AP To Opt for Ship Building, Repair Cluster Mentioned in Union Budget

Kakinada: Andhra Pradesh has started taking proactive steps for establishing a ship-building and repair cluster mentioned in the Union Budget proposals on Sunday. AP, with its coast and inland waterways, is suitable for the shipping ecosystem.The state already has two ship building and repair units near the Kakinada Port.Incidentally, the AP government has already set up a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for setting up a shipbuilding cluster over 2,000 acres at Duggarajapatnam under the PPP mode.Shipping trade sources said Duggarajapatnam has the capacity to attract more ship building and repair units in the area, which will benefit Kakinada. Thousands of youth will get employment opportunities in these clusters.AP is blessed with a long coastline, with ports like Gangavaram, Visakhapatnam, Kakinada Deep Water Port, Anchorage Port, Machilipatnam and Krishnapatnam. Thus, there is a compelling need for an additional shipbuilding cluster, which the state can bid for following the proposal in the Union Budget.There are vast opportunities for waterways due to the Godavari River. Use of Buckingham Canal for the purpose is long pending. Ruling parties, in particular Bharatiya Janata Party, have been raising this matter since 1996. The canal can be a source of water transport from Kakinada to Puducherry.But there are many bridges across River Godavari. Thus, those in shipping trade are asking public representatives to focus on national waterways through the sea route.Rajya Sabha member Sana Satish told Deccan Chronicle that he would make efforts to bring funds for ship building and repairs, as well as for the national waterways in AP.



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