Lockdown hits movement of air and sea cargo via Kochi, exporters lose Rs 4000 crore

KOCHI: The COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent lockdown have severely hit the movement of cargo, especially via air. While the transport of cargo via Kochi airport has shrunk by nearly 70 per cent, the port too has reported lower movement of containers.

“We are doing only 15-20 per cent of normal air cargo operations now,” said A C K Nair, director of Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL). “Before the lockdown, around 200 tonnes of cargo moved via the airport daily. Following the lockdown and the closure of passenger airlines due to fear of contagion, air cargo operations plummeted to 30-40 tonnes,” Nair said.