Union Shipping Minister G K Vasan on Friday inspected the ongoing developmental projects inside the Ennore Port.
The Minister accompanied by the port’s chairman and managing director S Velumani and other officials inspected the ongoing construction of sprawling parking lot developed by Nissan for exporting cars, general cargo berth, marine liquid berth and coal and iron ore terminals.
After completing the field-inspection, Vasan held an extensive review meeting with the officials of the port and asked them to speed up the ongoing projects to stay in the race.
To mark his visit to the port, Vasan planted a sapling and also inaugurated a seven-km length interior road constructed at a cost of Rs eight crores linking main office with the different terminals.
Later speaking to Express, Vasan said, “I am satisfied with the progress of different projects at the port and also advised the officials to speedup them to get competitiveness.”He also assured of job opportunities to qualified local youths at the port after a delegation of locals met the Minister.
Vasan vows EMRIP revival
CHENNAI: Reiterating his commitment to revive the important Ennore-Manali Road Improvement Project (EMRIP) for better connectivity for the Chennai and Ennore ports, Union Shipping Minister G K Vasan on Friday said that the project would not be allowed to lapse at any cost and every possible step had already been initiated to bring it on track.
Speaking to reporters here on the sidelines of signing of agreement to develop a container terminal at the Ennore Port, the Minister said, “I have already taken up the issue with Union Minister for Surface Transport and Highways Kamal Nath and have sent a letter to him on the importance of the reviving it.”
To a question about the status of the ongoing projects linked to the Chennai port at a cost of `6000 crore, Vasan replied, “To expedite the projects, a comprehensive review meeting with all the stake holders will be organised after the ongoing parliament session.”
The EMRIP, announced by the State Government in 1998, covers four major roads in the industrial hub of north Chennai, Tiruvottiyur-Ponneri-Panchetti (TPP) Road, Ennore Expressway, Manali Oil Refinery Road and northern portion of the Inner Ring Road from Madhavaram to Manali.
A special purpose vehicle comprising National Highways Authority of India, Chennai Port Trust, Ennore Port Limited and the Tamil Nadu Government was constituted in 2003 for the execution of the project.
When the project was conceptualised, the cost was pegged at `150 crore. However, it had escalated to over `329 crore by 2003 and a 2007 deadline was set. The 2007-deadline was also missed and the cost of the project had further gone up to around `600 crore.
To keep the special purpose vehicle alive for tendering process, the Chennai Port Trust released another `10 crore recently.
Speaking to reporters here on the sidelines of signing of agreement to develop a container terminal at the Ennore Port, the Minister said, “I have already taken up the issue with Union Minister for Surface Transport and Highways Kamal Nath and have sent a letter to him on the importance of the reviving it.”
To a question about the status of the ongoing projects linked to the Chennai port at a cost of `6000 crore, Vasan replied, “To expedite the projects, a comprehensive review meeting with all the stake holders will be organised after the ongoing parliament session.”
The EMRIP, announced by the State Government in 1998, covers four major roads in the industrial hub of north Chennai, Tiruvottiyur-Ponneri-Panchetti (TPP) Road, Ennore Expressway, Manali Oil Refinery Road and northern portion of the Inner Ring Road from Madhavaram to Manali.
A special purpose vehicle comprising National Highways Authority of India, Chennai Port Trust, Ennore Port Limited and the Tamil Nadu Government was constituted in 2003 for the execution of the project.
When the project was conceptualised, the cost was pegged at `150 crore. However, it had escalated to over `329 crore by 2003 and a 2007 deadline was set. The 2007-deadline was also missed and the cost of the project had further gone up to around `600 crore.
To keep the special purpose vehicle alive for tendering process, the Chennai Port Trust released another `10 crore recently.
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