New shipping board is formed to stabilize tariff at major ports, adjudicate PPP Disputes

The MoPSW (Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways) has plans to set up a Major Port Adjudicatory Board that will manage the nodal body for tariff setting and dispute resolution of public-private-partnership for all the major ports. The board will take over the responsibilities of the TAMP (Tariff Authority of India), which is the centralized authority to regulate all tariffs and rates (for cargo and vessels) for properties leased with respect to all major ports trusts, and private parties.

The adjudicatory board will have the same power bestowed in a civil court, and thus will have the authority to provide justice to stressed PPP projects referred by the central government or major port authorities. The new board members will be recommended by a committee comprising the secretary of MoPSW, the Chief Justice of India, and the secretary of the department of personnel and training.

The experts in the sector believe that by setting a board and centralizing powers, the tariff-fixing process will become more convenient, which was a big concern for private operators. Previously, tariff fixing was an argumentative issue, with regular disputes between operations and the government regulators stalling projects for years.