The Kerala government on Tuesday refused to give the Adani group more time to commission the first phase of the country’s first International Multipurpose Deepwater Seaport project at Vizhinjam, The Hindu reported.
The port, located around 16 km south of the capital Thiruvananthapuram is being built and will be operated on a public private partnership basis between the Kerala government and Adani Vizhinjam Ports Ltd.
The group began construction in December 2015, and was to commission Phase I of the project on December 4, 2019. It has, however, asked the government for a 16-month extension, citing the damage caused by the Ockhi cyclone in November 2017. The cyclone damaged two dredgers, which have been pulled out for repairs, the group said.
Adani group said construction work had to be stalled for months as there was a scarcity of granite, and pointed out that protests by the local population since October 2017 over delayed compensation for their land was also affecting the pace of the project, the Deccan Chronicle reported.
On Tuesday, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told Karan Adani, the CEO of the Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd , that the government will not extend the deadline, but added that all clearances required to source the granite will be given within a month, The Hindu reported.
The government said its decision not to extend the deadline followed a study by an independent engineer appointed for the project who ruled out the need for an extension.
A spokesperson for Adani Vizhinjam Ports Ltd told The Hindu the group will “put in all efforts to complete the project”.
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