'It concerns the sea and the security of the nation. What has happened is a big tragedy.'
The Adani Group is planning to invest Rs 20,000 crore more to complete the remaining three phases of the Vizhinjam International Seaport, the first transshipment port in the country, managing director of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) Karan Adani said in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday. Talking to PTI after the official reception ceremony for 'San Fernando', the first mothership to dock at Vizhinjam, Adani said the port will be a game changer for Indian manufacturers as it reduces logistics cost by 30 to 40 per cent.
'Even one accident can cause problems for the entire coastal system.'
'It will be important strategically and geographically because there is no port in India which is as close to the international shipping route as Vizhinjam.'
Adani Group Chairperson Gautam Adani felicitated Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Modi dedicated the Vizhinjam international deepwater multipurpose seaport to the nation.
The shipping business is like the heaving sea -- it's up and down, observes Shyam G Menon.
Big-ticket investments taking off is crucial for Kerala given the years it lost to labour militancy courtesy the same political forces currently in power, explains Shyam G Menon.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially commissioned the Vizhinjam International Seaport on Friday in Thiruvananthapuram in the presence of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, whose presence at the inauguration, Modi said, will give 'sleepless nights' to many.
According to a situation report issued by the DGS, the oil containment measures have temporarily stabilised the situation, but full risk mitigation will happen only on successful commencement of saturation diving to extract the remaining trapped fuel oil from the vessel, MSC Elsa 3.
The Adani group on Friday moved the Kerala high court seeking the assistance of central forces to continue with construction at the Vizhinjam seaport in Thiruvananthapuram which was marred by violent protests recently halting the work.
Over 3,000 persons have been booked in connection with violent clashes during an ongoing protest against the Adani port project in Kerala's Vizhinjam area on Sunday night.
The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KPCB) is on high alert after a Liberian vessel carrying hazardous cargo sank off the Kerala coast. While no calcium carbide containers have washed ashore yet, a thin layer of oil spill has been detected. The KPCB is working to contain the spill and prevent it from reaching the shore, but rough conditions at sea have hampered efforts to spray dispersants. The board is also taking steps to prevent the oil from reaching the Ashtamudi and Vembanad lakes.
A Liberian cargo ship carrying 640 containers, including 13 hazardous cargoes, has sunk off the coast of Kerala, raising concerns of environmental damage. The ship, MSC ELSA 3, capsized and sank in the early hours of May 25 after listing rapidly. The three remaining crew members were rescued by the Indian Navy. The Indian Coast Guard is monitoring the situation for any oil spills and has positioned a ship with pollution response equipment at the scene. The ship was carrying 84.44 MT of diesel and 367.1 MT of furnace oil, in addition to the hazardous cargo. The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority has cautioned the public against touching any cargo containers or oil spills that may wash ashore.
The political and ideological differences between the Congress and Shashi Tharoor is no longer a matter of whispers.
Adani Group's portfolio companies posted their highest-ever pre-tax profit (EBITDA) of about Rs 90,000 crore in the fiscal year ended March 31 and had a cash balance to cover 21 months of debt servicing, the ports-to-energy conglomerate said on Thursday. The Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation (EBITDA) has more than tripled in six years - from Rs 24,870 crore in 2018-19 to Rs 89,806 crore in 2024-25 (April 2024 to March 2025).
'Reciprocal tariffs are not going to affect India except specific sectors and there are opportunities to capture.'
The 'mediation' by the United States from behind the scene on the diplomatic track appears to be once again working, which calls on both Delhi and Islamabad to show restraint and pull back from a military confrontation, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'In today's political spectrum, it is the Bharatiya Janata Party that always says, nation first.'
If as critics point out, the environmental impact assessment study was commissioned only after the auction process got underway with not all the stakeholders getting to know of it, then the government has already compromised the trust it could have enjoyed with Kerala's public including its coastal communities, points out Shyam G Menon.
The $22.8 billion CK Hutchison ports deal intensifies geopolitical tensions between the US and China. Chinese media has already called it 'a betrayal of all Chinese people'. Shyam G Menon explains how the proposed sale will reshapes global trade infrastructure.
According to the agreement between the government and the company, the Rs 7525 crore project is scheduled to be completed by December 4, 2019.
The success story of Adani's Mundra Port in Gujarat, in terms of efficiency, technology and management, should be replicated at Vizhinjam to ensure that this ambitious project does not fail, say Shehzad Poonawalla and Riya Sinha.
'Adani can attract vessels at a much lower cost to Vizhinjam as he has the financial muscle to do so.'
'All those who participated in the agitation were branded as anti-nationals.'
'The larger story of systematic destruction, which can and has been quantified, goes mysteriously missing from any political and/or public discourse about the ongoing devastation in the Ghats,' notes Prem Panicker.
Sanju Samson, then a skinny 14-year-old, curled on the bed in his hotel room, watched Kolkata Knight Riders' Brendon McCullum hammering a 73-ball 158 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the first-ever IPL match.
The Lok Sabha contest in Thiruvananthapuram is shaping up to be a significant battle involving key candidates like Shashi Tharoor, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, and Panniyan Ravindran. This three-cornered fight highlights the political dynamics in Kerala's capital city, with each candidate bringing their own vision and promises for the region's development, notes Rajeev Srinivasan.
Going against the assurances given to the Kerala high court, the protesters agitating in front of the under-construction Vizhinjam seaport had on Saturday blocked the trucks carrying construction materials to the site.
Unfortunately, the best man does not always win, but I feel enriched by the experience of the campaign and getting to know Rajeev Chandrasekhar, says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
A mob of agitators led by the Latin Catholic church Sunday night attacked Vizhinjam police station in Thiruvananthapuram in protest against the construction of Adani port, injuring at least 29 policemen and damaging police vehicles.
Hundreds of fisherfolk, including women, reached the area via road and sea and broke open the lock of the gate of the project site, raising slogans.
Vijayan, in his detailed speech, said his government wanted to resolve the issue amicably within the framework of law and sought the support of everyone to participate in the process to settle the 140-day-long agitation.
'The police just stood there watching our people being attacked.'
'People should realise that what we are fighting for today is actually for tomorrow, for future generations.'
I hope those who underestimate Rajeev Chandrasekhar will be proved wrong in this fight for Thiruvananthapuram's future, notes Rajeev Srinivasan.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) on Tuesday announced the acquisition of a 95 per cent stake in Gopalpur Ports in Odisha from Shapoorji Pallonji Group and Orissa Stevedores Ltd at an equity value of Rs 1,349 crore. In Gopalpur Ports, Shapoorji Pallonji Group (SP Group) firm SP Port Maintenance Pvt Ltd has a 56 per cent stake and Orissa Stevedores Ltd (OSL) has a 44 per cent stake. Gopalpur Port is an all-weather deep-water berthing port with a capacity of 20 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) situated in Ganjam district of Odisha.
Justice Anu Sivaraman also said that no one will be allowed to play politics under the garb of the ongoing agitation at the multi-purpose seaport at Mulloor in Thiruvananthapuram district.
'We know a day will come very soon when people will realise our fight was for the environment and not against the nation.'
The over 130-day-long protest by fisherfolk against the under-construction Vizhinjam sea port was on Tuesday called off for now.
Kerala's election discourse operates surreptitiously. Its explicit face focuses on important national and local issues. At the same time, it seeks to secure apt communal equations to ensure votes, notes Shyam G Menon.
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