New Delhi, Apr 16 (UNI) The Shipping Ministry on Friday said that the proposed ‘Roll-on/Roll-Off passenger facility (ROPEX) on Dhamara river to reduce six hour travel time by road between Kaninali in Bhadrak district and Talachua in Kendrapara district in Odisha to one hour by waterways.
The Ministry has accorded administrative approval for sanction of Rs 50.30 crore for developing all-weather ROPAX Jetty and allied infrastructure under the Sagarmala initiative in which the State will fund 50 percent of the cost of the project.
The project will have funding of Rs 110.60 crore which includes construction of RO-PAX Jetty at Kaninali and Talachua, utility infrastructures such as parking area development, navigational aids and dredging.
The development of the existing ghat with all-weather ROPAX jetties has been carried out with intent of accommodating boats, launches and other vessels as well as to ply vessel having capacity to carry 10 light Motor vehicles, 20 Motorbikes along with 60 passengers at a time, simultaneously ensuring safety of all passengers and vehicles.
The project will facilitate indirect employment opportunities to locals around Dhamra river and reduce road distance of 200 km from Talachua to Dhamra.
Kaninali in Bhadrak district and Talachua in Kendrapada district, are located on the northern and southern banks of River Dhamra respectively.
The people of Talachua and nearby villages largely depend upon Dhamra port for their livelihood, which is around four kms from Kaninali Ghat and there has been no connectivity through roads, the local population depends upon passenger ferries at ghats of Kaninali and Talachua to cross a stretch of seven Km on the said river on private boats without adequate safety measures.
This project will enhance the safety of passengers and vehicles with state-of-the-art utility infrastructure. The connectivity will increase the commercial and business activities and uplift the socio-economic status of the surrounding region, the Ministry of Port, Shipping and Waterways said here.
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