Ahead of the ‘Maritime India Summit’ 2021, the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) has signed 13 different Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) /agreements worth ₹7,510 crore to boost water transport and tourism in the city. In a press conference on Wednesday, MbPT chairman Rajiv Jalota said that MoUs worth ₹12,000 crore more are in the pipeline. The agreements include starting water taxis from the domestic cruise terminal (DCT) in south Mumbai for ₹75 crore, introducing harbour cruise tourism for ₹15 crore, developing a Marina for ₹370 crore, and shipbuilding and allied activities for ₹1,300 crores among other agreements. In talks for decades now, MbPT is looking at starting water taxi services from south Mumbai to Belapur and Nerul soon. “The idea is that it should be in a similar range as normal taxis, otherwise people would not prefer water transport,” the official said.

Source: Hindustan Times February 24, 2021 18:33 UTC