Media reports suggest that the union shipping ministry wants Jawaharlal Nehru port (JNPT) to operate a container terminal at Chabahar port in Iran.
It may be recalled that the union cabinet cleared a proposal to participate in the development of the Iranian port. Also, during his latest visit to Iran, India’s External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid announced that India would invest in Chabahar port project.
The government has reportedly given in-principle approval to an initial investment of $100 million in the Iranian port.
Besides JNPT, union shipping ministry wants Kandla port to run a multi-purpose berth in Chabahar port, which is considered strategically important for the countryÂ’s exports to the landlocked Afghanistan.
Some reports indicate that the ministry is actively involved in investment in the Iranian port project and the details of such participation is being worked out.
Jawaharlal Nehru port is the biggest container facility in the country handling nearly 50 per cent of the containerised cargo. Kandla ranks top among Indian ports in terms of overall volume of cargo. PD Vaghela, Chairman of Kandla Port said the port is prepared to take up the Iranian project.
Kandla has the experience and technical capability to develop and operate multi-purpose cargo terminals, he said.
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