Big Pitch to Develop Ennore Port Infra

CHENNAI: Japan’s ambassador to India Akitaka Saiki, on Thursday noted that infrastructure in the State had to be improved, but he said Chennai possessed a unique geographical advantage for Japanese companies.The Ennore Port had three infrastructural issues that required immediate attention: its poor road network, high port charges and poor facilities, the diplomat said.  He was speaking at a roundtable held by the Confederation of Indian Industry on Infrastructure trends and outlook for Tamil Nadu, and asked the State to interact with the Centre to improve infrastructure at the port. “I had met CM J Jayalalithaa in June and she had asked officials concerned to immediately take necessary steps for their improvement,” he said “Chennai has a unique geographical advantage of being gateway to South East Asia, with young and well-trained human resource. The previous governments did not fulfil the promises made to improve infrastructure and we are hopeful that the new government will,” he noted. There are currently 250 Japanese companies in TN, he added. Saiki also discussed the possibility of linking Bangalore and Chennai along the lines of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor. He also made a mention of Japan’s resilience as its highways could be reopened only three days after the quake and tsunami in March 2011.  Ranganath NK, Chairman of CII, TN was present.