JNPT breaks ground on inland Indian port

The Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, which manages the Port of Jawaharlal Nehru in western India, broke ground on the development of an inland port in Jalna, India.    The Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), which manages the Port of Jawaharlal Nehru in western India, broke ground on the development of a dry port in Jalna, India in order to strengthen operations at the coastal port, according to a statement from JNPT.
   Jalna, which is situated approximately 200 miles northeast of the Port of Jawaharlal Nehru in the state of Maharashtra, is located near the industrial town of Aurangabad.
   The dry port will encompass more than 185 hectares of land. JNPT has already paid the Government of Maharashtra 84 million rupees (U.S. $1.26 million) and farmers in different villages 4 million rupees for land, India’s Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Shri Nitin Gadkari said. The port will comprise 163.02 hectares of land from the government and 22.09 hectares of land from individual farmers.
   Some of the warehouse facilities at the dry port will be temperature-controlled for agricultural products, which can be dispatched by rail to various parts of India. This provides farmers with a lower transportation cost without any third-party intervention, said JNPT.
   In addition, the new inland port will result in lower costs incurred for the transportation of goods from Aurangabad to JNPT, and will also feature a designated area for a tank farm facility to store edible oil.