List of ports in India

Last updated

Map showing the location of airports and seaports in India Airports and seaports map.png
Map showing the location of airports and seaports in India

In India, ports are categorised into major ports and non-major ports (minor ports). As of 2024, the country has 14 major ports [1] and 217 non-major ports. Major ports are administered by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways under the Government of India, whereas non-major ports fall under the jurisdiction of State Maritime Boards of respective state governments, including private ports operating under the public–private partnership (PPP) model. Among the 217 non-major ports, cargo is handled only at 68 ports, others are used by fishing vessels and ferries. [2]

Contents

India has a coastline of 11,098 kilometres, [3] forming one of the largest peninsulas in the world. According to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, around 95 percent of India's trading by volume and 70 percent by value is done through maritime transport. India's major ports handled highest ever cargo of 795 million tonne in FY23. [4] Mundra Port is the largest container port in India and it's maximum cargo till date received is 338 MMTPA.

Due to the shallow depth of its east coast ports (8-12 meters), [5] India is unable to accommodate large ships, [6] causing 25% of its cargo to be diverted to deeper foreign ports [7] and resulting in an annual economic loss of Rs 1,500-4,500 crore. [8] In 2024, the upcoming International Container Transshipment Port, Galathea Bay was notified as India's 13th major port. However, its first phase of development is expected to be commissioned only in 2028. [1] Port Blair which was notified as major port in 2010 was removed later. The ports are spread across Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal. [9] Government of India plans to build new greenfield ports and also built associated infrastructure such as railway lines through the 2015 established Sagar Mala project, [10] and National Maritime Development Program. [11]

Shipping in India

According to Constitution of India, maritime transport is to be administered by both the Central and the State governments. While the central government's shipping ministry administers the major ports, the minor and intermediate ports are administered by the relevant departments or ministries in the nine coastal states of Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. Several of these 187 minor and intermediate ports have been identified by the respective governments to be developed, in a phased manner, a good proportion of them involving public–private partnership.

The maritime boards of state governments administer control of minor ports owned by state governments. In 2018–19, minor ports of Gujarat alone handled total 542 MMT of cargo. [12] Maharashtra Maritime Board sets record of handling 71 mn tons of cargo in 2022–23. [13]

Capacity

The capacity of Indian ports currently stands at 2,604.99 mtpa. [14] The container throughput of Indian ports stood at 17 million TEUs for the period 2020. [15] Mundra Port is the largest port as well as the highest capacity port in India, and it's also the largest container port by volume. It has a capacity to handle 338 MMT (Million Metric Tons) of cargo annually. Paradip Port has the 2nd highest cargo capacity of 150 MMT. Kandla Port has 3rd highest capacity.

Ship building

MV Goa built by Hindustan Shipyard in 1997 for SCI Eilat 20-05-2012 MV Goa.JPG
MV Goa built by Hindustan Shipyard in 1997 for SCI

India has been building large ships after the independence using companies like Hindustan Shipyard, Pipavav Shipyard and Cochin Shipyard. SS Jala Usha, a steamship built by Hindustan Shipyard in 1948 and the first of its kind to be built within the Indian subcontinent after WW-II.The first oil tanker built by Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) was the MV Rani Padmini, which was delivered in July 1981. [16] India launched 93,000 DWT oil tanker in 2002 under Third Vajpayee ministry, The ship named Maharshi Parashuram built by Cochin Shipyard was 237 meter long double vessel was fitted with 14,300 HP engine. [17] Abul Kalam Azad is another similar-size oil tanker ship built by Cochin Shipyard in 1999 which has been scrapped. [18]

Ship breaking

As of January 2020, India has 30% share of ship breaking with annual US$1.1 billion revenue. India is a signatory to Hong Kong International Convention for the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships. India plans to pass the "Recycling of Ships Act, 2019" to ratify the Hong Kong treaty. This will allow India to capture its targeted 60% in the global ship breaking business while doubling the annual to US$2.3 billion target. [19] India's Alang-Sosiya Ship Breaking Yard is world's largest ships' graveyard. [19] Other ship graveyards in India is the Steel Industrials Kerala Limited breaking unit. [20]

Ports in India

Sagar Mala: port-led development

See Sagar Mala project.

