A Port Health Unit headed by a Port Health Officer would come up in a four-room building of the Paradip Port Trust (PPT) located at Bhuyan Chhak, Madhuban. An MoU in this regard was signed between the PPT and the Port Health Organisation (PHO) of the Government of India on Thursday.
PPT Senior AEM Biswajit Mishra and Senior Regional Director, RoH & FW, Union Ministry of H&FW Dr SK Kar signed the agreement in the presence of PPT Chairman Rinkesh Roy and PPT Hospital CMO Dr P Panda. This partnership is part of the obligation of India under the International Health Regulation 2005. Describing it as a historic day, PPT Chairman Roy said, “The PHU will be responsible for the health and sanitation in the ships coming to Paradip, food safety, health and hygiene in Paradip apart from many more functions.” Roy had been chasing it up with the Ministry for the last four years since all the other Major Ports have this kind of facility.
Breaking the news about another achievement in terms of cargo handling, Roy said the PPT on the day crossed 99-MMT mark in this fiscal; and within next three days, it would reach the coveted 100-MMT mark and would, thus, make a hatrick in three consecutive fiscals.