Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal today flagged off the maiden voyage of steel cargo-laden barge from Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port in Bengal's Haldia to Pandu port in Guwahati through the Indo Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR).
This maiden voyage showcases multi-modal movement of cargo along with harnessing of the power of river-sea combination.
It is transporting a consignment of 1798 tonnes of finished steel products by Tata Steel Limited in Jamshedpur.
The two barges, named DB ABDUL KALAM and DB KALPANA CHAWLA, are carrying 900 tonnes each. After unloading the consignment at Pandu, the barges will return with industrial coal cargo for discharge at Kolkata Dock System (KDS). The barges will move along National Waterway 1 (river Ganga) onto IBPR and finally on National Waterway 2 (river Brahmaputra).
Minister of State for Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Shantanu Thakur, also attended the event.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed between Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port (SMPK) and Brahmaputra Cracker and Polymer Limited (BCPL) to set up a streamlined logistics chain for movement of feed stock for petrochemical complex of BCPL at Lepetkata near Dibrugarh.
The MoU will help set up a streamlined logistic chain for movement of feed stock like Naphtha, Propane, Pentane etc. from Haldia Dock Complex (HDC) for Lepetkata in Dibrugarh. On its return leg, the finished products and by-products are to be routed for distribution through the Port for consumption of both domestic and international market. The project also envisages setting up of tankage facility for storing imported feed stock of BCPL like Naphtha, Propane, Pentane , etc., at Haldia for which HDC, SMPK will provide land and railway connectivity.
Speaking at the occasion, Mr Sonowal said, "Under PM Gati Shakti, the government has envisaged an integrated approach towards communication that is efficient, economical & environment friendly. A synergy between inland waterways and ports is being worked out to serve as a multi modal logistic hub for handling major EXIM a domestic cargo."
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