Vizhinjam brings fresh face in changing landscape

Today is the day when a 'mothership' arrives for the first time at the Vizhinjam port. After that, fleets of large and small ships will arrive. Seeing the changing fate of a country right in Thiruvananthapuram gives a joy as big as the sea. Ever since Vizhinjam seaport was a dream, Kerala Kaumudi daily has been striving to make it a reality. On this occasion, we are recalling the creative interventions we made in the early days that such a port is unnecessary. In the beginning, some lobbies tried to destroy the very idea of ​​Vizhinjam port. The spearhead of the litigation war was broken through the news that the cases in the Supreme Court are filed by financially weak people backed by lobbies like resort.

Later, there was a campaign that the Colachel Port under the control of Tamil Nadu will be built and this would lead to Vizhinjam running

at a loss. It is such irresponsible and malicious propaganda that has no connection with facts that nips many good projects in the bud. Environmentalists have also come forward with criticism that the port will have a heavy impact on the environment. Since the beginning of the 2000s, many such false campaigns against Vizhinjam port were in the air. At one point there were concerns that the port project would turn out to be a dream that would never materialize. It was at this point in 2005 when I was managing editor that an old friend and Loyola schoolmate, merchant navy officer S Praveen, came to see me in the office. He also told me that the Vizhinjam project is going to rewrite the future of Kerala and urged me to publish reports based on facts to educate the people.

That friend said a number of things that point out the importance of Vizhinjam. First, there is no other port in India where a mothership can dock other than a port in Vizhinjam. Motherships can be docked in Dubai, Singapore and Colombo. Vizhinjam is one of the few places in the world that has natural depth which means that there is no need for dredging. This will make the port profitable very quickly. The international shipping lane is only 12 nautical miles away. We will get income from fees and taxes when big ships come and cargo is transferred to smaller ships and transported to other places. That is, it will also become a transshipment port. Now we have to pay a share for exports and imports to such ports in other countries. We can avoid this after port operations begin in Vizhinjam. Now these things are known to everyone. But that was not the case then. A special tagline was made for the Vizhinjam reports and based on facts, Kerala Kaumudi started reporting regularly by consulting with experts and others. Oommen Chandy, who was the Chief Minister at that time, took special interest in the Vizhinjam project and initiated the very first steps to start the port.

Had it been done then, the port would have become been a reality for half the amount spent so far. Later in 2015, Adani signed a 40-year agreement with Vizhinjam Port Private Limited for the development of Vizhinjam International Port. No one can forget that the three Chief Ministers Oommen Chandy, VS Achuthanandan and Pinarayi Vijayan, ministers from MV Raghavan to VN Vasavan who is currently in charge of the Port Department, Shashi Tharoor MP, technical experts, officials, workers and the media who have worked hard for this have played a big and small role in the completion of the port. The role of the then Union Defense Minister AK Antony in getting the Defense Ministry's approval, which was a major hurdle for Vizhinjam in 2013, is also worth mentioning. When any project becomes feasible, it is not appropriate to blame those who oppose it. Local people are the first to receive the biggest benefits of a project, directly or indirectly.

Also, the young generation should be able to take advantage of the various job opportunities that arise in this sector. Courses related to logistics should be started. Start-ups should be encouraged and steps should be taken to establish a maritime university. Often the real culprits are not those who are at the forefront of protesting against such mega-projects, but the driving forces behind them. We have seen it in Koodamkulam. Finally, the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had to publicly reveal that USA was behind the agitations to destroy that nuclear program which was planned to be done with the cooperation of Russia. Not only this, the government should also be determined to solve the problems raised by the protesters in Vizhinjam including rehabilitation in a timely manner. Completion of rail-road connectivity should also be made possible at the earliest. Foreign companies have to come to Thiruvananthapuram for their port related activities. The government also has the responsibility to create great awareness about all these matters.

One of the eternal dreams of Kerala and especially Thiruvananthapuram is getting realized. The Chief Minister will receive the mothership San Fernando of the world's second largest shipping company, Maersk, carrying around 2,000 containers at the port tomorrow at 10 am. The trial run of the port will begin on the same day. Vizhinjam, India's first semi-automated port, is expected to be commissioned by September-October after Onam. The mutual cooperation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is essential for the continued progress and development of the port. Politics should not be an obstacle to development but a catalyst. Only then will we do justice to the future generations. It will be the next generation that will experience the true results of the Vizhinjam seaport. Kerala Kaumudi extends its best wishes for the success of Vizhinjam port.