The indifference and negligence of authorities have led to a reduction in the depth of the Gwadar deep-sea Port to only 11 meters, which means it currently cannot harbor large ships.
The silting in the berths and channels has turned it into a normal port that is unable to receive large ships, an official source told ProPakistani.
Gwadar Port is a warm-water, deep-sea port situated on the Arabian Sea at Gwadar in Balochistan. The length of the approach channel to the port is 4.7 km. The channels were not been dredged during the last three-and-a-half years of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) government and a lot of silt has accumulated in them and reduced their depth, the source said.
The depth of channels and berths should be at least 14.5 meters to handle large ships, the source mentioned and added that silting had reduced the port’s depth, which was originally 18 meters, to 11 meters, rendering it unable to harbor large ships.
In response to a query, the source said that routine dredging is not expensive but since the previous government had completely ignored the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the port was not properly maintained. The deep-sea port can essentially receive large ships but the dredging process that will enable it to do will cost Rs. 7 billion, the source claimed.