The postponement of the inauguration of the Captain of Ports terminal in Panaji has triggered a political controversy, with Aam Aadmi Party MLA Venzy Viegas alleging that the delay is linked to the pending passage of the Goa Maritime Board Bill.
On Monday, Viegas handed over a copy of the proposed Goa Maritime Board Bill to Ports Minister Digambar Kamat and urged the government to introduce and pass the legislation in the Goa Legislative Assembly. According to the MLA, the Bill has the potential to transform maritime administration and operations in the state.
Addressing the media, Viegas claimed that the inauguration of the Captain of Ports terminal had been postponed on the instructions of the Union Ports Minister because the Goa Maritime Board has not yet been constituted through legislation.
“Passage of the Bill to constitute the Goa Maritime Board is mandatory. I had moved the Bill in the last Assembly session after getting it vetted by legal experts, but the Bill could not be discussed after the session was scuttled by the election code of conduct,” he said.
The AAP legislator also called for an inquiry into what he described as resistance within the Department of Ports to the introduction and passage of the Bill.
“It appears that certain officers have some vested interests in the continuation of the Captain of Ports,” he said.
Viegas maintained that establishing a Maritime Board would benefit Goa’s maritime sector, including seafarers and shipping-related activities along the west coast.
Responding to the issue, Ports Minister Digambar Kamat said that the Department of Ports has already initiated the process of framing rules under the India Ports Act, which came into force in August 2025.
Kamat told reporters that the department was moving ahead with the implementation framework required under the new legislation, indicating that administrative processes were already underway.
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