The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has asked the officials of concerned departments to speed up the country's first International Container Trans-shipment Terminal project at Vallarpadam in Kerala.
Once implemented, over 16,000-crore Vallarpadam container facility for trans-shipment will become a major hub for cargo.
According to a release issued by Prime Minister’s Office, the project will help reducing the number of days taken to export or import consignments by seven days apart from cutting down the transportation cost of each container by 300 US dollar.
The facility will give a boost to international Indian trade making it more competitive. Currently Indian importers and exporters use Colombo , Salalah , Singapore and Dubai hubs for shipments adding to their costs.
Prime Minister's Principal Secretary Pulok Chatterjee chaired a meeting with officials from the departments of Revenue, Commerce and Shipping.
They have been asked to ensure that procedural issues do not come in the way of the implementation of this project.
In the meeting it was also decided that the Department of Commerce and Ministry of Shipping will make all efforts to ensure that the first Container Freight Station (CFS) is operational by 1st of March this year and other 3 proposed such stations should be commissioned shortly.
Customs Department will also ensure necessary arrangements for the purpose.
