President Droupadi Murmu graced the ‘Boita Bandana’ (boat worship) ceremony, organised by the Paradip Port Authority. Boita Bandana is an annual festival observed in Odisha, remembering the ancient maritime glory of the state, earlier known as ‘Kalinga’.
The president expressed her pleasure that Paradip Port’s cargo handling capacity has doubled in the last decade. It is poised to become the largest port on the East Coast, she said, adding that it also got the ‘Port of Operational Excellence Award’ at the Global Maritime India Summit – 2023.
Murmu also inaugurated the Multi-Modal Logistics Park which she hoped will give a new direction to the transparent development of trade.
President Droupadi Murmu said there is a need to further strengthen the infrastructure of ports in the country and increase their efficiency.
Stating that the government’s Sagarmala programme is a commendable step to strengthen the port activities, Murmu said the Government of India is working to realise the vision of ‘Ports for Prosperity’ and ‘Ports for Progress’.
Stating that India’s ports need to function with greater efficiency in line with global standards, she said: “That is why there is a need to further strengthen the infrastructure of Indian ports and increase their efficiency.”
The president said that historic Baliyatra is a symbolic boat trip of merchants to the islands of Java, Sumatra and Bali. Baliyatra is a unique festival celebrated in memory of Odisha’s glorious past.
She said that the Vessel Traffic Management and Information System (VTMIS) enabled new modern signal stations will make navigation through this port safer and orderly.
Odisha Governor Raghubar Das and Union Minister Bishweswar Tudu also joined the event. Murmu also flagged off a special boat at the event, commemorating the state’s ancient maritime glory. The president also boarded a special vessel ‘Amogh’ of the Indian Coast Guard.
