Two-day international seminar on ship building

Ahmedabad, Sept 28 (UNI) Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) has organised a two-day international seminar on ''Ship building opportunities in Gujarat'' at the sprawling campus of the Science City from tomorrow.

Former President A P J Abdul Kalam will be the Chief Guest and Chief Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the seminar tomorrow morning.

The seminar has been organised to harness the fact that Gujarat, with its 1,600 km long coastline, is the hotspot for ship building activity.

Dr Dong Shik Shin, CMD of KOMAC, South Korea, will be the Chief International Guest. National as well as International speakers like Mike Murden - CMD (Appledore International, UK) Andrew L Y Hsia (Director General-Taipei Economic and Cultural Center, Taiwan, Ved Prakash Goyal (Former Indian Shipping Minister), Rear Admiral Ajit Tiwari (CMD-Hindustan Shipyard Ltd) and many more will dwell on aspects like essential infrastructure and ancillary industry support necessary to boost ship-building industry.

GMB has identified 10 clusters, consisting of 100 shipyards, with an investment of Rs 50,000 crore. More than 20 companies have evinced interest in ship-building with an investment of Rs 11,000 crore, generating employment for 1,00,000 people.

The sites are coastal belt between Gogha and Mithivirdi in the Gulf of Khambhat, coastal belt between Salaya and Sikka in the Gulf of Kutch, coastal belt between Jodia and Navlakhi in the Gulf of Kutch, on the estuary of Narmada river in the Gulf of Khambhat and on the coastal belt in south Gujarat region near Billimora.

UNI