“Dugarajapatnam was selected to build a major port as part of the
bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. It is a commitment given by the Centre. We want
to capitalise on that and develop a port as well as a shipbuilding cluster
there,” Praveen Adhithya C V, Chief Executive Officer, Andhra Pradesh Maritime
Board (APMB), said.
The Union government, through state-owned
Visakhapatnam Port Authority, has hired RITES Ltd, a railway public sector
undertaking, to undertake a technical study on developing a maritime cluster
comprising a port, shipbuilding facility and port-led industries at
Dugarajapatnam, Adhithya said.
“A technical study is underway on how best we can integrate the three
facilities. Once the RITES report comes in a few weeks, the modalities of
development will be worked out,” the APMB CEO said.
The Andhra Pradesh government will also look at
integrating the proposed maritime cluster at Dugarajapatnam, located south of
Krishnapatnam, with the Union government’s industrial corridors and the planned
shipbuilding policy.
“Whether we are able to tap into that is one area
which is under discussion,” Adhithya stated.
Keeping in view the draft availability, the state
government has also found Mulapeta in Srikakulam district and Ramayapatnam in
Prakasam district to be conducive for developing port and shipbuilding
clusters, along with setting up ancillary industries.
In 2013, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs
(CCEA), under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government led by Manmohan
Singh, approved building a new port at Dugarajapatnam as part of a plan to
expand port capacity. The new port was to be set up as a major port under the
Companies Act with equity participation of 74% from the Central government
through Visakhapatnam Port Authority and 26 per cent from the Andhra
Pradesh government.
It was subsequently included as a part of the AP
Reorganisation Act, 2014. However, the port project stalled over viability
concerns. “The development of a new port
at Dugarajapatnam was examined by NITI Aayog, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of
Finance and Government of Andhra Pradesh, and it has been concluded that the
project will not be viable due to strong competition from nearby ports of
Krishnapatnam, Ennore and Chennai,” according to a 2018 note written by the
Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.