The maiden meeting of the core body of Sagarmala, an ambitious port-led development project along India’s 7,500 km coastline, will be chaired by Minister of Road Transport Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari on Monday.
The senior members will draw-up a plan to get started on the ambitious project which is expected to boost inland as well as coastal activity in the country.
The National Sagarmala Apex Committee (NSAC) will be deliberating on the concept of Sagarmala and Government decisions on it, action taken on setting up of Sagarmala Institutional Mechanism and role of the Centre as well as States in project identification and implementation.
“The prime objective of the Sagarmala project is to promote port-led direct and indirect development and to provide infrastructure to transport goods to and from ports quickly, efficiently and cost-effectively,” said a Press statement from the Ministry of Shipping.
“The idea is to give a thrust to port led development. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Gadkari are keen to get the project started by the year end. India has a robust 7, 500 kms long coastline but our EXIM capacity is not being realised optimally because of poor connectivity,” said a senior official from the Ministry of Shipping.
“The NSAC will start work on creating an institutional framework for ensuring integrated development of ports, including modernisation and setting up of new ports, and efficient evacuation to and from hinterland,” he said.
The Cabinet in March had given ‘in-principle’ nod to the project, aimed at port-led development in coastal States. According to Government estimates, funds required in 2015-16 for implementation of projects in the initial phase of Sagarmala will be close to `692 crore.
The members of the NSAC include Vice-Chairman NITI Aayog and Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
The members also include Union Cabinet Ministers of Finance; Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation; Urban Development; Railways; Agriculture; Rural Development; Civil Aviation; Skill Development and Entrepreneurship; Environment, Forests and Climate Change; Commerce and Industry; Tourism while Secretary, Shipping is Member Convener.