Kolkata Port seeks to increase business with Odisha seafood exporters.
Kolkata Port is looking for an opportunity where they can firm its partnership with seafood exporters of Odisha to enhance it’s business volume from the region .The port, known as the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust (SMPK), in collaboration with Calcutta Customs House Agents’ Association (CCHAA) and Association Of Shipping Interest In Calcutta (ASIC) organised ‘Meet Odisha’, a meeting with traders and stakeholders of the seafood export industry here to understand the issues and problems faced by them and explore services to meet their needs.
The officials wanted to get feedback regarding how the port could provide more facilities and improve the services to meet their needs and do better business.”We want to listen to your problems so that we can improve on them,” Kolkata port chairperson Vinit Kumar told the exporters at the meet. The port is focusing on how to increase the partnership and develop a very good relationship with the Odisha region.The port authorities urged traders from the State to use the SMPK’s dock infrastructure in Kolkata for reefer or refrigerated cargo ship to transport perishable cargo like fruits and seafood. While around 2,000 containers from Odisha region have so far been shipped this year, the port eyes to increase it to 6,000 in the current fiscal.
We’ll try to fulfill your expectations so that both of us can benefit through the valuable partnership, good service and lowering cost,” Kumar said.The chairman said SMPK has steady shipping connections with East, Far East and Bangladesh. “The port has also connected Meghalaya and Tripura through the Chittagong port in Bangladesh to explore the opportunities for seafood exports in the North East region,” he said.SMPK officials said efforts are on to make Kolkata port a model gateway for Odisha traders. SMPK deputy chairman Samrat Rahi, CCHAA President Sudip Dey, traffic manager RS Rajhans and members of the UCCI and Seafood Exporters Association were present. A lot of modernisation and infrastructure is still left in Kolkata.
