Santwana Bhattacharya By

NEW DELHI:Even as the hopes of crores of fans were dashed after the Men In Blue exited the World Cup in the semi-final with Australia, Shipping, Road and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari vigorously batted for holistic development of India’s “impoverished” coastal zone and internal waterways, raising hopes of a 2 per cent boost to the country’s GDP.

With the promise of modernising and upgrading 200-odd ports, starting with 12 major ones operated by the Centre, 12 smart cities, Coastal Economic Zones, new railway connectivity and a new legislation to nationalise 101 internal waterways for cheap transportation and granting infrastructure status to ship-building in Kochi and Kandla, Gadkari on Thursday unveiled what looked like a rather ambitious blueprint of coastline development.

Calling it “Blue revolution — Sagar Mala project” that would not just rival China’s port-land infrastructure but would be comparable to any of the first world facilities, Gadkari said, “It is the priority project of the Prime Minister.”

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday, for the first time, gave “in principle” approval to what is essentially a “project proposal”. As part of the project, 101 internal waterways have been identified with special focus on Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Odisha, West Bengal, Assam, Gujarat and NE states, which would be developed as national waterways.

The ambitious project “will boost India’s GDP by 2 per cent”, Gadkari added.

For starters, an allocation of Rs 4,000 crore has been made for the SEZ at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, which is one of the 12 major ports to be developed. A National Perspective Plan for the entire coastline will be prepared within the next six months, he said, adding that potential geographical regions that would be called Coastal Economic Zones are also being identified. Maharshtra, Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal will be the focus areas, Gadkari said, adding that he has also sought “infrastructure status for the shipbuilding industry, particularly keeping Cochin and Kandla in mind”.

Work on 40 projects that include last mile rail connectivity to ports will begin this year. Nearly 612 km of railways would be improved at Rs 2,372 crore. Gadkari will head the multi-disciplinary panel which will oversee the project’s implementation.

1,208 Islands to get more Touristy

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said that 1,208 islands have been identified for development to attract tourists. As many as 189 light houses that are on the islands will also be developed for the entertainment and hospitality industry as part of the project.