Tamil Nadu: Tuticorin Port Creates A New Record, Handles Highest Parcel Size

Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways says cargo handling through VO Chidambaranar Port in Tamil Nadu’s Tuticorin has shown an upward trend during current fiscal.

Singapore-flagged vessel MV Ince Ankara arrived from Port of Mina Saqr in UAE with 93,719 tonnes of limestone | Photo: PIB

Chennai: The VO Chidambaranar Port in Tamil Nadu’s Thoothukudi, or Tuticorin, created a new record on August 29. It handled a vessel with the highest parcel size, the Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways said on Tuesday.   

The vessel, MV Ince Ankara, arrived from the Port of Mina Saqr in UAE with 93,719 tonnes of limestone, consigned for Chettinad Cements, the ministry said in a statement, adding that the port’s previous record for handling the highest parcel size was achieved on May 14, 2021, when vessel MV Bastions brought 92,935 tonnes of coal.

The Singapore-flagged MV Ince Ankara docked at the port on August 26 and commenced its discharge using three Harbour Mobile cranes that are capable of discharging more than 50,000 tonnes per day. The entire consignment of limestone was unloaded on August 29. 

11.33 MT Cargo Handled Upto July In Current Fiscal

According to the ministry, cargo handling through VOC Port has shown an upward trend during the current financial year. The port handled 11.33 million tonnes of cargo upto July 2021, compared to the 10.58 MT handled during the corresponding period last year, registering a growth of 7.14 per cent. 

The container handling through the port has also seen a remarkable improvement, said the statement. It handled 2.69 lakh TEUs during this fiscal upto July 2021, registering a 21.07 per cent growth, compared to the corresponding period of last fiscal.

The Tuticorin port, which now functions under the administrative control of the Union Ministry of Shipping, has a long history, with Tamil literature and historical records highlighting pearl fisheries and trading in pearls in the 7th to 12th Century AD when Pandya and Chola kings ruled. The records mention a well guarded and natural harbour in Tuticorin where ships anchored. 

The Portuguese sailed into Tuticorin in 1532, while the Dutch captured it in 1649. Many English travellers have recorded their impression of Tuticorin in the 17th Century.

In 1974, Tuticorin was declared as a major port.