KERALA: Describing the commissioning of Vizhinjam International Seaport as a proud moment for Kerala, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday said it was not just the opening of a port, but the gate to development prospects of the third millennium.

"This is a dream come true for Kerala. The port opens a link for India to the global maritime, trade and logistics map," Vijayan said in his presidential address at the commissioning ceremony.

He claimed that the determination of the LDF government had revived the project from oblivion and turned it into an international seaport.

Citing the port's salient features, Vijayan said it is for the first time a state government is in the forefront of a port construction. Kerala government is spending Rs 5,370.86 crore out of the total project cost of Rs 8,686 crore, he said.

The Adani Group is spending Rs 2,497 crore of the project cost, while the Centre will be providing the Viability Gap Fund (VGF) of Rs 818 crore, the CM said.

With the commissioning of the port, the country can gradually reduce the annual loss of Rs 220 million dollars incurred while diverting transhipment cargo to foreign ports, he said.

The Vizhinjam project had started its commercial operations well ahead of schedule in 2024. More than 250 ships had anchored at the port since then and its first phase has been commissioned now.

All the three phases of the project will be commissioned by the year 2028, the CM said.

The government had to overcome several hurdles that came before the project, including natural disasters, floods and the Covid-19 epidemic, Vijayan said.

"We did not take a step back during these difficult periods, and the construction company was also very supportive," he said.

Without mentioning the role played by previous Congress-led UDF governments, Vijayan said the project was formulated by the LDF government that came to power in 1996.

He said in 2009 during the next LDF rule, an international finance corporation was authorised to float tenders, but the Centre did not accord sanction to carry forward the project.

An agreement was signed by the previous government which faced several criticisms, he said without mentioning Ommen Chandy's name or the protests against the project by the LDF.

The Chief Minister said the LDF government which came to power in 2016 took up the project with vigour as it felt that ‘politics should not come in the way of development.' He said the many attempts to spread misunderstanding among the people about the project were defeated. The rehabilitation and livelihood problems faced by coastal people were solved by spending Rs 120 crore.

The CM said the project would create more than 5,000 direct job opportunities. "The port will largely help the growth of the state and the nation on a great scale," he said.

Earlier, in his welcome speech, state Ports Minister V N Vasavan praised Chief Minister Vijayan as a ‘Karmayogi' and termed him as the ‘architect' of the Vizhinjam port.