For Andhra Pradesh, the buzzword for faster economic growth is, of late, port-led development, going by the string of investments in developing port and coastal infrastructure.
The State, which has been in dire need of job creation and faster economic growth to counter the loss of economic resources and urban infrastructure since its bifurcation in 2014, is on a mission to spur development through mega investments in port infrastructure.
According to Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, the government is adopting a multi-pronged strategy to use the blue economic infrastructure as a catalyst for growth, including port construction and upgradation, development of economic hubs around ports, and fishing harbours every 50 km along the State’s 974-km coastline.
Special-purpose vehicle
A new area of focus is shipbuilding and ship repair services, along with the construction of greenfield ports. Preparations are underway to set up a shipbuilding and repair cluster at Dugarajapatnam, in Nellore district, at an investment of ₹3,500 crore.
Based on an initial feasibility report, the 2,000-acre project is proposed to be developed through collaboration between the central and State governments. Nearly 1,000 acres will be allocated for core shipbuilding units and the rest for ancillary industries. The proposed greenfield port integrated with a shipbuilding and repair hub would have four dry docks, outfitting jetties, and a ship-lift facility.
The State government is considering floating a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to attract global shipbuilding companies and an estimated ₹26,000 crore investment, apart from generating 5,000 direct and 30,000 indirect jobs.
Policy push
The new maritime policy of Andhra Pradesh aims to develop a ‘global shipyard model’ in the State; the Department of Ports is working on the modalities.
The government anticipates a growth in vessel traffic to the State over the next two to three years, as three state-of-the-art ports become operational at Machilipatnam, Mulapeta (formerly Bhavanapadu) and Ramayapatnam, at an investment of ₹16,000 crore.
Nine new fishing harbours are being developed across the State, including at Uppada, Visakhapatnam, Odarevu, and Kothapatnam, at a cost of ₹350 crore each.
