18/07/2025
In the past decade (since the LDF came to power in 2016), Kerala repeatedly announced ambitious port-led industrial projects around Trivandrum â yet most remain on paper. Vizhinjam International Seaport itself has proven its mettle (handling ~8.5 lakh TEU by mid-2025), but associated industrial growth has stalled.
Key proposals include an Outer Area Growth Corridor(OAGC) around Trivandrum, a "VizhinjamâKollamâPunalur Growth triangleâ, a new âVizhinjam Port Cityâ logistic hub, large land allocations via VISL/Kinfra, and dozens of private investment pitches. In each case the state government has touted future benefits (often with comparisons to Dubai/Singapore/Shenzen port cities) but actual implementation has lagged.
For example, a KIIFB-backed Vizhinjam Port City company was proposed (codenamed KIFCORE/KIFDAC) with plans for a âš3 lakh crore industrial zone. In theory this includes multiple new townships and logistics parks around the 63 km Trivandrum Outer Ring Road (ORR). In practice, none of these projects have broken ground â the ORR itself was repeatedly shrunk from an original 100m wide road plan down to a mere 45m wide road under pressure, drawing sharp expert criticism. In contrast, recently Andhra Pradesh government after repeated interventions with the Centre government won approval for a 140m-wide ORR(originally planned as 70m wide) at Amaravati (Greenfield capital city under construction) by insisting on future needs, whereas Kerala approved reducing the width to 45m for an industrial fright corridor.
Planned Projects (2016â2025): In its 2024â25 budget the LDF government unveiled the âVizhinjamâKollamâPunalur Growth Triangle Projectâ, explicitly modelled on global port cities. Industrial parks, manufacturing units, and storage hubs would be created in that triangle, leveraging Vizhinjamâs transshipment traffic. An empowered KIIFB company is to acquire land along key corridors (KollamâShenkottai NH, PunalurâVizhinjam road, etc.) for a combined logistics/IT city.
Other bullet-point proposals included:
Outer Area Growth Corridor (OAGC): Intended as a buffer around Trivandrum, with âeconomic nodesâ at Vizhinjam, Kovalam, Kattakada, Nedumangad, Vembayam, Mangalapuram, Kilimanoor, Kallambalam, etc.. This corridor (flanking the 63km Outer Ring Road) was envisioned to become a âself-financing townshipâ covering 2.5 km on each side.
Kinfra Land Parks: The state industry agency Kinfra identified 340 acres in peripheral Trivandrum (Neyyattinkara, Balaramapuram, Kattakada, Kuttichal) for new industrial parks. A draft master plan even defined eight ânew townshipsâ as part of the OAGC. Land pooling was initially favored, though the government is now eyeing direct acquisition instead.
Port-led Cluster (VISL): Vizhinjam Port Ltd.âs MD requested ~70â100 acres to kick-start a port-led industrial cluster â noting that 600 acres are ultimately needed to build a âgateway trafficâ ecosystem. This state entity (VISL) argues port success will âbring in investorsâ for export-oriented manufacturing.
Vizhinjam Conclave 2024: A recent investment conclave drew 51 proposals (warehouses, logistics parks, etc.). Reports note the government is considering direct acquisition of land (dropping the old pooling model). Proposed plans include a 6.3 sq km logistics hub at Vizhinjam and a 4.01 sq km tourism/health hub at Kovalam, plus an Adani SEZ under construction.
Road-Rail Connectivity: Proposals also include a new TirunelveliâThiruvananthapuram highway (via Ambasamudram) to shorten the 160 km current route by ~90 km. The proposed Greenfield NH parallel to the MC road has gone up to DPR stage. Railway connectivity to the port is proposed through India's second longest underground railway tunnel. Trivandrum Outer Ring Road was proposed as 80km long National Highway 866. Kollam-Shenkottai National Highway is getting a new Greenfield alignment that starts near the ORR terminating point(Navaikulam) at Kadampattukonam in Trivandrum district.
New Port City Scheme: The Finance Minister announced that a KIIFB company (KIFCORE/KIFDAC) would holistically develop the Vizhinjam area into an integrated port city. This involves aggregated land acquisition and ready infrastructure for investors, modeled on Gujaratâs Mundra initiative. Official figures cited (âš1,000 cr KIIFB funding; âš3 lakh cr expected investment; 1,456 km² zone; 10,000 jobs) emphasize the grand vision. Facilities are promised for logistics, MSME clusters, IT parks, etc..
Stalled Implementation: Despite these announcements, no major port-led industry has materialized in Trivandrum. The OAGC itself âremains in limboâ â local authorities have yet to approve the final master plan and DPR. Times of India (June 2025) reports âprocedural delaysâ have stalled every phase. Similarly, the proposed VizhinjamâTirunelveli highway was dropped; officials admitted the plan was shelved once Kerala pivoted to KollamâShenkottai and ORR projects. In August 2024, NHAI even forced the ORR from 100m to 45m width to cut land costs â a choice experts decried as âunscientificâ for a freight corridor (anything below 60m âwonât meet the corridorâs purposeâ with port expansion). As well as ORR's link road to Mangalapuram is also frozen which reduced the total ORR length from 78km to 63km. Greenfield NH parallel to the MC road is also dropped. Construction of Railway connectivity to the port has not yet started even though it was planned to be completed with port's phase 1 commissioning. Ironically even after 10 years of starting the port construction, the 2km road linking the port to the National Highway 66 is not yet completed. No dedicated freight corridors linking Vizhinjam port has been proposed although the railway line in Kerala is currently operating in overcapacity.
