Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], January 24 (ANI): Congress and Communist Party of India (Marxist) indulged in a credit war for the Vizhinjam International Seaport after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the Phase 2 expansion of the project on Saturday.

Leader of Opposition in Kerala Assembly, VD Satheesan, called former Chief Minister and Congress leader Oommen Chandy the 'architect of the port,' while Kerala Finance Minister and CPI(M) leader KN Balagopal said that the port project was conceived during former Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan's tenure.

Satheesan alleged a delay in the completion of the projects. While accusing the state government of a 'shortfall,' the Congress MLA asked everyone to be united for the Vizhinjam port.

Satheesan said, 'Former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy is the architect of the port. The port should have been inaugurated in 2019 itself. Even after 11 years, the rail and road connectivity could not be completed. The harbour meant for fishermen could not be started. The Outer Ring Road could not be initiated. The Growth Corridor could not be launched. Thus, none of the announced projects were completed. We need to understand where the shortfall occurred. Those issues must also be resolved, and we must move forward. Everyone should stand united for the Vizhinjam port.'

Kerala Finance Minister and CPI(M) leader KN Balagopal refuted VD Satheesan's claim. He said, 'The project was conceived during former Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan's tenure. At that time, I was with him as his political secretary. The project could not move forward because the Centre did not grant approval.'

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday inaugurated the development of the second phase of the Vizhinjam International Seaport, calling it the state's 'economic backbone.'

Union Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Karan Adani, MD of Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd, were also present at the ceremony.

Addressing the gathering, CM Vijayan said that Kerala has responded to 'criticism and mockery' by turning such projects into reality and added that Adani Ports has adopted a 'cooperative approach' for the Vizhinjam port.

Located in Vizhinjam, Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) is developing this deep-sea water port as India's first Mega Transhipment Container Terminal. Vizhinjam Port offers large-scale automation for quick turnaround of vessels with infrastructure to handle Megamax containerships. Its capacity in phase 1 is to be 1 million TEUs, and in subsequent phases, another 6.2 million TEUs will be added.

Today, Karan Adani announced a Rs 16,000 crore investment under Phase 2 and a total commitment of Rs 30,000 crore, with which Vizhinjam will scale to 5.7 million TEUs by 2029. (ANI)