Kochi: The operators of the international container transshipment terminal at Vallarpadam in Kochi have taken up the issue of exemption in cabotage law for the terminal with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a meeting at Masdar City in United Arab Emirates.
It is understood that DP World global chief operating officer Mohammed Sharaf told the Prime Minister that the extension in cabotage law was absolutely necessary for the survival and progress of the port.
The three-year exemption in cabotage law which allows foreign vessels to carry cargo from Vallrpadam to the other Indian ports and vice versa is set to send in September, casting a shadow on the future of the terminal.
Denying reports that DP World have told the Prime Minister that it was pulling out of the Vallarpadam project, the Cochin Port Trust on Monday said Mr Sharaf told the Prime Minister that the government of India and the DP World have invested $400m for the ICTT and the cabotage relaxation will end shortly.
“Also, he hoped that the Indian government would extend the relaxation,” the CPT quoted Mr Sharaf as telling the prime minister.
“The Prime Minister was very happy after the meeting, held his hands and said ‘I want you to build more ports for me’,” the CPT quoted the DP world CEO as saying.
Meanwhile DP World senior vice-president and managing director (subcontinent) Captain Anil Singh said the company is committed to its Indian operations.
“There has been media speculation about our growth and operations,” he said in a release here. “We work consistently at fostering growth and do not comment on or encourage such speculation.”
The Prime Minister met leaders of companies with interest in India including Etisalat, Etihad Airways, Emirates, DP World, Commercial Bank of Dubai and Emaar Group.
Prominent Keralite businessmen including Lulu Group managing director M A Yusuffali, RP Group chairman Ravi Pillai and Sobha Ltd chairman PNC Menon also attended the meet.
The Prime Minister is understood to have told them that India offered an investment opportunity of $1 trillion in infreastructure alone.
