Govt approves Rs.515 crore grant for Sagar Port in WB

The Dollar Business Bureau 

The Central Government on Tuesday said it has given its nod for a grant of Rs.515 crore for the development of proposed project of Sagar Port in West Bengal. 

“The Central Government has given in-principle approval to a grant of Rs.515 crores to make the development of the proposed Sagar Port project in West Bengal financially viable,” Shipping Ministry released in a statement. 

For implementation of the project, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), Bhor Sagar Port Limited (BSPL), has been integrated, with a majority of 74 percent equity being held by Kolkata Port Trust with the remaining 26 percent by the Government of West Bengal. 

A detailed project report (DPR) for the project will be prepared by IIT Madras, which includes studies for land reclamation, shore protection and physical modeling for utilizing the dredge material. The preparing of the DPR is in progress. The work on developing port connectivity is also underway. 

To connect the Sagar Island with the mainland, a road-cum-rail bridge has been proposed over the Muri ganga river. National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL) has drafted the DPR for the bridge, having an expected cost of Rs.1,822 crore,” it said. 

In addition, the connectivity of this bridge to the network of National Highways and railways has also been taken up, it added. 

It further said that the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has given its consent for taking up widening work of NH-117 to make it into a four-lane from Kakdwip to Joka and up to the bridge to Sagar Island. 

A survey to determine the alignment for connecting port with mainland railway network has been approved by the Railway Board.