,” the secretary said.

Luxman Radhakrishnan, Managing Director of Malabar International Port and Special Economic Zone, who chaired the discussion, pointed out the historical heritage of Kerala puts the state in an ideal place for expansion as a maritime centre, and highlighted the plans to develop ports in places like Beypore and development economic zones along with that.

“Historically ports have always been vital economic engines as it drives trade, create jobs and grow cities,” he pointed out. Radhakrishnan urged the domestic sector to come up with scheme and industry proposals after doing proper homework, making sure that it complies with regulations in other parts of the globe, like the European Union, to attract international investments.

Outlining the plans by India for the years ahead, Cochin Port Trust CEO Kasi Viswanathan, said the Indian parliament had created a record by passing five separate bills in the past year to streamline the maritime sector of the country. Along with expanding port infrastructure, it will also encompass areas like ship building, digitalisation of ports, cruise tourism and connectivity, he said.

“Currently the country is served by 12 major ports and 210 minor ports and non-major ports handling about 1,600 million metric tonnes of commodities, with the capacity of about 2,600 million tonnes of all port sector together. But it is now poised for an expansion to about 3,500 million tonnes by 2030, and a very ambitious target of 10,000 million tonnes by 2047,” said Visawnathan.

He also exhorted investors to look at the possibility of cruise tourism development possibilities in Kochi where the authorities have earmarked areas and plan to invite tenders soon.

Strategic projects coordinator of shipping firm CMA CGM, Antoine Canton, said his company has been involved in many projects over the last three decades and are in talks with Kochi port for more collaborations.

The two-day conclave, Blue Tides, organized by the Department of Fisheries, Government of Kerala, in collaboration with Government of India and the European Union, is attended by high-profile participants, including EU envoys, sharing their insights and perspectives on deepening and broadening collaborations in the sector.

A country first initiative, the conclave marks a significant milestone in EU-India collaboration in sustainable and inclusive ocean-based development and economic growth.