Transshipment ports

Most ports on India's east coast have a depth of 8-12 metres, which is too shallow for large ships. [5] The world's major ports are 12-20 metres deep, which can handle ships weighing more than 1.65 lakh tonnes. [6] That's why 25% of India's cargo goes through foreign ports like Colombo Port Sri Lanka, Jurong Port Singapore and Klang Port Malaysia. [7] This leads to a direct loss of Rs 1,500 crore every year and a setback of Rs 3,000-4,500 crore every year to India's GDP. [8] To move this 25% transshipment from foreignports back to Indian ports, India is developing following deep sea ports as automated global international container transshipment hubs:

Major seaports

The ports under the Central Government of India are known as Major ports, and other ports owned by private operators are classified as Minor ports, irrespective of total cargo handled. The following are the Major ports of India: [41] [42]

No.NameEstb. YearImageArea
(km2)		LocationState/UTCargo handled
in MTPA
(FY2022-23)
1 Chennai Port 1881 Port of Chennai, India - panoramio.jpg Chennai Tamil Nadu 136
2 Cochin Port 1928 Vallarpadam Container Terminal.JPG Kochi Kerala 79.9
3 Deendayal Port 1965 Port of Kandla.jpg 9.83 [43] Kandla Gujarat 269.1
4 Jawaharlal Nehru Port 1988 JNPT Port container handling.jpg 3.37 Navi Mumbai Maharashtra 141.37
5 Kamarajar Port 2001 Ennore Tamil Nadu 91
6 Mormugao Port 1985

Goa-Vasco 03-2016 07 view to Mormugao Harbour.jpg

Mormugao Goa 63.4
7 Mumbai Port 1873 Mumbai Port Trust.JPG Mumbai Maharashtra 84
8 New Mangalore Port 1974 New Mangalore Port.jpg 8.22 Mangaluru Karnataka 114.96
9 Paradip Port 1966 Paradip Port-1.jpg 10 Paradeep Odisha 289.75
10 Haldia Dock Complex 1977 MSC Ricarda II of MSC Line berthed at Haldia Dock Complex's container terminal.jpg 25.77 Haldia West Bengal 92.77
11 Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port 1870 Netaji Subhas Dock of Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port or Port of Kolkata-1.png Kolkata West Bengal 50.7
12 V. O. Chidambaranar Port 1974 A view of Tuticorin Port.jpg 2.428 Thoothukkudi Tamil Nadu 111.46
13 Visakhapatnam Port 1933 Visakhapatnam seaport from Fishing harbour.jpg Visakhapatnam Andhra Pradesh 143.68

Minor seaports

The ports owned by private operators are classified as Minor ports, irrespective of total cargo handled. The following are the Minor ports of India:

No.NameEstb. YearImageCityStateOwnership
1 Mundra Port 1998 Adani Mundra Port Kutch Gujarat.jpg Mundra Gujarat Adani Group
2 Karaikal Port 2009 Karaikal port.jpg Karaikal Puducherry Adani Group
3 Jaigad Port 2006 Jaigad Maharashtra JSW Group
4 Krishnapatnam Port 2008 Krishnapatnam port cranes unloadng a ship.jpg Krishnapatnam Andhra Pradesh Adani Group
5 Dharamtar Port 2012 Alibag Maharashtra JSW Group
6 Hazira Port 2025 Hazira Gujarat Adani Group
7 Dighi Port 2000 Raigad Maharashtra Adani Group
8 Dhamra Port 2011 Dhamra Port.jpg Bhadrak Odisha Adani Group
9 Gopalpur Port 2013 Gopalpur Port.jpg Gopalpur Odisha Adani Group
10 Gangavaram Port 2009 Visakhapatnam Andhra Pradesh Adani Group
11 Kattupalli Port 2012 Kattupalli Tamil Nadu Adani Group
12 Dahej Port 2010 Dahej Gujarat Adani Group
13 Kakinada Port 1999 Far view of Kakinada port from Beach.jpg Kakinada Andhra Pradesh KSL
14 Tuna Port 2022 [44] Tuna Gujarat Adani Group
15 Machilipatnam Port 2025 Machilipatnam port aerial view.png Machilipatnam Andhra Pradesh MPDCL
16 Port Pipavav 2002 Berth portpipavav.JPG Pipavav Gujarat APM Terminals
17 Vizhinjam International Seaport Thiruvananthapuram 2025 MSC Claude at Vizhinjam.jpg Thiruvananthapuram Kerala Adani Group

Unranked seaports

River ports

The following are the River ports of India:

