Judge Probing Adani’s Vizhinjam Port Deal With Oommen Chandy Govt Rushing To Submit Report

The Justice C N Ramachandran Nair Commission that is investigating charges of irregularities in the erstwhile Oommen Chandy government signing an agreement with the Adani group for the setting up of the Vizhinjam Port near Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala is allegedly trying to rush through to submit its report soon without some mandatory hearings.

Malayalam daily Madhyamam reported that the commission is preparing to submit its report without hearing arguments as per the revised terms of reference. The Ramachandran Nair commission was appointed on 17 July last year and its term was extended by a further six months.

Stating that it will not hear any more pleas, the commission said if any party wants to bring any important aspect to its attention it has to be given in writing by 14 August. The daily said Justice C N Ramachandran Nair was rushing through to submit the report soon since he could take over as the head of police prison reforms commission that will be set up soon.

The Pinarayi Government had ordered an enquiry into the agreement signed for the Vizhinjam port after a Comptroller and Auditor General Report found that the state had incurred losses in going for the deal.

Work to complete the Rs 7,525 crore Vizhinjam Port is currently on but it will likely miss the 1,000-day deadline for the first phase to be completed by December 2019. The delay could result in the Adani group paying Rs 12 lakh for every day of delay. The work was affected by the Ockhi cyclone that hit the area in November 2017.

Once it is completed, Vizhinjam will be India’s deepest port with the proposed berths being dredged up to 72 feet and compete against Colombo port to offer berths to mother ships. The Adani group has won a 40-year concession to design, build and operate the port.