BL reported that there is growing discontent in Kerala against the state road safety authority’s recent decision prohibiting the movement of container trailers for 12 hours, from 8 AM to 8 PM.
The problems likely to be thrown up by the proposed restriction, it is feared, will be many. The trailer operators will hike rates for their long idle time, shippers might miss schedules and, to cap it all, the congestion in the terminal, already acute, will only worsen.
Following the proposed restriction, the owners of container trailers will be forced to keep their vehicles idle for long and, in the process, suffer losses as they will not be able to undertake more than one operation, compared to more than one short term trip being undertaken at present. A large number of container trailer workers, such as drivers and cleaners, will also stand to lose out because of the erosion in their income, caused by reduced hours of operation.
As per report, the worst affected will be Kochi port and the upcoming International Container Transshipment Terminal at Vallarpadam.
Trade and industry circles have described the decision as yet another example of thoughtless infrastructure related planning at a time when the state is poised for rapid growth.
According to Mr CP Xavier president of Cochin Custom House Agents Association, the decision will spell disaster for Kochi port, particularly because no such decision will apply to any of the competing neighboring ports at Tuticorin, New Mangalore and Chennai.
He said that “The neighboring ports have already begun aggressive marketing, wooing importers and exporters of the State to divert traffic to them from Kochi adding that As it is, Kochi is a costly port vis a vis these ports and the proposed restriction will only make Kochi port even costlier.”
According to Mr Satish Murti president of Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the road safety authority’s decision to restrict container trailer movement has come as a bolt from the blue to trade and commerce circles, especially exporters and importers who critically depend on Kochi port.
At present, approximately 650 containers move in and out of the terminal every day and the throughput is set to increase in coming days.
(Sourced from Business Line)