Land availability remains a chronic excuse â yet land is being cleared elsewhere. Notably, new airports are being built (e.g. Sabarimala Greenfield Airport, 2,570 acres acquired) by repurposing rubber estates â evidence that large contiguous land exists if prioritized. Kerala is now turning down Sharaf Groupâs proposed âš5,000 cr inland container terminal (announced during Invest Kerala Global Summit) investment by saying âfind your own landâ, yet nearby Tamil Nadu approved 2,260 acres in Tirunelveli (100 km away) for new SIPCOT parks specifically to capture Vizhinjamâs overflow. Likewise, although the Vizhinjam Poovar coast was identified long ago as ideal for a deepwater shipyard (20â30m depth), state action is only now surfacing. (Keralaâs 2025 budget just pledged to co-develop a Poovar shipyard with the Centre, but the state government has not send any proposal to the Centre despite Central Government asked all state government to submit proposals of suitable shipyard locations in their state)
Comparisons: Kochi vs. Trivandrum. The disparity with Kochi(another port city in Kerala) is stark. Kerala has fully backed the KochiâBengaluru Industrial Corridor, securing âš2,608 cr for it and acquiring ~2,185 acres around Kochi (Palakkad node). By contrast, no analogous corridor to Thiruvananthapuram exists even though Vizhinjam is a port of national importance. Kochi is also slated for a major highway (a new 151km KochiâTheni Greenfield six-lane road to Tamil Nadu), whereas no new interstate highways are developing in view of Vizhinjam Port. In ship-building, Cochin Shipyard Ltd. is rapidly expanding with foreign partners: a âš2,000 cr new shipbuilding yard is planned on Cochin Port land, augmenting recent âš1,799 cr dry-dock investments. Neither the Centre nor Keralaâs planners have delivered a comparable project on the Vizhinjam/Poovar side yet.
(This is not mere regionalism: itâs reality check on the attitude of government towards port-led industrialisation in two major port cities. The government invested hundreds of crores in the Kochi industrial corridor and acquired thousands of acres nearby Palakkad for industrialisation, whereas for Vizhinjam, government has not yet able to acquire atleast 100acres for industries.)
Comparisons: Tamil Naduâs Southern Push. Tamil Nadu has eagerly embraced Vizhinjamâs potential. In July 2025 TN approved four new SIPCOT parks in Tirunelveli district (total 2,260 acres) for this purpose, plus a city airport at Tuticorin. By contrast, Kerala claims âno landâ locally and even suggests investors go to Palakkad (350 km away near Kochi). Pune-based experts note this disconnect: Vizhinjam cargo destined for Kerala is already partly diverted to TN, which is proactively gearing up. Unlike Kerala, TN sees the opportunity and moves on it.
Governance and the LDF Record: The LDF has governed Kerala since May 2016 with large majorities, and Trivandrum district itself returned 13 LDF MLAs out of 14. Yet none of the many 2015â2025 proposals around Vizhinjam have been realized on the ground. Experts repeatedly warned (as early as 2013) that Vizhinjamâs full benefits require road and industrial infrastructure, but those have been slow-walked. In fact, sources note that outside investors are frustrated: one said the government seems âin no hurryâ despite launching project web portals and conclaves. The Kerala government has often emphasized studies and future plans (even inviting global bids for a mega-port city) but critics say it has âsilently killedâ projects by delay and dithering, undermining confidence.
How to Rectify: Going forward, Kerala must accelerate and execute. The state must finalize the Special Investment Region (SIR) legislation and OAGC plan immediately, and invoke direct land acquisition where pooling has failed. The ORR should be designed to handle future traffic of container trucks â indeed, traffic experts warn the current 45m design (30m road + 7.5m shoulders) is inadequate. A ThiruvananthapuramâTirunelveli highway via Ambasamudram (a federal NH project) should be revived, distributing freight traffic eastward and relieving NH66/ORR congestion. The state should actively help Sharaf (and others) acquire land â as already identified, ~100 acres are available for an ICD near Vizhinjam â instead of telling them to find land alone. It should also implement the Poovar shipyard plan in tandem with the port. New industrial corridors linking manufacturing hubs should be established (Bangalore-Kochi corridor can be extended to Vizhinjam via proposed NH parallel to MC road or new corridor can be planned along Kollam-Shenkottai or Trivandrum-Tirunelveli Highways. Acquire land in Trivandrum and nearby districts for industrial parks. Projects like Vizhinjam-Punalur-Kollam Growth Triangle and Vizhinjam Port City Projects should be fast tracked. Simply put, with Vizhinjam now commercially operational, Kerala must turn years of studies into actual shovel-ready projects.
Vizhinjam is Indiaâs gateway to global trade(the only transshipment port in the country and the port where 75% of India's transshipment cargo is about to be handle), the government must build the freight corridors and industrial belts to match. As one local planner noted, âthere is no time to wasteâ on port-related industries.
After ten years of promises, the people of Trivandrum expect concrete action â not mere announcements.
