(a) whether the Government has initiated any steps for promoting the coastal movement of cargo in the country including Karnataka;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether it is a fact that the coastal movement of cargo would cut down fuel cost incurred on road and railway transport; and
(d) if so, the steps taken by the Government to prioritize the coastal movement of cargo ?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF SHIPPING (SHRI PON RADHAKRISHNAN)
(a)&(b):Yes, Madam. The following steps have been taken by the Government of India to increase the coastal movement of cargo in the country, including Karnataka, namely:-
(i) A River–Sea Vessel (RSV) Notification for moderating the technical and manning requirements for such vessels operating within the Indian territorial waters was issued by the Directorate General of Shipping on July 31, 2013.
(ii) Directorate General of Shipping has issued an order declaring the Inland Vessel
(IV) limits for facilitating coastal trade operations.
(iii) Coastal Shipping Rules for coastal vessels operating within 20 miles off the coast have been issued by the Directorate General of Shipping on March 4, 2014.
(iv) Green Channel facility is being provided at major Ports for faster evacuation of coastal cargo.
(v) Major ports have been directed to provide priority berthing to coastal vessels to reduce waiting times of such vessels at the major ports.
(c)&(d):Yes, Madam. As per a study on transportation mode-wise fuel costs, the estimate cost of carriage by coastal shipping is INR 0.25 per tonne-km as compared to INR 1.20 by road and INR 0.60 by rail. The steps taken recently by the Government to prioritize movement of coastal cargo include the following, namely:-
(i) Green Channel facility is being provided at major Ports for faster evacuation of coastal cargo.
(ii) Major ports have been directed to provide priority berthing to coastal vessels to reduce waiting times of such vessels at the major ports.