VIZHINJAM PORT (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Infrastructure)

Context: Recently, a fresh debate has emerged in Kerala regarding the construction of the Vizhinjam international seaport, India's first deep-water transshipment port.

Vizhinjam Port Project

• Located: Thiruvananthapuram, Vizhinjam, Kerala.
• It  is India's first international deep- water transhipment port.
• It has a natural depth of more than 18 meters, scalable up to 20 meters, which is crucial to get large vessels and mother ships.
• It is located 10 nautical miles from the international shipping route.
• The Rs 7,600-crore project is being executed by Adani Ports and SEZ Private Limited.
• Attempts to execute the project were made by successive regimes. 
• Hong Kong-flagged Zhenu Hua 15 docked at the seaport under construction. This is meant for moving cargo from ships to the shore. Seven more such cranes would be brought from China in the coming months.
• India has 13 major ports.