
Kandla port that imports the largest quantity of fertilizers among the country’s 12 major ports is now going to have a facility for its mechanized handling at this port.
This being an important project of KPT,work order was given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the very presence of shipping minister Nitin Gadkari, his ministers of the state P. Radhakrishnan and Mansukh L. Mandaviya,shipping secretary Rajive Kumar and Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani in a main function of the PM’s Kandla visit at Gandhidham on May 22nd, 2017.
The letter of Acceptance was received by Manoj Mansukhani, son of shipping icon Bhagwan Mansukhani for their family company, Rishi shipping from PM Modi.
‘This was a great honour to us as receiving work order from the country’s top man, Modiji, was a dream come true for us. This also adds to our responsibility as we have to work hard to fulfill the faith and hope of Modiji and we will leave no stone unturned in our endeavor ‘’Manoj told this paper soon after receiving the work contract.
It is a whooping Rs.122 cr project for mechanized handling of fertilizer at Kandla which handles 3 millions of fertilizers. The fertilizers, finished products are imported from Iran, China and the Gulf Countries. The products include DAP, Urea and Mop. Since Urea went to gray market, the Modi govt decided to its neem coating and again Kandla was first to do that. Needless to say, it was Rishing shipping which installed required plant in short time in a KPT godown. Since fertilizer was urgently required product for agro operations before monsoon, it was decided to undertake mechanized handling of it and KPT invited tenders for execution of engineering, procurement and constructions of mechanized rake loading facility at the port, three parties gave their bids, two being from Delhi while Rishi being local one. The bid of Rishi was accepted.
‘We will be installing 20 bagging plants by January next with handling capacity at 1.5 million. We have an experience of long years and we would be able to do the work successfully. The contract is for 8 years, he said.
Mechanization of Fertilizer Handling Facility

The private shipping and stevedoring services providing companies at Kandla do not have hay days and facing financial crunch. Still, they paid full bonus to their workers and employees at per rule.’’ Though we are slightly better off than other service providers, we are facing stiff completion in business. We handle fertilizer, coal and wooden logs .But we paid bonus at the rate of 8.33 percent to our all employes and workers’’ Neetu Mansukhani, director finance at her own company, Rishi shipping said. The company is the biggest employer at Kandla and the single largest handler of cargo at this port.
Who are Gujarat’s top Income Tax payers? Here are some names....
Dated : Ahmedabad, 21 March 2013
Gujarat’s top individual taxpayer this year is pharma businessman Navnitlal Shah who has paid Rs 10.50 crore advance tax. Last year he had paid Rs 3.25 crore tax. On the second number is Manoj Mansukhani who has paid Rs 5.50 crore advance tax, which was Rs 4 crore last year. Third is Balvantrai Batliwala who paid Rs 5.23 crore tax this year, little lesser than Rs 5.30 crore last year.
13 in Gujarat pay over 1 crore each as advance tax
Dated : TNN, May 8, 2014, 01.15 AM IST
The top taxpayers' list comprises people from all types of areas - from pharmaceuticals to sports. Manoj Mansukhani who runs a shipping company in Kandla, and Udaykumar Chhabildas Patel of a city-based manufacturing Industry, paid advance tax worth Rs 4.2 crore each.13 in Gujarat pay over 1 crore each as advance tax
NEWS DATE : 04 NOV 2015, Source: Exim News Service - Gandhidham, Nov. 3
Transloading suggested as an option for handling large vessels
Rishi Shipping facilitates discharge of 163,808 t of coal at Kandla Port outer anchorage @ 27,686 t a dayMr B. K. Mansukhani, Managing Director of Rishi Shipping, has intimated in a communiqué that the Capesize vessel m. v. Cape Jupitor (of which Rishi Shipping was the stevedore), which arrived at Kandla Port at 2154 hours on October 26, 2015 with 163,808 tonnes of South African coal, discharged the entire volume of the commodity in 143 hours at outer anchorage at an average discharge rate of 27,686 tonnes in 24 hours.
The discharge commenced at 0430 hours on October 27 and was completed at 0300 hours on November 2. The full vessel was discharged at outer anchorage in barges, with the Traffic Manager cooperating in providing barge unloading points. Thus, the vessel worked without any break due to continuous barge availability. The date-wise discharge was as under:-

Thus, 163,808 tonnes of coal was discharged in 142 hours from a Capesize vessel at the outer anchorage of Kandla Port by using floating cranes and barges. The average discharge rate was 27,686 tonnes a day, Mr Mansukhani pointed out.
As per the directions of the government, the Ministry of Shipping is serious about increasing port capacity, for which PPP model terminals have been preferred. The construction of a normal berth costs Rs 300 crore and the port has to invest a huge amount in capital dredging, and then regularly spend on maintenance dredging to maintain 13 metres of draught. Despite spending Rs 200 crore a year, Kandla Port achieves 13 metres draught in the channel only during high tide, and only 12 metres draught on the berths. Therefore, the Port cannot handle more than 12-metre draught vessel on berths 7-10, 12.5-metre draught vessel on berth 12, and the PPP model terminals 13-16 can handle 13-metre draught vessels, he said.
The arrival draught of a Panamax vessel is 14.5 m, while the draught of a mini Cape is 16 m. Therefore, these vessels cannot directly berth unless lighterage is done at OTB with floating crane. A Capesize vessel cannot enter the harbour due to LOA restrictions. But Kandla Port handles 5 million tonnes of cargo a year by discharging full Cape vessels in mid-stream, the communiqué highlighted.
m. v. Cape Jupitor has set an example by discharging 27,686 tonnes on average in 24 hours using floating cranes and barges, Mr Mansukhani emphasised.
He stressed that transloading was the best solution to increase port capacity without much cost and without spending on dredging. Kandla Port has recovered 16 per cent of the total money spent on upgradation of berths and dredging, which ultimately makes for high port logistics cost.
He pointed out that Mr Pradeep Kumar Sinha, current Cabinet Secretary and former Shipping Secretary, had said at a shipping and logistics conference in Delhi, where Mr Mansukhani too was a speaker, that logistics cost at Indian ports was very high, due to which domestic industries were getting imported raw material at high cost, and hence our exports were not viable in the international market. This needs to be addressed and corrected, it was stressed.
He, therefore, requested the government, in the communiqué, to examine the transloading system adopted by Kandla Port and focus on increasing barge handling facilities through floating jetties, without spending money on cement barge jetties. The spare land could thus be given to waterfront industries at reasonable lease charges, to rationalise our port logistics costs.