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 theMinistry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways under theGovernment of India, whereas non-major ports fall under the jurisdiction of State Maritime Boards of respectivestate governments, including private ports operating under thepublic–private partnership (PPP) model. Among the 217 non-major ports, cargo is handled only at 68 ports, others are used byfishing vessels andferries.[2]
India has a coastline of 11,098 kilometres,[3] forming one of the largestpeninsulas 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 upcomingInternational 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 acrossAndaman and Nicobar Islands,Andhra Pradesh,Goa,Gujarat,Karnataka,Kerala,Maharashtra,Odisha,Puducherry,Tamil Nadu, andWest Bengal.[9] Government of India plans to build new greenfield ports and also built associated infrastructure such as railway lines through the 2015 establishedSagar Mala project,[10] and National Maritime Development Program.[11]
According toConstitution of India,maritime transport is to be administered by both the Central and the State governments. While the central government'sshipping ministry administers the major ports, the minor and intermediate ports are administered by the relevant departments or ministries in the nine coastal states ofAndhra Pradesh,Goa,Gujarat,Karnataka,Kerala,Maharashtra,Odisha,Tamil Nadu andWest 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 involvingpublic–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]
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.
India has been building large ships after the independence using companies likeHindustan Shipyard,Pipavav Shipyard andCochin Shipyard.SS Jala Usha, a steamship built byHindustan 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 theMV Rani Padmini, which was delivered in July 1981.[16] India launched 93,000 DWT oil tanker in 2002 underThird Vajpayee ministry, The ship namedMaharshi Parashuram built byCochin 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 byCochin Shipyard in 1999 which has been scrapped.[18]
As of January 2020[update], India has 30% share ofship breaking with annual US$1.1 billion revenue. India is a signatory toHong 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'sAlang-Sosiya Ship Breaking Yard is world's largestships' graveyard.[19] Other ship graveyards in India is theSteel Industrials Kerala Limited breaking unit.[20]
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 likeColombo Port Sri Lanka,Jurong Port Singapore andKlang 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:
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. | Name | Estb. Year | Image | Area (km2) | Location | State/UT | Cargo handled in MTPA (FY2022-23) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chennai Port | 1881 |  | Chennai | Tamil Nadu | 136 | |
| 2 | Cochin Port | 1928 |  | Kochi | Kerala | 79.9 | |
| 3 | Deendayal Port | 1965 |  | 9.83[43] | Kandla | Gujarat | 269.1 |
| 4 | Jawaharlal Nehru Port | 1988 |  | 3.37 | Navi Mumbai | Maharashtra | 141.37 |
| 5 | Kamarajar Port | 2001 | Ennore | Tamil Nadu | 91 | ||
| 6 | Mormugao Port | 1985 |
| Mormugao | Goa | 63.4 | |
| 7 | Mumbai Port | 1873 |  | Mumbai | Maharashtra | 84 | |
| 8 | New Mangalore Port | 1974 |  | 8.22 | Mangaluru | Karnataka | 114.96 |
| 9 | Paradip Port | 1966 |  | 10 | Paradeep | Odisha | 289.75 |
| 10 | Haldia Dock Complex | 1977 |  | 25.77 | Haldia | West Bengal | 92.77 |
| 11 | Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port | 1870 |  | Kolkata | West Bengal | 50.7 | |
| 12 | V. O. Chidambaranar Port | 1974 |  | 2.428 | Thoothukkudi | Tamil Nadu | 111.46 |
| 13 | Visakhapatnam Port | 1933 |  | Visakhapatnam | Andhra Pradesh | 143.68 |
The ports owned by private operators are classified as Minor ports, irrespective of total cargo handled. The following are the Minor ports of India:
The following are the River ports of India:
Maritime boards by state, alphabetical list:
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