IIT Chennai to host National Technology Centre for Ports, Waterways and Coasts

Minister for road transport and highways, shipping and water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation Nitin Gadkari on Monday laid the foundation stone for setting up of a National Technology Centre for Ports, Waterways and Coasts (NTCPWC), at IIT Chennai.

The ministry of shipping and IIT Chennai also signed a memorandum of understanding for this at the event at IIT Chennai.

NTCPWC, being set up under the shipping ministry's flagship programme Sagarmala, will act as a technology arm of the ministry for providing engineering and technological inputs and support for ports, Inland Waterways Authority of India and other institutions.

It will carry on applied research in the areas of 2D and 3D modelling of ocean, coastal and estuarine flows, sediment transport and morphodynamics, navigation and manoeuvring, dredging and siltation, port and coastal engineering-structures and breakwaters, autonomous platforms and vehicles, experimental and CFD modelling of flow and hull interaction, hydrodynamics of multiple hulls and ocean renewable energy.

The centre will provide indigenous software and technology, prepare technical guidelines and standards and address port and maritime issues with models and simulations. The centre will not only help generate new technology and innovations but also work towards their successful commercialsation.  It will provide learning opportunities for the people working in the ministry of shipping.

NTCPWC is being set up at a cost of Rs70.53 crore to be shared by the ministry of shipping, IWAI and the major ports. The shipping ministry will provide a grant towards capital expenditure for creating facilities like Field Research Facility (FRF), Sedimentation and Erosion Management Test Basin and Ship/Tow Simulator.

The centre will be self sustainable in three years through industry consultancy projects for Indian and global port and maritime sector.

The setting up of NTCPWC would give a boost to the development of indigenous technology relevant to the port and maritime sector in India. This would also be a major shot in the arm for the government's 'Make in India'' programme, and provide a push to its `Sagarmala' programme.

Envisioned as a world class state-of-the-art centre, NTCPWC will be a hub for latest technology tools and reduce our dependence on foreign institutions. It will also reduce the cost of research drastically and result in cost and time savings for work in the port and maritime sector.