WorldBusiness.co.in

NEW DELHI: Citing security reasons, a parliamentary committee has recommended that the shipping ministry should not allow foreign (MNCs) to undertake port-related activities. The recommendation comes at a time when the ministry is in the process of bidding out 24 projects with an investment of Rs 17,000 crore during the current fiscal.

The standing committee on transport, tourism and culture, in its report on ‘modernzation of major ports’, has observed, “The ports have strategic naval defence systems within their periphery, which will be open to monopoly of MNCs who may control ports and Indian defence secrets will be exposed to foreign countries.”

It has recommended that the ministry examine the experience and performance of public-private partnership projects in the port-related works abroad.

The committee has observed that under the name of privatization, foreign shipping cartels are getting a foot hold in the economic activities of the country. It has said, “It has been propagated that privatization will introduce competition and will reduce port charges but in reality MNCs are charging more terminal handling charges than major ports.” The panel said that in some major ports, profit-making services “are taken over by MNCs leaving behind unremunerated services with the port trust which may convert the port as loss-making units. This has taken away the job of thousands of workers in the ports.”

To ensure that major ports don’t lag behind the privatized non-major ports, the committee has recommended that the government should lay guidelines to prevent the coming
up of any other port in their vicinity.