Union Minister, Sonowal dedicates a State-of-the-Art shipbuilding facility to the nation

New Delhi [India], August 16 : The newly built State-of-the-Art shipbuilding facility of Hooghly Cochin Shipyard Limited at Nazirgunge, Howrah, West Bengal was dedicated to the nation by Union Minister of Port, Shipping and Waterways and AYUSH Sarbananda Sonowal on Tuesday, August 16.
As per a press release, the Rs 180 Crore facility, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cochin Shipyard Ltd, a PSE under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways was dedicated to the nation by Union Minister Sonowal.
"I am extremely happy that such a state-of-the-art shipyard is coming up on the banks of the Hooghly in Kolkata. This will provide a great boost in meeting the requirements of new generations, high technology, and greener vessels to propel further growth in inland water transport along the National Waterways. This will also be a great impetus to water transport connectivity to the North-Eastern states. The yard will not only enable economic development in the close region but will also provide direct and indirect employment as well as the development of MSME's and Ancillaries. I wish HCSL all the best and am sure that in the days to come, Hooghly Cochin Shipyard will follow the footsteps of Cochin Shipyard Limited to carry on and further build up on CSL's glorious legacy in creating an Atmanirbhar Bharat as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and also towards the creation of high quality, globally recognized, cleaner and greener ship-building ecosystem" the Minister stated.
Shipping Ministry in Statement said that HCSL was set up reviving the two-century-old HDPEL shipbuilding yard at Nazirgunge and therefore amalgamates its rich and long shipbuilding heritage with the outstanding expertise of CSL, which is the premier shipyard in India with proven experience of designing, building and delivering high-quality complex vessels to clients throughout the world. This is an example of huge contribution to the nation by reviving a sick unit through another PSE and converting it into a modern shipyard.
"HCSL is equipped with sophisticated equipment, experienced workforce as well as QA/QC, NDT and Fire and Safety Systems. HCSL has obtained IMS Certification (ISO 9001-2015 - Quality Certification, ISO 14001-2015 - Environment Safety and ISO 45001-2018 - Health and Safety Certification). The facility is strategically located with both slipway launching (upto 80 Mtrs) and side launching facilities (upto 110 Mtr) as well as outfitting jetties." Ministry added
National Waterway-1 covers Ganga - Bhagirathi - Hooghly for a length of 1620 Km covering states UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and NW-2 covers West Bengal, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Meghalaya. Jal Marg Vikas project is a Government of India initiative for capacity augmentation of shipping and navigation on the national waterways No 1. This would enable commercial navigation of 1500- 2000 ton vessels in Phase 1. The development of the national waterways will provide business opportunities for cargo movements, passenger vessel construction and operations, cruise operations, ship repairs etc. Further, under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, there is an opportunity to build Deep Sea Fishing Vessels at HCSL.
HCSL aims to position itself as a lead player in inland waterway vessel construction in the country. It will serve the inland water transport sector by the construction of inland water vessels for the transport of men and material along and across the National Waterways, mainly Ganga (NW1) and Brahmaputra (NW2).
The State-of-the-Art HCSL would usher in vast Socioeconomic development in the immediate region. This Shipyard would also open up opportunities for setting up of ancillaries and MSME's to support the yard. It will assist in the generation of considerable gainful Employment in the adjoining areas.