Nitin Gadkari to launch 1st domestic cruise terminal on Saturday

Mumbai: Union minister of shipping Nitin Gadkari will inaugurate a new domestic cruise terminal at Victoria Dock on Saturday. The same day, the minister will also flag off a Mumbai-Goa luxury cruise service and perform the bhoomipujan for a tank farm at Jawahar Dweep.

The ferry wharf is a century-old in the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) which has been converted into a commercial cruise terminal with halting areas, parking and washrooms. The government in less than `2 crore has done the revamp. It took almost 18 months for the entire domestic terminal project, the Mumbai-Goa cruise will sail from this terminal on October 24. On the occasion of the inauguration of, Mr Gadkari will be present along with K.J. Alphons, minister of state for tourism. The size and shape of old wharf office has been retained, a glass facade has been added to facilitate passengers for a better view from the building. Under the revamp, nearby stone tower has been repaired into a watchtower.

The port trust officials are also looking forward to develop a green belt around the cruise terminal. A museum will soon be developed, which will have vintage telephone booths, carriageways and cannons displayed before the public. Further, the port officials may hand over the operations and maintenance of the terminal to a third party by inviting tenders.

Also, RoRo facility will be provided near the domestic terminal to ferry cars and scooters from Mumbai to Alibaug.

Meanwhile, on the same day, the MbPT will hand over the dry dock to Coachin Shipyard Limited (CSL). MbPT and CSL are to associate with each other for utilising the Indira Dock facility at Mumbai Port to set up a professional ship repair eco system, that would be beneficial for the commercial as well as defence ship repair industry in India. An memorandum of understanding  (MoU) was signed between the two in the month of January this year.