Ministry clears plan to restructure marina project at Mumbai Port

The Mumbai Port may soon have a state-of-art marina, as the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways clearing the plan to restructure the development of a Marina at Princess Dock in Mumbai Port to promote the city as a world class tourist destination.

 

 

As per the reports,  project, estimated to cost some Rs575.19 crore, will be implemented on a public-private-partnership (PPP) basis with a concession period 45 years, a ministry official said.An earlier plan to develop the marina failed to take off due to lack of bidder interest, forcing the port authority to restructure the project.

 

The Maharashtra Maritime Board had made attempts to set up a marina at the Gateway of India and one near Radio Club but the project did not take off. CIDCO has also planned a marina in Belapur Navi Mumbai, but the project is yet to take shape.

 

 

A marina or dock is where yachts and other small vessels can moor up to get supplies and fuel and for maintenance checks. Unlike a port, which accommodates large passenger and cargo ships, a marina is a small basin. Often, they can be home to several small luxury yachts.

 

A marina not only provides a secure environment for yachts and boats, but also offers related services like maintenance, spare parts, accessories, housekeeping and fuelling.

 

There are options for recreational facilities and restaurants. Thus, they have the potential to create lakhs of direct and indirect employment opportunities. Despite having a coastline of over 7,500 km and a rising tide of millionaires, the country still does not have a world-class marina for small luxury vessels.

 

Most of the yachts and boats in India moor at berths operated by existing ports at a high cost. Hence, setting up marinas would not only help port trusts to generate additional revenue but also create jobs and reduce costs for owners of luxury boats.

 

At present, India’s only functional marina is in Kochi, Kerala. Further, in February 2023, former Karnataka Chief Minister announced setting up of marina at Byndoor in Udupi district.

 

The Princess Dock at Mazgaon in south Mumbai, where the Mumbai Port is proposing to develop the marina, was built in the eighteenth century during the British rule in India to manage the increase of maritime traffic in Mumbai.

 

The detailed project report (DPR) prepared for the project, while making a case for the marina said that “a considerable fact for a marina in Mumbai is the high number of yachts that visit or are based in the city.”

 

“Moreover, the fleet anchors the Gateway of India monument, requiring owners to step on-board via a small slipway or, in the case of larger yachts, hire tenders to ferry them around. Having the most number of privately owned leisure boats, it is a ready market for the marina. Due to unavailability of a designated marina of Mumbai, at any given time, around 200 small leisure boats can be seen moored near the Gateway of India,” said the DPR.

 

Considering the historical-cultural importance of Mumbai, which is also India’s financial and commercial capital, the idea is also to look at the marina from the perspective of opening the “city to tourism by sea”.