Maritime boards

Maritime boards by state, alphabetical list:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Simhan, T. E. Raja (20 October 2024). "Galathea Bay: New major port can be game changer". Business Line . Retrieved 10 December 2024.
  2. ↑ "Financial Assistance of approx of about Rs. 1891 crore released under Sagarmala schemes, 151 projects sanctioned till date". Pib.gov.in. 20 December 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  3. ↑ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/mha-indias-recalculated-coastline-up-48-in-53-years/articleshow/116927468.cms [ bare URL ]
  4. ↑ "India's Major Ports Handled Highest Ever Cargo Of 795 Million Tonne In FY23: Sarbananda Sonowal". Outlook . Press Trust of India. 28 April 2023.
  5. 1 2 A STUDY ON BERTH AND DEPTH OF MAJOR PORTS IN INDIA, ijcrt.org, accessed 9 Sept 2025.
  6. 1 2 10 Biggest Ports in the World: 2025 Ranking & Analysis, shipfinex.com, accessed 9 Sept 2025.
  7. 1 2 Can India's container transhipment hubs take on Colombo, livemint.com, accessed 9 Sept 2025.
  8. 1 2 Adani Ports focussing on scaling up marine, logistics & agri-logistics biz, economictimes, accessed 9 Sept 2025.
  9. ↑ "MoS, GoI". Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 26 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  10. ↑ "Cabinet gives 'in principle' nod to concept of Sagarmala project". Economic Times, Times of India. 27 March 2015. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
  11. ↑ "National Maritime Development Programme". Press Information Bureau, Government of India. 17 December 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  12. ↑ Media, Gateway (5 April 2019). "GMB ports handle 400 mmt of cargo in 2018-19". Maritime Gateway. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  13. ↑ "Maharashtra Maritime Board sets record of handling 71 mn tons of cargo in 2022-23 - ET Infra".
  14. ↑ Rajan, Jessica (28 July 2023). "Cargo handling capacity of ports to rise in 2024". The Economic Times.
  15. ↑ "Maritime India Vision (MIV) 2030 estimates investments of Rs. 1,00,000–1,25,000 crore for capacity augmentation and development of world-class infrastructure at Indian Ports".
  16. ↑ "Sailing successfully through a sea of change". The Hindu. 13 August 2013. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  17. ↑ "India's biggest oil tanker to be launched today". The Times of India. 22 January 2002. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  18. ↑ Rowles, Grant (1 January 2018). "Shipping Corporation of India sends ageing tanker for scrap". Splash247. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  19. 1 2 India eyes 60 per cent share of global ship recycling business; higher GDP contribution, Economic Times, 30 December 2019.
  20. ↑ Sucheth, P R (26 May 2014). "Locals up in Arms against SILK Ship-breaking Unit". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  21. ↑ "Shri Sarbananda Sonowal visits Galathea Bay in Great Nicobar Island and reviews progress of proposed International Container Transhipment Port (ICTP)". Press Information Bureau . Retrieved 10 December 2024.
  22. ↑ "From vision to reality: Great Nicobar Island's transformation plan". thehillstimes.in. 21 March 2024. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  23. ↑ "Government to build International Container Transhipment Port in Great Nicobar Island". Financialexpress. 27 January 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  24. ↑ Simhan, T. E. Raja (20 October 2024). "Galathea Bay: New major port can be game changer". Business Line . Retrieved 10 December 2024.
  25. ↑ Tuticorin Port Webpage Archived 31 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  26. ↑ Tuticorin Port growth Archived 18 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  27. ↑ "Berth Information". Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  28. ↑ "Cochin Port Authority records highest cargo traffic in FY25". The New Indian Express . Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  29. ↑ "Union Minister Shri Sarbananda Sonowal receives First Mother Ship at Vizhinjam- India's first deep water Container Transhipment Port". pib.gov.in.
  30. ↑ Adani Group's Trivandrum Port: India Maritime Story Welcomes First Mothership At Vizhinjam Port (YouTube). ET Now. 12 July 2024. Event occurs at N/A. Retrieved 25 February 2025.
  31. ↑ "DPR" (PDF). Adani Ports. Adani Ports and SEZ. 31 March 2023. p. 45. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
  32. ↑ "Shipment of Quay Cranes for the Adani Vizhinjam Port Project in India-Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co., Ltd". www.zpmc.com.
  33. ↑ "Environment compliance Report" (PDF). Adani Ports. VISIL, Government of Kerala. 15 June 2021. p. 45. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
  34. ↑ "Vizhinjam Port: A Game-Changer for India's Maritime Trade". 2 May 2025.
  35. ↑ "PM Modi dedicates Vizhinjam international seaport to the nation". The Hindu. 2 May 2025. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  36. ↑ "This memorandum of understanding entered into on 5th day of Jun 2015 at Mumbai. For Development of a satellite port for Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPA) off Vadhvan point south of Dahanu port on the cost of Maharashtra between Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPA) and Maharashtra Maritime Board (MMB)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  37. ↑ "The upcoming 13th Major Port of India, the Vadhavan Port at Maharashtra!!". YouTube . 7 July 2024.
  38. ↑ "India's Mega Port Development Project 'Sagarmala': An Explainer for Investors". 31 August 2018.
  39. ↑ "India to get six new mega ports under Ministry of Shipping's Sagarmala project". November 2016.
  40. ↑ "Executive Summary" For Development Of A Greenfield Port At Vadhavan, District –Palghar, Maharashtra (PDF) (Report). Environmental Consultant Enkay Enviro Services Private Limited. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 April 2024. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  41. ↑ "Cargo handling capacity of Major Ports of the country has gone up to 1617.39 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) as on March 2023". Pib.gov.in. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  42. ↑ "Operational Details". Indian Ports Association. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
  43. ↑ https://sagarmala.gov.in/sites/default/files/5.Final_Master_Plan_Kandla.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  44. ↑ "Union Cabinet decision: Kutch to get 2 new port terminals at Rs 5,963 crore". 13 October 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.